Deep Sea Ecosystem Cards

Read each ecosystem card below. Notice the descriptive clues. Match each card to one of the photos in the Deep Sea Ecosystems photo gallery.

Ecosystem Name: Hydrothermal Vent Ecosystem Name: Abyssal Plains

Description: Like underwater geysers, Description: A lot of the ocean is more ✁ water and chemicals shoot out of the like a desert than anything else. There ocean floor looking like smoke. Lots of are very few animals and no plants to be animals live around these sources of seen! energy, food, and community.

Ecosystem Name: Brine Pool Ecosystem Name: Deep Sea Chimneys

Description: These “underwater lakes” Description: Just like mountains erode are areas where the water is very salty. and streams dry up, hydrothermal vents This makes it hard for animals to live don’t last forever. They may stop here. “erupting” or an earthquake can topple the towers.

Ecosystem Name: Whale Fall Ecosystem Name: Cold Seeps

Description: When large animals—like Description: In some places, cold whales—die in the ocean, they sink to water and chemicals “seep,” or ooze the bottom, creating a great food source out, cracks in the ground. Animals, like for other animals. These animals will live mussels and other shellfish, gather at a whale fall and make it a temporary around these places to live and get food ecosystem until the whale is decayed and energy. and there is no food left. © 2012 National Geographic Society