Marine Biology (2+1)

3.Temperature and desiccation

Temperature and desiccation

With regard to the effect of temperature, the conditions on sandy beaches are as similar as those on rocky shores. During the day time of low tide period, the broad area of the intertidal zone is exposed and the top surface of the sand gets heated up and this lead to the increase of temperature in the sand surface. This effect is there only up to a top few centimeters of the sand and below that depth the temperature of the interstitial water will be similar to that of the seawater in the sub-tidal belts. As most of the sandy shore organisms are good burrowers, they dig rapidly and penetrate deep into the sand when the surface becomes too warm. The problem of desiccation is not felt by most organisms of the sandy shore because water is within their reach if they dig into the sand a little.