Wings Over Water: The Importance of Birds in Marine Life

When people think of marine ecosystems or habitats, people think of the ocean mammals such as dolphins, whales, fish, coral, and more. Some may overlook the birds because they do not live underwater. Birds are just as important and cool as every other animal in a marine ecosystem. 

A Gray Pelican in Mexico (Credit to Embla Munk Rynkebjerg)

The Variety of Birds

Birds can differ depending on the habitat. Many species are able to fly while some others such as penguins cannot. Evolution causes diversity in everything and birds is a great example of evolution. Birds evolved from dinosaurs and it can be shown by their structure and feathers. Many birds have their own unique trait that allows them to survive. An example of a unique trait is the pelican's bill which allows them to scoop food out of the ocean. Penguins are able to swim quickly underwater and glide on ice in order to escape from predators and chase prey. Birds also differ in beaks. The beak is important and it suits their eating habits and their ability to survive against others. There are many ecological roles that different species of birds occupy. Birds can impact all ecosystems and they impact ocean ecosystems heavily. 

The Impact of Birds

When birds are implemented into a marine ecosystem, they alter the food chain. Usually, birds are scavengers and they eat scraps of dead animals left by predators. This means they clean junk from shores such as other bottom feeders. Some seabirds are considered as keystone species. Keystone species are species that hold an ecosystem together. When a keystone species is at risk, the ecosystem is at risk and may fall apart after the keystone species goes extinct. Birds also cycle nutrients from shore to sea. When they consume food from the ocean, they cycle nutrients back to the land since they do not live underwater. This causes a cycle because the nutrients eventually come back to the ocean. Birds also regulate different populations such as fish and squid populations. They affect underwater prey-predator relationships and allows more competition in ecosystems. This can lead to diversity, evolution, and more adaption, which results in a growing ecosystem. Not only do birds compete with other animals, but they also compete with humans. Fisheries try to take as much fish as possible which causes other birds to have to act on fisheries and lessen overfishing.

Even though birds may not be under the water with every other marine animal, they are still a vital part of an ecosystem, especially on the shore.