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Interactions of biological and physical processes in the ocean and how physical processes regulate productivity and distribution of organisms in oceanic and coastal ecosystems, from the microscale to the macroscale.
We start with the biological effects of diffusion, turbulence and viscosity, fronts, tides, upwelling and mesoscale eddies and move forward to study the influence of large-scale phenomena, like El Niño - Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, on marine ecosystems. To finish, we learn about the biological pump and the importance of marine organisms in the global carbon cycle and climate change. This paper is convenient in view of the current concern about the role of the oceans in climate change due to the increasing need to understand the integrated biological-physical functioning of marine ecosystems and the links between different scales. This paper includes a field trip to study the effect of mesoscale hydrological processes on picoplankton distribution and activity across the Southland Front, offshore Otago.
| Paper title | Biological Oceanography |
|---|---|
| Paper code | OCEN322 |
| Subject | Oceanography |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 2 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees (NZD) | $1,092.15 |
| International Tuition Fees (NZD) | $5,004.75 |
- Prerequisite
- MARI 112, and One of BIOL 112, BIOL 123, EAOS 111, ECOL 111 and two 200-level science papers from Science Schedule C
- Recommended Preparation
- AQFI 251, OCEN 201, OCEN 301
- Schedule C
- Science
- Contact
Dr Bridie Allan (bridie.allan@otago.ac.nz)
- More information link
- View more information about OCEN 322
- Teaching staff
Course Co-ordinator: Dr Bridie Allan
- Textbooks
- Recommended: Dynamics of Marine Ecosystems: Biological-Physical Interactions in the Oceans (3rd ed), by Kenneth Mann, 2005
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Global perspective, Interdisciplinary perspective, Scholarship, Communication, Critical
thinking, Ethics, Information literacy, Research, Self-motivation, Teamwork.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
- Students will develop an integrated understanding of the interplay between physical and biological processes occurring in marine ecosystems at all scales, from less than a kilometre to the size of whole oceans.
