Définition : The area of the foreshore and seabed that is exposed to the air at low tide and submerged at high tide, i.e., the area between tide marks.
Définition : Living in the fluid medium (water or air) but unable to maintain their position or distribution independently of the movement of the water/air mass (adapted from Lincoln et al., 1998).
Définition : The marine benthic biome (benthic meaning 'bottom') encompasses the seafloor and includes such areas as shores, littoral or intertidal areas, marine coral reefs, and the deep seabed.
Définition : The marine salt marsh biome comprises marshes that are transitional intertidals between land and salty or brackish marine water (e.g.: sloughs, bays, estuaries). It is dominated by halophytic (salt tolerant) herbaceous plants. The daily tidal surges bring in nutrients, which tend to settle in roots of the plants within the salt marsh. The natural chemical activity of salty (or brackish) water and the tendency of algae to bloom in the shallow unshaded water also allow for great biodiversity.
Définition : Expressions of the estuarine biome occur at wide lower courses of a rivers where they flow into a sea. Estuaries experience tidal flows and their water is a changing mixture of fresh and salt.
Définition : Eye-spots which may be set into a pit to reduce the angles of light that enters, to allow the organism to deduce the angle of incoming light. Lens-like structures may be present, but stemmata, unlike lens eyes, cannot form an image, either for lack of refractive power or retinal resolution.
