Glossary:P Words

panne ( ( /pan/ ) ) noun

small pond or pool in the salt marsh.

parasitism ( par·a·sit·ism / ˈperəsəˌtizəm,ˈperəˌsīˌtizəm ) noun

similar to predation in that one species benefits from the relationship and the other is harmed; differs from predation in that parasitism generally not fatal to adversely affected organism.

pathogenic ( path·o·gen·ic / ˌpaTHəˈjenik ) noun

Causing disease; commonly applied to microorganisms that cause infectious diseases.

periphyton ( pe·riph·y·ton / pəˈrifəˌtän ) noun

a complex mixture of algae, detritus, bacteria, and microbes that are attached to submerged objects in most aquatic ecosystems.

personal watercraft noun

Personal watercraft (PWC) are small vessels or conveyances that float on the water and are powered by engines, commonly propelled by jet drives to achieve fairly high speeds, usually in excess of 20 knots. PWC have no interior and are ridden by sitting on top of and astride them as one rides a motorcycle.

Personal water craft (PWC) are generally not considered boats. PWC are usually under 15 feet (4.6 meters) LOA.

Though personal watercraft are not considered boats, they must obey the same rules of the road as any boat of the same size, according to applicable Federal and local law.

petroleum derivatives noun

toxic pollutants from crude oil products; mixture of hydrocarbons, which are organic solvents.

photosynthesis ( pho·to·syn·the·sis / ˌfōdōˈsinTHəsəs ) noun

process of using energy in sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates and oxygen.

phytoplankton ( phy·to·plank·ton / ˌfīdōˈplaNGktən ) noun

floating plants or plant-like photosynthetic single cellular organisms

plankton ( plank·ton / ˈplaNGktən ) noun

free-floating organisms drifting in water, unable to swim against currents.

pleasure craft noun

Pleasure Craft, in a marine context, are all boats used for recreational not commercial purposes. Though craft applies to all sizes of vessels, by convention pleasure craft are boats, and most commonly are small to moderate sized boats, under approximately 80 feet (24.3 meters) LOA.

point source noun

An identifiable and confined discharge point for one or more water pollutants, such as a pipe, canal, channel, vessel, or ditch.

pollutant ( pol·lu·tant / pəˈlo͞otnt ) noun

Generally any substance, such as a chemical or waste product, introduced into the environment that adversely affects the usefulness of a resource.

pollution ( pol·lu·tion / pəˈlo͞oSH(ə)n ) noun

contamination of natural environment.

polyhaline adjective

high salinity about 30-335 ppt.

predation ( pre·da·tion / prəˈdāSH(ə)n ) noun

the killing and/or consumption of living organisms by other living organisms.

producer ( pro·duc·er / prəˈd(y)o͞osər ) noun

autotroph; organism that creates energy-rich compounds from sunlight (through photosynthesis) or certain chemicals (through chemosynthesis); first level in any food web; in estuarine systems, most abundant producers are phytoplankton.

productive ecosystem noun

a biological system that efficiently converts energy into growth and production.

protist ( pro·tist / ˈprōdəst ) noun

often unicellular but they can be multi-cellular or colonial the organisms in this Kingdom have characteristics of plants, animals and fungi and contains most algae.