What are the characteristics of rocky shore?

Rocky shores as ecosystems

  • Platforms. These are flat (planar) platforms that were formed when waves, wind and rain carved into rock.
  • Rock pools. These are depressions usually formed when a boulder lodges in a depression in the rock and grinds a hollow as it rolls around in the waves.
  • Pebbles, Cobbles and Boulders.

What are the characteristics of a rocky intertidal shore community?

Rocky intertidal areas are a biologically rich environment that can include several distinct habitat types like steep rocky cliffs, platforms, rock pools and boulder fields. Because of the permanent action of tides and waves, it is characterized by erosional features.

What is rocky shore ecosystem?

Rocky shore ecosystems are coastal shores made from solid rock. They are a tough habitat to live on yet they are home for a number of different animals and algae. Rocky shore ecosystems are governed by the tidal movement of water.

How are the boundaries and characteristics of the rocky shore determined?

The upper limit is often controlled by physiological limits on species tolerance of temperature and drying. The lower limit is often determined by the presence of predators or competing species.

How are rocky shores formed?

Rocky shores are mostly formed as a result of denudation of the over-burden and bedrock caused by a combination of sea level rise and wave action in areas of limited sedimentation (Ruwa 1996).

What is a rocky beach?

Rocky beaches occur where coastal cliffs erode and crumble into large rock deposits along the the shoreline, blocking the build up of smaller, sandy sediment. Rocky beaches are areas of rich intertidal biodiversity.

How are rocky coastlines formed?

Rocky coastlines form in a high-energy environment where erosion > deposition. Erosion is continuously moving transported and deposited sediment as well as slowly eroding the cliff.

Why are rocky shores stable?

Unlike rapidly changing sandy shores, rocky shore habitats are relatively stable and provide secure surfaces for living things to attach to and hide within. The wind, waves, and temperature and salinity of the water work together with the animals that live there to shape the shoreline.

What is the difference between rocky and sandy shores?

Type of formation While rocky shores often occur in areas of high wave energy, sandy shores are a characteristic of areas of high depositional activity, resulting into wave deposited accumulations of sediment on or close to the shoreline.

How do organisms adapt to rocky shores?

Adapting to rocky shores Some adaptive features include migration to an underwater area (if they are mobile), restricting activities (reduced metabolism) and attaching more firmly to the rocks along with resistant shells and the ability to retain water. Molluscs on the rocky shore are mostly univalved (one shell).

Where is rocky beach?

Rocky Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located on the Pacific West Coast 12 miles east of Malibu and 19 miles west from Santa Monica on the Santa Monica Bay.