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The knowledge of ecosystems is a world that gives us surprising discoveries about how nature works. At different scales, from organisms and individuals to communities of species, we will be able to discover different adaptation techniques that living beings carry out in their day to day to survive in their habitats. These habitats are sometimes found in terrestrial regions, sometimes in aquatic areas or even in mixed regions (land-water or air-land).
In the following Green Ecologist article we will focus exclusively on aquatic ecosystems, within which the lentic ecosystems appear, whose name may still be unknown to some readers. Continue reading the article to discover the Lentic ecosystems: what they are, examples and their characteristics main.
Types of water or aquatic ecosystems
The different types of aquatic ecosystems We can classify them into two large groups, depending on whether they are made up of salty or fresh water. Let's see, next, all the types of natural water ecosystems that we can find around the world.
Marine aquatic ecosystems (salt water)
- Seas
- Oceans
- Marshes
In this other post we will talk more about what are the saltwater aquatic ecosystems and their characteristics.
Freshwater aquatic ecosystems
- Rivers and streams
- Lakes and lagoons
- Swamps
- Wetlands
Here you can learn more about freshwater aquatic ecosystems, their characteristics and examples.
Within this classification of freshwater aquatic ecosystems, if we look at the "behavior" of the water within the ecosystem, we can also distinguish between lotic ecosystems, in which its waters follow their course mainly in one direction (rivers and streams), and the lentic ecosystems, those that present a closed structure, in which their waters are permanently stagnant (lakes and lagoons, swamps and wetlands).
In the next section we will focus exclusively on knowing in detail the main characteristics of lentic ecosystems.
What are lentic ecosystems and their characteristics
Lentic ecosystems are those freshwater aquatic systems in which, due to its closed structure, its waters remain stagnant. These are inland aquatic systems in which there is no current flow between their waters.
Throughout the life cycle of lentic ecosystems their depth gradually decreases, until they disappear, at which time they also have abundant vegetation. When droughts persist or during the summer months, many lentic ecosystems dry up, because rainwater is the only source of water that they receive and that allows them to renew the stagnant water.
In all lentic ecosystems we can distinguish three well-marked areas:
- Littoral zone: It is the closest area to the terrestrial region, with a large number of species of flora and fauna. It is very shallow and receives a lot of sunlight. The living beings that inhabit this area of the lentic ecosystem have a large amount of oxygen and nutrients at their disposal, thus favoring the dynamism that characterizes the coastal area.
- Lymphatic zone: It is located in the center of the ecosystem, being the intermediate region in which the largest number of fish that make up the lentic ecosystem inhabit.
- Deep zone: It barely has sunlight and is characterized by sediments that are deposited on the bottom and by the presence of some fish and mollusks.
Now that we have seen what lentic ecosystems are and their main characteristics, let's take a closer look at some examples of these in the next section.
Lentic ecosystems: examples
The different lentic ecosystems present differences in terms of their depth and dimensions, which at the same time is directly related to the amount of biodiversity they harbor. These are the different examples of lentic ecosystems found in nature:
Lakes and lagoons
They are the most representative lentic ecosystems and have a medium-large extension, as well as a depth that reaches 2,000 meters in some deep lakes.
In this other article we will tell you more about these types of ecosystems, explaining the Difference between lake and lagoon and their characteristics.
Wetlands and swamps
Both are characterized by being very shallow, which is directly related to the large number of plant species that they house, as well as amphibians and reptiles.
Ponds
They are artificial lentic aquatic ecosystems, since they are created by humans with the aim of storing water in closed structures for a specific purpose, such as fish farming.
Puddles
They are aquatic ecosystems with smaller stagnant waters. These lentic ecosystems are ideal for providing water to animals of various groups that are grazing, flying over or simply walking around the pond.
Esteros
These lentic ecosystems have the appearance of a large swamp. They are normally formed due to the overflow of a river or lagoon during the winter months and heavy rains, leaving the stagnant waters in the flat areas that constitute the estuary.
Difference between lentic and lotic ecosystems
The main differences between lentic ecosystems and lotic ecosystems are two: their movement or behavior and their areas or main parts into which they are divided.
Behavior of lentic and lotic ecosystems
As we have been discovering throughout this article, the main characteristic of lentic ecosystems is that their waters always remain stagnant, without any type of flows or currents. In contrast, the waters of lotic ecosystems are highly dynamic, characterized by flowing mainly in one direction.
Parts of lentic and lotic ecosystems
On the other hand, we have already seen how lentic ecosystems present three zones in their structure (limnetic and deep littoral), while lotics are made up of a zone of rapids (very fast water currents that prevent the deposition of materials in the areas lower) and the backwater zone (located in depth, with slower water currents and in which various sediments accumulate, such as silt).
In this image you can see more information about the differences between lotic and lentic ecosystems and in this other Green Ecologist article you can find more information about lentic ecosystems: what they are and examples.
If you want to read more articles similar to Lentic ecosystems: what they are and examples, we recommend that you enter our Ecosystems category.
Bibliography- Schindler, D. & Scheuerell, M. (2002) Habitat coupling in lake ecosystems. Oikos 98: 177-189.
- Ward, J. (1989). The four-dimensional nature of lotic ecosystems. Benthol. Soc. 8: 2-8
- Roselli, L., Fabbrocini, C. & D’Adamo, R. (2009) Hydrological heterogeneity, nutrient dynamics and water quality of a non-tidal lentic ecosystem (Lesina Lagoon, Italy). Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 84: 539-552.
