ENVIRNONMENTAL SCIENCE A

the bottom of a body of water, which is inhabited by decomposers, insect larvae, and lams

areas that have distinctive climates and ecosystems, usually named for plantlife because the plants that can grow in an area determine what other organisms can live there

trees more than 30 m (100 feet) that absorb at least 95 percent of the sunlight, leaving the lower forest in shadows

a biome that occurs in the mid-latitudes, about 30 degreees north and south of the equator, lies mostly in costal areas that have mediterranean cllimates - hand hot dry summers; mild wet winters; little variations in seasonal temperature

limestone islands in the sea that are built by coral animals called polyps, thousands of species of plants and animals live in the cracks and crevices making coral reefs among the most diverse ecosystems on Earth; only in warm salty water where there is light for photosynthesis, so found in shallow tropical seas.

areas that receive less than 25 cm (10 in) of percipitation a year, hot deserts are close to the equator, they often occur in the rain shadow of mountains that block the passage of moisture-filled clouds

desert plants that spread their roots out widely just under teh surface to catch as much rain as possible, allowing them to live through the worst desert conditions

when animals such as amphibians, survive desert summers by burying themselves in the ground and sleeping through the dry season

an ecosystem in which fresh water from rivers mixes with salt water from the ocean, it becomes a nutrient trap, where mineral rich mud drops to the bottom - most productive ecosystmes because of plenty of light and nutrients, organisms that live in esturaies are able to tolerate variations in salinity

shallow areas close to the shores of lakes and ponds that has diverse and abundant aquatic life