Food Webs
20 food webs
Antarctic Ocean Food Web
Southern Ocean — surrounding Antarctica
The Antarctic Ocean food web is built on the enormous productivity of Antarctic krill, which forms the critical link between phytoplankton and virtually all higher …
Antarctic Peninsula Coastal Food Web
Antarctic Peninsula — Western Antarctica
The Antarctic Peninsula is warming faster than almost any other region on Earth, with dramatic impacts on sea ice-dependent food webs. Adelie penguin populations are …
Baltic Sea Food Web
Northern Europe — between Scandinavia and Continental Europe
The Baltic Sea is one of the world's largest brackish water bodies, with salinity declining from west to east. This gradient creates a unique food …
Bering Sea Food Web
Bering Sea — between Alaska and Russia
The Bering Sea continental shelf supports one of the world's most productive marine food webs, including the largest walleye pollock fishery on Earth. Sea ice …
Chesil Beach Intertidal Food Web
British Isles — Southern England coast
Rocky intertidal zones along temperate coastlines support vertically zonated food webs compressed into narrow tidal bands. Sessile organisms like barnacles and mussels compete fiercely for …
East China Sea Continental Shelf Food Web
East China Sea — between China, Korea, and Japan
The East China Sea continental shelf receives massive nutrient inputs from the Yangtze River, creating a productive but heavily exploited marine food web. Large yellow …
Galapagos Marine Food Web
Galapagos Islands — Ecuador, Eastern Pacific
The Galapagos marine food web is fueled by nutrient-rich upwelling from the Cromwell Current, creating exceptional productivity in equatorial waters. This isolated archipelago supports endemic …
Galveston Bay Estuary Food Web
Texas Gulf Coast, United States
Galveston Bay is a highly productive Texas estuary supporting major shrimp and oyster fisheries. Freshwater inflow from the Trinity and San Jacinto rivers creates salinity …
Gulf of California Marine Food Web
Northwestern Mexico — between Baja California and mainland Mexico
The Gulf of California, called the Sea of Cortez, was described by Jacques Cousteau as the world's aquarium. Nutrient upwelling supports extraordinary marine productivity from …
Gulf Stream Pelagic Food Web
Western North Atlantic — from Gulf of Mexico to Northern Europe
The Gulf Stream is a powerful western boundary current transporting warm tropical water along the US East Coast and across the North Atlantic. This current …
Humboldt Current Marine Food Web
South America — Peru and Chile Pacific coast
The Humboldt Current along South America's west coast creates one of the world's most productive marine ecosystems through intense coastal upwelling. Anchoveta form enormous schools …
Indian Ocean Pelagic Food Web
Indian Ocean — from East Africa to Indonesia
The Indian Ocean pelagic food web is structured by monsoonal upwelling that reverses direction seasonally, creating predictable productivity patterns. Tuna, billfish, and whale sharks follow …
Kelp Forest Food Web
Eastern Pacific — California to Alaska
Pacific kelp forests form towering underwater ecosystems where giant kelp can grow up to 60 cm per day. Sea otters maintain forest health by preying …
North Sea Pelagic Food Web
Northwestern Europe — between Great Britain, Scandinavia, and Continental Europe
The North Sea is a shallow continental shelf sea supporting one of the most heavily fished marine food webs globally. Seasonal phytoplankton blooms driven by …
Sargasso Sea Food Web
Western North Atlantic Ocean
The Sargasso Sea is a unique open-ocean ecosystem defined by currents rather than coastlines, characterized by floating Sargassum seaweed mats. These mats create a floating …
Scandinavian Fjord Food Web
Western Norway — Lofoten to Bergen
Norwegian fjords are deep, sheltered marine environments where freshwater runoff creates a stratified water column. Cold, nutrient-rich Atlantic water enters at depth while a freshwater …
Southern Ocean Krill-Centered Food Web
Southern Ocean — circumpolar around Antarctica
Antarctic krill biomass is estimated at 300-500 million tonnes, making them possibly the most abundant wild animal species by mass. This food web revolves around …
South Pacific Seamount Food Web
South Pacific Ocean — Tasman Sea, around New Zealand and Pacific island chains
Seamounts are underwater mountains rising from the deep ocean floor, creating current upwelling that concentrates nutrients and supports dense biological communities. These hotspots attract pelagic …
Wadden Sea Tidal Flat Food Web
North Sea Coast — Netherlands, Germany, Denmark
The Wadden Sea is the world's largest unbroken tidal flat system, stretching along the North Sea coasts of the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark. Twice daily, …
West African Upwelling Marine Food Web
Northwest Africa — Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal
The Canary Current upwelling system off northwest Africa is one of the four major eastern boundary upwelling ecosystems, supporting some of the world's richest fisheries. …