Biological Perspective

The relationship between tides, salinity and temperature is mostly inclined towards marine scientific studies, however as biologist, we are mostly interested in the ecological patterns that we can observe in regards to the ocean and it's varying regions.

With tides, we mostly focus on ecological niches present in tides pools and the inter-tidal zones.

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The intertidal zone (also known as the foreshore and seashore and sometimes referred to as the littoral zone) is the area that is exposed to the air at low tide and underwater at high tide(for example, the area between tide marks). This area can include many different types of habitats, including steep rocky cliffs, sandy beaches, or wetlands (e.g., vast mudflats). The area can be a narrow strip, as in Pacific islands that have only a narrow tidal range, or can include many meters of shoreline where shallow beach slope interacts with high tidal excursion.

Organisms in the intertidal zone are adapted to an environment of harsh extremes. Water is available regularly with thetides but varies from fresh with rain to highly saline and dry salt with drying between tidal inundations. The action of wavescan dislodge residents in the littoral zone. With the intertidal zone's high exposure to the sun the temperature range can be anything from very hot with full sun to near freezing in colder climates. Some microclimates in the littoral zone are ameliorated by local features and larger plants such as mangroves. Adaption in the littoral zone is for making use ofnutrients supplied in high volume on a regular basis from the sea which is actively moved to the zone by tides. Edges of habitats, in this case land and sea, are themselves often significant ecologies, and the littoral zone is a prime example.

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intertidal_zone

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tide_pool