Marine Resources Assessment for the Marianas Operating ... - SPREP

AUGUST 2005 FINAL REPORT
8.0 GLOSSARY
Abundant—an indication of the plentifulness of a species at a particular place and time; an abundant
species is more plentiful than an occasional or rare species
Abyssal plain—flat, sediment-covered part of the ocean floor between the continental rise and the midocean
ridge at a depth greater than 4,000 to 5,000 m
Acre—a measurement of land area and is equivalent to 0.004 km 2
Active margin—a continental margin that is tectonically deformed as it collides with another tectonic
plate. It is the leading edge of a continent as it moves away from an oceanic spreading center
Adult—developmental stage characterized by sexual or physical (full size and strength) maturity
Advection—the horizontal movement of water, as in an ocean current
Aggregation—group of animals that forms when individuals are attracted to an environmental resource
to which each responds independently; the term does not imply any social organization
Ahermatypic coral—non-reef building types of coral that lack symbiotic zooxanthallae and are not
restricted by depth, temperature, or light penetration; may be solitary or colonial
Algae—one-celled or many-celled plants that have no roots, stems or leaf systems
Allochthonous—material that has originated elsewhere, non-native
Alpha male—the dominant male
Annelids—invertebrate animals of the phylum Annelida in which the body is typically made up of a series
of rings or segments covered by a soft cuticle and lacking jointed appendages (e.g., marine worms)
Anomaly—something irregular or abnormal
Anthozoan—a class of the coelentrates in which the medusiod stage is absent and the polyp (hydroid)
stage is better developed than in other coelentrates (e.g., sea anemones, corals, alcyonarians, sea fans,
sea pens, sea pansies, sea feathers)
Anthropogenic—describing a phenomenon or condition created, directly or indirectly, as a result of
human activity
Anticyclonic—clockwise circulation in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise circulation in the
Southern Hemisphere; in oceanography, synonymous with warm-core ring
Archipelago—a group or chain of oceanic islands
ArcScene—application software used for combining and viewing features, surfaces, and graphics in a
three-dimensional perspective
Artificial habitat—a human-made, estuarine/marine habitat (sunken ships, artificial reefs: rubble,
concrete igloos, FADs) created in navigable waters of the U.S. or in waters overlying the continental shelf
to attract aquatic life
Artificial reef—a human-made, marine habitat (sunken ships, concrete igloos, rubble) created in the
navigable waters of the U.S. or in waters overlying the continental shelf to attract aquatic life
8-1