We all agree that classification and taxonomy of organisms are desirable and necessary in cases of biological work. But, there is much disagreement as to the best method of classifying and naming living things. The zoologists and the botanists have arranged matters in their fields fairly satisfactorily, largely on the …

Pasturage of the Sea The vast ocean water is about 99%, of which usually up to 200 m depth or beyond (up to 300 m, depending on the latitudes, seasons, and water transparency) phytoplankton grow constituting “pasturage of the sea”.  Their photosynthetic activity contributes about 80% oxygen in the atmosphere …

The word ‘plankton’ has been derived from a Gr. word ‘planktos’ means drifting. So, plankton is those microscopic aquatic organisms or drifters whose movement is mainly driven by water currents, waves, tides, etc. Plankton can be two types- zooplankton, and phytoplankton. Although, some of them might possess some kinds of …

Marine Botany is the study of aquatic plants and algae that live in oceans, seas, intertidal zones and even in brackish water (more saline than freshwater but less saline than true marine environments) of estuarine zones. It is a combined branch of marine biology and botany. According to Wikipedia, Marine …

The cultivation of nori started about 300 yrs ago around the coast of Tokyo Bay and developed gradually in many localities Bundles of twigs of trees such as oaks, cherry, etc. were set in rows on the ground as the collectors, to which nori spores attach themselves and grow. In …

Of the global seaweed harvest, 85% – 95% goes to the food industry and is worth approx €4.1 billion per annum (p.a.). The most valuable crop produced by seaweed aquaculture is Nori – Porphyra – a red seaweed or alga. The value of this crop is around US$ 2 billion …

Seaweed refers to several species of macroscopic, multi-cellular, marine algae. Macroalgae, which are found in the Divisions Chlorophyta, Phaeophyta and Rhodophyta are commonly called seaweeds because of their size, multicellular construction, and attachment to firm substrata. The three major divisions of seaweeds contain taxa that have more fundamental (e.g. cytological, …

Algal toxins are toxic substances released by some types of algae when they are present in large quantities (Blooms) and decay or degrade. These toxins are called ‘Phycotoxins’ (from Greek, phykos, “seaweed”; and toxikon, “toxin”). They are usually complex allelopathic metabolites produced by algal secondary metabolic pathways. These metabolites are (in most cases) not harmful to …

The sum of all genetic material of an organism including coding regions, non-coding regions, chloroplast DNA, mitochondrial DNA is called the genome of that particular organism. The study of the structure and function of the genome of an organism is called Genomics. Generally, it can be of three types. Functional …

Soil is defined differently by soil scientists, and its definition has changed overtime. Since the year 1800, there have been more than 80 different definitions of soil available in literature. Generally, soil can be defined as the organic and inorganic materials on the surface of the earth that provide the …