Have you ever wondered why the ocean water contains salt? This is because of the rocks that is exist beneath the ocean and also many natural processes happened that may cause the ocean water contains mineral. Since the concentration of the mineral is high, it somehow taste salty.
Maybe most of us only know that the existence of salt in the ocean water only make a differences between freshwater and saltwater animal species that live within the ecosystem. But today I would like to inform you more about the importance of salt in the ocean. Here are those.
1. Controls protozoans on the fish skin and gills
Have you ever own a fish and kept it in the aquarium? Surely there are a lot of preparation you need to do in order to keep the fish alive inside the aquarium.
There is also one important component given inside the aquarium which is salt. Salt may help the fish in the aquarium prevented from the fungi that may exist in their scales and gills. This may cause disease till death to the fish. The same thing also applied to the ocean, this is why the salt content in the ocean is needed.
2. Enhance mucus production
Mucus is a substance that may comes out from our body that actually act as a defense system. So when our body is threatened by virus or bacteria that may cause disease, mucus may comes out to clear out the bacteria and virus. This is not only happening to the human body but also animals. Salt in the ocean water is enhancing the mucus production of ocean animals.
3. Fulfilling the body needs of mineral
Since the salty taste of ocean water is caused by the amount of mineral in the water so we see that it is good. Fish will take up some amount of water and filter it as a way for them to breathe. By taking some amount of water into their body, fish also taking some amount of mineral in the water to their body.
See also: Importance of Ocean Minerals – Common Uses of Ocean Minerals
4. Keep the living being to stay alive
Salt contains sodium. And a little amount of sodium is needed in order to keep the pressure inside a cell in balance. The pressure or tension inside the cell need to be kept because if it isn’t then the cell may broken. This has become one of the importance of salt in the ocean, because without it, cells in living beings body won’t last long. And the beings may lead to death.
5. Adds up diversity in the ocean
If you pay attention, surely you will see clearly that the living beings in the saltwater and freshwater are different.
Even in the ocean, the living beings may differ from one another in each part of the ocean that has a different salinity level. The salinity level that differs from one part of the ocean to another may become a natural selection for the living beings there. Only those who can adapt will be able to live.
See also: Importance of Ocean Biodiversity
6. Affecting the ocean water density
The existence of salt content in the ocean also affecting the water density in the ocean. The density of ocean water affecting the temperature of ocean water. The more dense the ocean water is the colder the ocean water will be, this also means that the salinity level is also high.
See also: Ocean Layers
7. Affecting the movement of ocean currents
Salinity level or the salt content in the ocean water also affecting the ocean current movements. Surely we know that there are a lot of functions of ocean current which means it is also important to know the salinity level of the ocean. The water will move from an area that has less salinity level to high salinity level.
See also: Importance of Ocean Currents For Fishing
8. Maintaining one of the ocean habitat
Another importance of salt in the ocean is to maintain one of the ocean habitat. The existence of salt can help the cold temperature to stay stable.
This is important to the areas that is covered with ice which is North Pole and South Pole. The salinity level there is quite high compared to another tropical oceans. This can be seen through the living beings diversity in there which is not so many.
See also: Importance of Arctic Ocean For Life
9. Help us to monitor the variance in water cycle
As we know the mineral salt that creates the ocean water taste salty is coming from the water cycle or natural activity. This natural activity may include hydrothermal vents, water that reacts with emission from volcanoes, and etc.
Through the salinity level of the ocean we can actually know the cause of the salinity level is up and down. For example, whether it is caused by land runoff, ice melting, and etc.
See also: Importance of Ocean in Hydrologic Cycle
10. Ocean circulation
Circulation means the movement from and to somewhere. Ocean circulation means the movement of ocean water that can be caused by many things such as salinity. With ocean circulation, the mineral and nutrient beneath the ocean can be distributed equally.
If there is no ocean circulation and the nutrient beneath the ocean can’t be distributed equally means there will be an area of the ocean that has no life.
11. Affecting the climate
The salt content in the ocean somehow also affecting the climate. The climate may be affected by the density of the water. And the density itself is affected by the concentration of salt in the ocean water.
See also: Climate of the Ocean – Importance of Ocean For The Global Climate
12. To monitor the oxygen intake of ocean living beings
Another importance of salt in the ocean is that it can help to monitor the oxygen intake of ocean living beings. The more salt means the salinity level will go higher.
And higher salinity level will decrease the oxygen intake by ocean living beings and this may resulting their metabolism system to go down.
See also: Common Uses of Salinity in Ocean
13. Rock forming
Rocks in the ocean actually contains some amount of mineral that makes the ocean water become rich of mineral. Somehow, one of the component that is needed to form a rock is salt. This also become a reason why knowing the salinity level in the ocean is important.
See also: Types of Rocks on Ocean Floor
14. Water resources to many living beings
If you are thinking that ocean water can only be consumed by fish and another ocean living beings, you are wrong. In facts, there are another living beings that also able to consume the ocean water even though it is salty in order to fulfill its body needs.
One of those beings is known as sea birds. Yes, sea birds, it is used to drink and consumed ocean water. Their body with a unique formation will release the salt through the salt glands that is exist above their eyes.
15. Sea level maintenance
In the previous points you already know that the salinity level in the ocean may affect the water current as well as the ocean circulation. Besides that, the salinity level in the ocean may also affecting the sea level. The sea level may goes up and downs due to the salinity level of the ocean water.
If the sea level keep rising you may imagine that there will be damage happened. The water comes from the sea may cover the land and kill the living beings there.
See also: Causes of Sea Level Rise – Effect Of Sea Level Rise
So those are the importance of salt in the ocean. Hopefully now you know the importance of salt in the ocean ecosystem.
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