Neritic Zone Houses Majority Of Sea Lives

Known by various names such as the coastal ocean, coastal zone, coastal waters, or sublittoral zone, the neritic zone is that part of the ocean that extends from the low tide mark to that of the edge of continental shelf. Usually the area will have shallow depth that could extend up to 200 meters.

Neritic Zone Features

Some of the major features of neritic zone are –
It has well oxygenated water;
Contains low water pressure;
The temperature of the area is relatively stable;
Salinity levels are stable as well;
Presence of light and photosynthetic life makes the zone the perfect location for majority of the sea lives.

Type of Sea Life

Multiple types of sea creatures are found in the neritic zone. From the zooplankton or free floating creatures to that of small fishes and shrimps all live in the zone. That makes the neritic zone as one of the largest fishing areas of the world. As the zone terminates at the continental shelves while descending rapidly to the oceanic crust and the pelagic zones water remains shallow and helps many smaller creatures in the sea making it their home land.

Encyclopedia Definitions

According to the definitions provided in the Cambridge encyclopedia volumes and others; neritic zone refers to the shallow marine environment that extends from the mean low water levels down to around 200 meters of depth and it generally corresponds to the continental shelf. Other characteristics of the zone are –
Varying degrees of sunlight penetrates the zone permitting photosynthesis by both the plank tonic and bottom dwelling organisms.
Both planktonik and bottom dwelling organisms can survive in the environment.
The zone is full of nutrients as well as numerous biologic activities due to its close proximity to land surface.
Bottom sediments of the zone are made of very coarse and land derived materials.
In some low latitude regions a lot of calcium carbonates sediments.
Calcium carbonate sediments are the offshoot of organisms such as algae, corals, and bacteria.

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