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Coastal ecosystems - Rocky shores.
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| Submitted: Mon Oct 20 2003
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COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS: ROCKY SHORES CONTENTS: 1. The nature of the environment 2. Distribution on the rocky shore 3. Structure of the community 4. The rocky shore system 5. Adaptations to life on the rocky shore 1. THE NATURE OF THE ENVIRONMENT Constant features: * It is intertidal, and is therefore subject to varying degrees of submersion and emersion * It has a rocky substrate. This is difficult to bore into, so organisms have to sit on the surface and be exposed to the elements. Variable features: * Topography: can have steep cliffs or gentle platforms, smooth slopes or irregular, weathered patterns. This is turn affects how exposed organisms are to the elements. * Exposure to waves: as discussed in the first week, some shores face the open sea, some are in sheltered bays or channels. * Temperature: Some face north, some south, and emersion is therefore less or more dangerous. So, for the nature of the environment, think of...
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