Definition: An aquatic biome that comprises systems of open-ocean and unprotected coastal habitats, characterized by exposure to wave action, tidal fluctuation, and ocean currents as well as systems that largely resemble these. Water in the marine biome is generally within the salinity range of seawater: 30 to 38 ppt.
Definition: The benthopelagic zone biome comprises regions of the marine water column which usually coincide with the benthic boundary layer (BBL) - the layer of isothermal and isohaline water contiguous to the sea floor. A general reversal in the declining gradient of pelagic biomass may be observed here, perhaps explained by viable nutrition on the sea floor being resuspended by bottom currents. This zone typically extends 100 m above the seafloor, but may reach upto1000 m during benthic storms.
Definition: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution (USNM), Washington, District of Columbia, USA.\r\nNMNH and USNM both refer to the National Museum of Natural History. Collections are associated with one or the other acronym. US, the US National Herbarium, is a collection within the National Museum of Natural History. URL for main institutional website, http://www.mnh.si.edu/rc/\r\nURL for institutional specimen catalog, http://collections.mnh.si.edu/
