Neritic zone

Marine habitats
Sargassum seaweed drifting in the neritic zone provides food and shelter for small epipelagic fish
	Littoral zone
	Intertidal zone
	Estuaries
	Kelp forests
	Coral reefs
	Ocean banks
	Continental shelf
	Neritic zone
	Straits
	Pelagic zone
	Oceanic zone
	Seamounts
	Hydrothermal vents
	Cold seeps
	Demersal zone
	Benthic zone
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The neritic zone, also called coastal waters, the coastal ocean or the sublittoral zone,^[1] is the part of the ocean extending from the low tide mark to the edge of the continental shelf, with a relatively shallow depth extending to about 200 meters (109 fathoms or 656 feet). The neritic zone has generally well-oxygenated water, low water pressure, and relatively stable temperature and salinity levels. These, combined with presence of light and the resulting photosynthetic life, such as phytoplankton and floating sargassum^[2], make the neritic zone the location of the majority of sea life. The temperature of this zone is also fairly stable.

Zooplankton, free-floating creatures ranging from microscopic foraminiferans to small fish and shrimp, live in this zone, and together with the phytoplankton form the base of the food pyramid that supports most of the world's great fishing areas.

At the edge of the neritic zone the continental slope begins, descending from the continental shelf to the abyssal plain and the pelagic zone.

See also

• Coastal fish

References