midwater
Neither top nor bottom
Midwater describes the zone of ocean or lake between the surface and the bottom—the open water column where light fades and pressure increases.
Marine biologists study midwater ecosystems: midwater fish, midwater trawling.
The term appears in fishing and oceanography to distinguish from surface and bottom environments: The squid rose from midwater to feed at night.
Mid-depth ocean layer
- pelagicOf the open sea
- thermoclineRapid temperature-change layer
- haloclineSharp saltiness change layer
- intermediateBetween two levels
Drifting aquatic microorganisms
- jellyfishDrifting marine stinger
- squidTen-armed marine mollusk
- krillSmall marine crustaceans
- copepodsMinute aquatic crustaceans
lanternfish · hatchetfish · viperfish · dragonfish · gelatinous · nekton · drifters · bioluminescent
Total absence of light
- pressureForce upon contact
- coldLow temperature state
- bioluminescenceOrganism-generated light emission
- dimLow in light
faint light · nutrient-poor · sparse · vast · silent · currents · upwelling · downwelling
Underwater exploration vehicle
- ROVPiloted-from-above underwater craft
- sonarUnderwater detection by echoes
- echo sounderAcoustic depth-measuring instrument
- acousticRelating to sound
sampling · trawl · oceanography · research vessel · bathymetry · expedition · discovery
mesopelagic
Mid-depth ocean layer
- pelagicOf the open sea
- thermoclineRapid temperature-change layer
- haloclineSharp saltiness change layer
zooplankton
Drifting aquatic microorganisms
copepods · lanternfish · hatchetfish · viperfish · dragonfish · gelatinous · nekton · drifters · bioluminescent · filter feeders
darkness
Total absence of light
- pressureForce upon contact
- coldLow temperature state
- bioluminescenceOrganism-generated light emission
dim · faint light · nutrient-poor · sparse · vast · silent · currents · upwelling · downwelling · scattered light
submersible
Underwater exploration vehicle
- ROVPiloted-from-above underwater craft
- sonarUnderwater detection by echoes
- echo sounderAcoustic depth-measuring instrument
acoustic · sampling · trawl · oceanography · research vessel · bathymetry · expedition · discovery
food web
Interconnected predator-prey relationships
spawning · biomass · scavengers · prey · predators
- ocean depthsshallow, deep, abyss, deep sea, deep ocean
- deep seaabyss, seabed, ocean floor, ocean depths, seafloor