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44-494: The term aquatic bird is sometimes also used in this context. A related term that has a narrower meaning is waterfowl . Some piscivore birds of prey , such as ospreys and sea eagles , hunt aquatic prey but do not stay in water for long and live predominantly over dry land, and are not considered water birds. The term waterbird is also used in the context of conservation to refer to any birds that inhabit or depend on bodies of water or wetland areas. Examples of this use include

88-409: A considerable number of mainly Late Cretaceous and Paleogene fossils have been described where it is uncertain whether or not they are anseriforms. This is because almost all orders of aquatic birds living today either originated or underwent a major radiation during that time, making it hard to decide whether some waterbird-like bone belongs into this family or is the product of parallel evolution in

132-495: A decrease in benthic macroinvertebrate biomass, which lead to the disappearance of food sources into the substrate. Because the benthic system regulates energy in aquatic ecosystems, studies have been made of the mechanisms of the benthic zone in order to better understand the ecosystem. Benthic diatoms have been used by the European Union's Water Framework Directive (WFD) to establish ecological quality ratios that determined

176-1148: A different lineage due to adaptive pressures. Living Anseriformes based on the work by John Boyd. Anhima [REDACTED] Chauna [REDACTED] Anseranas [REDACTED] Dendrocygna [REDACTED] Thalassornis [REDACTED] Plectropterus [REDACTED] Stictonetta Nettapus [REDACTED] Biziura [REDACTED] Heteronetta [REDACTED] Nomonyx Oxyura [REDACTED] Malacorhynchus [REDACTED] Coscoroba Cereopsis [REDACTED] Sthenelides [REDACTED] Cygnus [REDACTED] Branta [REDACTED] Anser [REDACTED] Merganetta [REDACTED] Chloephaga [REDACTED] Oressochen Neochen [REDACTED] Radjah [REDACTED] Tadorna [REDACTED] Alopochen [REDACTED] Histrionicus † Camptorhynchus [REDACTED] Clangula [REDACTED] Polysticta [REDACTED] Somateria [REDACTED] Melanitta [REDACTED] Bucephala [REDACTED] Mergellus [REDACTED] Benthic The benthic zone

220-406: A similar filter-feeding lifestyle, and the shoebill has a similar structure ( morphology ) to many wading birds. DNA sequence analysis, specifically the mitochondrial gene sequencing, has been used to classify and differentiate the various aquatic birds. This classification is found by a relative apparent synapomorphy analysis (RASA) which highlighted certain branches of genes that classified

264-454: A year. A minimum of 80 percent of that revenue goes directly toward habitat conservation . Ducks Unlimited partners with a wide range of corporations, governments, other non-governmental organizations, landowners, and private citizens to restore and manage areas that have been degraded and to prevent further degradation of existing wetlands. DU is also active in working with others to recommend government policies that will influence wetlands and

308-475: Is a gently sloping benthic region that extends away from the land mass. At the continental shelf edge, usually about 200 metres (660 ft) deep, the gradient greatly increases and is known as the continental slope. The continental slope drops down to the deep sea floor. The deep-sea floor is called the abyssal plain and is usually about 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) deep. The ocean floor is not all flat but has submarine ridges and deep ocean trenches known as

352-678: Is a result of various sources in China. The rise of urbanization and industries has resulted in pollution and waste in the water. In addition, reclamation projects for construction further threaten ruining the habitats of these birds. For example, the largest of these reclamation projects is the Oufei Project, which spans 8854 Hectares. Experimental evidence of competition has been difficult to obtain in highly mobile animals that cannot be meaningfully confined to plots of limited size. Many such animals are believed to compete with less mobile, resident taxa, but

396-408: Is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae , the largest family, which includes over 170 species of waterfowl, among them the ducks , geese , and swans . Most modern species in the order are highly adapted for an aquatic existence at

440-466: Is not easy to map or observe these organisms and their habitats, and most modern observations are made using remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs), and rarely submarines . Benthic macroinvertebrates have many important ecological functions, such as regulating the flow of materials and energy in river ecosystems through their food web linkages. Because of this correlation between flow of energy and nutrients, benthic macroinvertebrates have

484-484: Is possible for the H5N1 virus to be spread by migratory water birds to the west and south, as genetically closely related H5N1 viruses have been isolated in several countries since 2005. H5N1 HPAIV infections have become endemic in several countries and cause accidental transmissions to humans. H5N1 viruses are thus now recognized as one of the most likely candidates for the next pandemic. Anseriformes Anseriformes

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528-655: Is recommended in the European Union benthic monitoring program (by Kelly 1998 for the United Kingdom then in the EU and for the EU as a whole by CEN 2003 and CEN 2004) and in some United States programs (by Moulton et al. 2002). Benthic gross primary production (GPP) may be important in maintaining biodiversity hotspots in littoral zones in large lake ecosystems . However, the relative contributions of benthic habitats within specific ecosystems are poorly explored and more research

572-562: Is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean , lake , or stream , including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word βένθος ( bénthos ), meaning "the depths". Organisms living in this zone are called benthos and include microorganisms (e.g., bacteria and fungi ) as well as larger invertebrates , such as crustaceans and polychaetes . Organisms here generally live in close relationship with

616-637: The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) and the Wallnau Waterbird Reserve . Some examples of water birds are: The evolution of waterbirds is often mainly centered around adaptations to improve feeding techniques. This includes legs that are adapted to diving or wading and webbing between the toes. Many of these adaptations are common between different types of waterbirds. For example, flamingos and ducks share

660-565: The Galliformes ( pheasants , etc.) belong to a common group, the Galloanserae . They are the most primitive neognathous birds, and as such they should follow the palaeognathae ( ratites and tinamous ) in bird classification systems. Several unusual extinct families of birds like the albatross-like pseudotooth birds and the giant flightless gastornithids and mihirungs have been found to be stem-anseriforms based on common features found in

704-471: The galliformes . These two groups only occupied two ecological niches during the Mesozoic, living in water and on the ground, while the toothed enantiornithes were the dominant birds that ruled the trees and air. The asteroid that ended the Mesozoic destroyed all trees as well as animals in the open, a condition that took centuries to recover from. The anseriformes and galliformes are thought to have survived in

748-497: The hadal zone . For comparison, the pelagic zone is the descriptive term for the ecological region above the benthos, including the water column up to the surface. At the other end of the spectrum, benthos of the deep ocean includes the bottom levels of the oceanic abyssal zone . For information on animals that live in the deeper areas of the oceans see aphotic zone . Generally, these include life forms that tolerate cool temperatures and low oxygen levels, but this depends on

792-466: The water column ; even within the benthic zone variations in such factors as light penetration, temperature and salinity give rise to distinct differences, delineated vertically, in the groups of organisms supported. Many organisms adapted to deep-water pressure cannot survive in the upper parts of the water column: the pressure difference can be very significant (approximately one atmosphere for each 10 meters of water depth). Many have adapted to live on

836-517: The ability to influence food resources on fish and other organisms in aquatic ecosystems . For example, the addition of a moderate amount of nutrients to a river over the course of several years resulted in increases in invertebrate richness, abundance, and biomass . These in turn resulted in increased food resources for native species of fish with insignificant alteration of the macroinvertebrate community structure and trophic pathways. The presence of macroinvertebrates such as Amphipoda also affect

880-418: The benthic food chain ; most organisms in the benthic zone are scavengers or detritivores . Some microorganisms use chemosynthesis to produce biomass . Benthic organisms can be divided into two categories based on whether they make their home on the ocean floor or a few centimeters into the ocean floor. Those living on the surface of the ocean floor are known as epifauna . Those who live burrowed into

924-969: The benthic zone. The microbes found in the benthic zone, specifically dinoflagellates and foraminifera , colonize quite rapidly on detritus matter while forming a symbiotic relationship with each other. In the deep sea, which covers 90–95% of the ocean floor, 90% of the total biomass is made up of prokaryotes. To release all the nutrients locked inside these microbes to the environment, viruses are important in making it available to other organisms. Modern seafloor mapping technologies have revealed linkages between seafloor geomorphology and benthic habitats, in which suites of benthic communities are associated with specific geomorphic settings. Examples include cold-water coral communities associated with seamounts and submarine canyons, kelp forests associated with inner shelf rocky reefs and rockfish associated with rocky escarpments on continental slopes. In oceanic environments, benthic habitats can also be zoned by depth. From

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968-428: The best-known examples of sexually antagonistic genital coevolution in vertebrates, causing genital adaptations to coevolve in each sex to advance control over mating and fertilization. Sexually antagonistic coevolution (or SAC) occurs as a consequence of sexual conflict between males and females, resulting in coevolutionary process that reduce fit, or that functions to decrease ease of having sex. The Anseriformes and

1012-673: The cover of burrows and water, and not to have needed trees for food and reproduction. The earliest known stem anseriform is the presbyornithid Teviornis from the Nemegt Formation of Mongolia . Some members apparently surviving the KT extinction event , including presbyornithids , thought to be the common ancestors of ducks, geese, swans, and screamers , the last group once thought to be galliformes, but now genetically confirmed to be closely related to geese. The first known duck fossils start to appear about 34 million years ago. Waterfowl are

1056-528: The dabbling ducks or shelducks, is not fully resolved. See the Anatidae article for more information, and for alternate taxonomic approaches. Anatidae is traditionally divided into subfamilies Anatinae and Anserinae. The Anatinae consists of tribes Anatini , Aythyini , Mergini and Tadornini . The higher-order classification below follows a phylogenetic analysis performed by Mikko's Phylogeny Archive and John Boyd's website. Unassigned Anatidae: In addition,

1100-439: The deposition of organic matter, and bacterial communities. The amount of material sinking to the ocean floor can average 307,000 aggregates per m per day. This amount will vary on the depth of the benthos, and the degree of benthic-pelagic coupling. The benthos in a shallow region will have more available food than the benthos in the deep sea. Because of their reliance on it, microbes may become spatially dependent on detritus in

1144-453: The depth of the water. As with oceans, the benthic zone is the floor of the lake, composed of accumulated sunken organic matter . The littoral zone is the zone bordering the shore; light penetrates easily and aquatic plants thrive. The pelagic zone represents the broad mass of water, down as far as the depth to which no light penetrates. Benthos are the organisms that live in the benthic zone, and are different from those elsewhere in

1188-584: The domestic duck and fowl, for example, as an outgroup. Comparing and understanding these gene patterns allows scientists to classify aquatic birds. Waterbird conservation efforts in the United States are advanced by numerous organizations, including the 700,000 member strong Ducks Unlimited . Employing such methods as conservation easements and outright purchase, it uses federal and state habitat reimbursements, sponsorships, member fees, major gifts, donations, royalties, and advertisement to raise over $ 200 million

1232-457: The dominance of certain types of algae in Benthic ecosystems as well. In addition, because benthic zones are influenced by the flow of dead organic material , there have been studies conducted on the relationship between stream and river water flows and the resulting effects on the benthic zone. Low flow events show a restriction in nutrient transport from benthic substrates to food webs, and caused

1276-649: The ecological status of lakes in the UK. Beginning research is being made on benthic assemblages to see if they can be used as indicators of healthy aquatic ecosystems. Benthic assemblages in urbanized coastal regions are not functionally equivalent to benthic assemblages in untouched regions. Ecologists are attempting to understand the relationship between heterogeneity and maintaining biodiversity in aquatic ecosystems. Benthic algae has been used as an inherently good subject for studying short term changes and community responses to heterogeneous conditions in streams. Understanding

1320-879: The environment. Through March 2021, Ducks Unlimited had conserved at least 15 million acres of waterfowl habitat in North America. To promote the conservation of waterbirds in America, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service established the Waterbird Conservation for the Americas to facilitate this over such a large area. The purpose of this initiative is to promote international cooperation and partnership to preserve waterbird habitats, create long term sustainability plans, implement specific conservation plans for regions, and support legal action for waterbird conservation on

1364-524: The mortality rate of this disease can reach up to 100%, especially in young birds. Avian influenza caused by infection with H5N1 , a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV), has spread in poultry in more than 60 countries in Eurasia and Africa since 1996, when the first outbreak occurred at a goose farm in the Guangdong province in China. H5N1 in wild birds have spread to Asia, Europe, and Africa, and it

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1408-635: The most important concern in mass waterfowl production. Free-ranging water birds are the most likely infectious carriers. While the overall epidemiology of DEV is unknown in western Europe, studies conducted in Poland agree with the high levels of transmission between free-ranging water birds. DEV is an aetiological agent of DP, which represents one of the most acute and lethal diseases of waterbirds, and infection can spread easily between farmed and wild waterbirds. Over 48 species of birds, including those not considered waterbirds, are susceptible to infection by DEV, and

1452-415: The nutrients they need. Outbreaks of diseases spread by waterbirds result from the transition of water-borne viruses to those wild birds. The spread can be caused by dead waterbirds in the vicinity of other organisms, or simply from waterbirds with the virus settling into more densely populated areas (whether by humans or other organisms). Duck plague (DP), also called duck enteritis virus (DEV), presents

1496-403: The ocean begins at the shore line ( intertidal or littoral zone ) and extends downward along the surface of the continental shelf out to sea. Thus, the region incorporates a great variety of physical conditions differing in: depth, light penetration and pressure. Depending on the water-body, the benthic zone may include areas that are only a few inches below the surface. The continental shelf

1540-456: The ocean floor are known as infauna . Extremophiles, including piezophiles , which thrive in high pressures, may also live there. An example of benthos organism is Chorismus antarcticus . Sources of food for benthic communities can derive from the water column above these habitats in the form of aggregations of detritus , inorganic matter, and living organisms. These aggregations are commonly referred to as marine snow , and are important for

1584-471: The potential mechanisms involving benthic periphyton and the effects on heterogeneity within a stream may provide a better understanding of the structure and function of stream ecosystems. Periphyton populations suffer from high natural spatial variability while difficult accessibility simultaneously limits the practicable number of samples that can be taken. Targeting periphyton locations which are known to provide reliable samples – especially hard surfaces –

1628-682: The regional and national levels. The loss of wetlands has impacted waterbirds and is driving their extinction in regions where wetlands are polluted. Specifically, in China , 33% of wetlands were lost between 1978 and 2008, which is the primary breeding ground for China's waterbird species such as the Baer's Pochard, which is now at risk for extinction. The Baer's Pochard's population has decreased to between 150 and 700 birds in recent years due to negative environmental impacts on their habitat as well as human activities such as hunting and fishing. This loss of wetlands

1672-664: The shallowest to the deepest are: the epipelagic (less than 200 meters), the mesopelagic (200–1,000 meters), the bathyal (1,000–4,000 meters), the abyssal (4,000–6,000 meters) and the deepest, the hadal (below 6,000 meters). The lower zones are in deep, pressurized areas of the ocean. Human impacts have occurred at all ocean depths, but are most significant on shallow continental shelf and slope habitats. Many benthic organisms have retained their historic evolutionary characteristics. Some organisms are significantly larger than their relatives living in shallower zones, largely because of higher oxygen concentration in deep water. It

1716-693: The skull region, beak physiology and pelvic region. The genus Vegavis for a while was found to be the earliest member of the anseriform crown group but a recent 2017 paper has found it to be just outside the crown group in the family Vegaviidae . Below is the general consensus of the phylogeny of anseriforms and their stem relatives. † Pelagornithidae (pseudo-tooth birds) [REDACTED] † Gastornithidae [REDACTED] † Dromornithidae (mihirungs) [REDACTED] † Vegaviidae Anseriformes (screamers and waterfowl) [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Anatidae systematics, especially regarding placement of some "odd" genera in

1760-442: The substrate (bottom). In their habitats they can be considered as dominant creatures, but they are often a source of prey for Carcharhinidae such as the lemon shark . Because light does not penetrate very deep into ocean-water, the energy source for the benthic ecosystem is often marine snow . Marine snow is organic matter from higher up in the water column that drifts down to the depths. This dead and decaying matter sustains

1804-447: The substrate and many are permanently attached to the bottom. The benthic boundary layer , which includes the bottom layer of water and the uppermost layer of sediment directly influenced by the overlying water, is an integral part of the benthic zone, as it greatly influences the biological activity that takes place there. Examples of contact soil layers include sand bottoms, rocky outcrops, coral , and bay mud . The benthic region of

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1848-426: The supporting evidence has often remained circumstantial. One example is the interaction between water birds and benthic feeding fish, or fish that feed at the lowest level of a body of water. Many migratory water birds use similar food resources on their breeding, molting, or overwintering grounds as do resident fish species. Studies, such as that done by Eadie and Keast in 1982, found an inverse relationship between

1892-504: The water surface. With the exception of screamers, males have penises , a trait that has been lost in the Neoaves . Due to their aquatic nature, most species are web-footed. Anseriformes are one of only two types of modern bird to be confirmed present during the Mesozoic alongside the other dinosaurs, and in fact were among the very few birds to survive their extinction, along with their cousins

1936-598: The waterbird Goldeneye and benthic feeding fish across multiple lakes. Mobile water birds tend to avoid areas where their food density is high because this increases competition for resources. When there is abundant food in an area, there are more birds trying to eat it. This can lead to aggression and fighting, as well as a decrease in the overall fitness of the bird. By avoiding areas of high food density, mobile waterfowl can reduce competition and improve their chances of survival. They can spread out and forage in less crowded areas, which allows them to avoid conflict and obtain

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