Plankton

High school (ages 12+)
Animals & Nature

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/plankton

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the diet?Phytoplankton are photoautotrophs. Zooplankton are heterotrophs, consuming phytoplankton, other zooplankton, or detritus
2. What is the oxygen production?Responsible for producing an estimated 50-85% of Earth's atmospheric oxygen through photosynthesis
3. What are plankton and why are they called "tiny superstars"?Plankton are microscopic organisms that drift in the ocean and fresh water. They are called superstars because they help make oxygen and food for many sea creatures.
4. How do phytoplankton help the planet?Phytoplankton use sunlight to turn carbon dioxide into oxygen and food. They also help keep the air clean by storing carbon deep in the ocean.

Biological Carbon Pump: Oceanographic process that transfers carbon from the atmosphere to the deep sea via biological activity.
Meroplankton: Organisms that are planktonic for only part of their life cycle, typically as larvae.
Holoplankton: Organisms that spend their entire lives as plankton, from larval to adult stages.
Bioindicator: An organism whose presence, absence, or abundance reflects the condition of an ecosystem.