Connecticut Water Trails Association
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Connecticut Water Trails Association |
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Connecticut Water Trails Program
Estuaries
The Cycle Of Life
Energy is cycled through the estuarine food web from producers and
autotrophs to consumers and decomposers.
Estuaries include plants and animals that contribute to all levels of the food web. Organisms that live in estuaries can be described and grouped based on the role they play in the food web.
In all estuaries, animals and plants rely on each other through the food web. Plants in estuaries are producers. They can also be called autotrophs , a type of producer that makes its energy using sun light through a process called photosynthesis. Producers are important to the productivity of estuaries, because they are the base of the food web. Some bacteria are also important producers. These bacteria, also called decomposers, break down dead animals and plants. They are very important to estuaries because they recycle organic matter and nutrients back into the soil and water. Decomposers work at all levels of the food web. Other living organisms are consumers. Consumers eat producers and other consumers.
Consumers (fish, shorebirds, frogs) may eat one or
more kind of plant, insect, fish or small reptile. Larger predators
(snakes, hawks, fish) consume small consumers. Populations depend on
their prey for energy. If a disturbance occurs in one population level,
it may have consequences for the predators of that organism, and for
other trophic levels above and below it.
Something Rotten
Estuaries are full of decaying plants and animals. This makes the soil of estuaries rich in nutrients. Because the soil is so rich, lots of different plants grow in estuaries. The plants attract lots of different animals to the estuary and those animals attract other animals to the estuary. Common animals include: shore and sea birds, fish, crabs, lobsters, clams and other shellfish, marine worms, raccoons, opossums, skunks and lots of reptiles.
Rock-a-Bye Baby
Estuaries are often called the nurseries of the ocean. Many fish species lay their eggs in estuaries. The abundant plant life in estuaries provides a safe place for young fish to live.
For The Birds
Birds are also abundant in estuaries. Between the plants and the fish and other animal life, there's lots for them to eat. Many migratory birds like the Canada Goose use estuaries as resting and feeding places when they migrate. Long-legged birds like sandpipers, great blue herons, great egrets, and green herons are common in estuaries. Their long legs are perfect for wading in the water and their long toes make walking in the mud easy! Their bills are adapted for catching and eating fish, worms, crabs and other invertebrates that live in the estuary
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