Question

what is eutrophication and how does it affect marine animals and plants

Answer 1

All living things need specific nutrients to survive. Usually, nature does a pretty good job of providing just the right amount of nutrients, because too many or too few can cause problems. This is especially true in aquatic ecosystems because they are so dynamic. When too few nutrients are present, the water is oligotrophic. It makes sense that when there is not enough nutrition available for the variety of organisms living in an aquatic environment, serious problems will arise.

However, problems can also arise when the aquatic system has an overabundance of nutrients. When this happens we get eutrophication. A eutrophic stream, river or lake occurs when too many nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorous, are present, usually as a result of runoff from the surrounding land. Algae, plankton and other microorganisms love these types of nutrients, and when they are plentiful, these aquatic organisms can take over