the.com/zooplankton
The ocean's commuters: too weak to swim against currents, too vital to ignore.
means Tiny animal-like organisms that drift in water, too small or weak-swimming to fight the current, forming a critical link in aquatic food chains.
from Built from Greek roots: 'zoion' meaning animal (the same root behind 'zoo' and 'zoology'), plus 'plankton,' itself from Greek 'planktos' meaning wandering or drifting — ultimately tied to 'plazesthai,' to wander or be driven astray. Coined in the 19th century by scientists cataloguing ocean life, 'plankton' described anything too feeble to swim against currents; 'zoo-' was later added to split the drifters into animal and plant camps, giving us zooplankton alongside its photosynthesizing cousin, phytoplankton.
- daily migration
- billions rise at night, sink by day, largest migration on Earth
- carbon transport
- sinking poop buries carbon on seafloor for centuries
- diet range
- includes krill, jellyfish larvae, and copepods, basically ocean confetti
- food web role
- nearly every fish you eat ate something that ate them