Aquatic Ecosystems
📋 What it is
Water ecosystems (rivers, lakes, oceans, wetlands) hold much of Earth’s life and cycle its water.
🗣️ Coach says
Most of Earth is water, and its aquatic ecosystems teem with life. Freshwater (rivers, lakes) and saltwater (oceans, estuaries) each host different species. Oceans also drive weather and absorb huge amounts of carbon — they’re not just habitats, they run planet-wide systems.
🧠 Memory hook
Rivers, lakes, oceans, wetlands — water ecosystems hold most life and run big systems.
😂 Giggle
What did the biome say to the weather?
"You make me who I am — literally!"
😲 Whoa!
The ocean produces MORE than half the oxygen you breathe — from tiny drifting algae, not trees.
✅ Quick check: Besides being habitats, name one planet-wide job the oceans do.
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
They regulate climate/weather and absorb carbon dioxide (and produce much of Earth’s oxygen).
Oceans drive climate and carbon systems, not just host life.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Think of a nearby body of water. Name one living thing in it and one way it connects to the water cycle.