Interactions Among
Living Things
and
Non – Living Things
in Estuary
An estuary is a place where the freshwater from the
river mixes with the salt-water from the sea.
Biotic factors are the living components in an
ecosystem. These include all the plants, animals, and
microorganisms found in estuaries such as mangrove
trees, migratory birds, and small fishes.
Abiotic factors, on the other hand, are non-living
components in the ecosystem. These are the factors that
affect organisms in estuaries. These include waves,
salinity, temperature, amount of sunlight, and type of
soil.
Directions: Read the poem and make a list of biotic and abiotic factors mentioned by the author.
Make a table like the one below on your answer sheet where you can write your answer.
AMAZING ECOSYSTEM
Author: Rachel E. Oronia
Sunlight, soil, waves, temperature, nutrients, & salinity
Are abiotic factors affecting organisms’ survival in estuarine
ecology Sunlight helps them grow, it aids plants’
photosynthesis
It secures animal growth and plants’ food-making
process Nutrients and minerals from soil keep plants
healthy
Organisms keep up with temperature changes though oceans
are wavy Salinity in estuaries is also a great need
For organisms to survive and feed
Biotic Factors Abiotic Factors
PLANTS WAVES
ANIMALS SALINITY
ORGANISMS SUNLIGHT
SOIL
TEMPERATURE
NUTRIENTS
ACTIVITY TIME!!!
C-Cooperate with your group mates
U-Use soft voices
T-Take the task seriously
E-Encourage everyone to participate
• Waves refer to the movement of
the surface of the water. These
are strong forces that organisms
must learn to live with. An
example of these organisms is
the kelp, a kind of algae, which
has strong root-like structures
that attach themselves to rocks
to keep it from being carried
away by the waves.
Salinity refers to the amount of salt
in water. The combination of
seawater and freshwater in estuaries
is called brackish water. Mangroves
and blue crabs have adjusted well to
the constantly changing salinity of
water due to the nonstop flow of
freshwater and saltwater through
the estuary.
Temperature refers to the
level of hotness and
coldness of the water.
Temperature differs because
of the tides and the amount
of sunlight. Some organisms
use plants like mangroves to
keep themselves concealed
from direct sunlight or away
from the coldness of the
water.
Since estuaries are shallow
as compared to the seas,
they are conducive for
photosynthesis to take place.
Algae, seaweeds, seagrasses,
and other marine plants
depend on the amount of
sunlight that they receive in
the estuaries.
The type of soil varies in the
estuaries depending on the strength
of waves and the kinds of rocks
present in the area. Some areas are
full of rocks, sand, pebbles, or clay.
The topsoil layer found in an estuary
is composed mostly of peat or salt
crust. Salt can be found within the
soil which can be acidic, posing
problems to the survival of plant life.
Try me…
Directions: Unscramble the letters in Column A to form the word being described by the phrase in
Column B.
Column A Column B
1. NIALSIYT amount of salt in water
2. PUREMEATTER hotness or coldness of water
3. SEAWV movement of the surface of water
4. LOSI source of nutrients of living organisms like plants
5. LUNGTHSI needed by plants for the photosynthesis
Do It Again!!!
Directions: Write True if the statement conveys correct information and
False if not.
False
_________1. Biotic factors are the non-living factors in the environment.
True
__________2. Plants and animals need abiotic factors in order to survive.
True
_________3. Mangroves provide shelter to marine organisms.
False
________ 4. Sharks, dolphins, and other big fishes may also be found visiting in
estuaries.
_________5.
True Migratory birds would stay in estuaries because of the
availability of food in the area.
Assignment
Do a Research
Choose an estuary animal and plant in which you are
interested to know more about. Create a poster that shows
the interesting facts you’ll find out about it. You may include
the adaptations and interactions to inhabit in estuary
