<descriptor thcode="62"><thesaurus thcode="62" name="Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard" scope="Categories of ecosystems for coastal, estuarine, and marine environments." creator="FGDC" rights="public domain" date="2017-05-10" codetype="alpha" prefix="cmecs" uri="https://www2.usgs.gov/science/CMECS" tblname="cmecs" root_code="root" contact="pschweitzer"><category><term thcode="25" code="16" name="hierarchical" parent="11" scope="Substantive broader-narrower relationships exist among the terms."/><term thcode="25" code="16" name="hierarchical" parent="11" scope="Substantive broader-narrower relationships exist among the terms."/></category><altlabel><altlabel>CMECS</altlabel><altlabel>CMECS</altlabel><altlabel>Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS)</altlabel><altlabel>Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS)</altlabel></altlabel></thesaurus><term thcode="62" code="BC-412" name="Coccolithophore Phytoplankton" parent="BC-387" scope="Biotic Subclass: Coccolithophores are small phytoplankters, predominantly marine, which produce plates of calcium carbonate as shells."/><bt><term thcode="62" code="BC-387" name="Phytoplankton" parent="BC-384" scope="Biotic Class: This class includes areas of floating or suspended microscopic algae that are capable of photosynthesis. ..."/><term thcode="62" code="BC-384" name="Planktonic Biota" parent="BC-C002" scope="Biotic Setting: Planktonic Biota includes biota that drift, float, or remain suspended in the water column in aggregations that are big enough to be (a) detected by the human eye (or with mild magnification) or (b) sampled with a fine-plankton net. ..."/><term thcode="62" code="BC-C002" name="Biotic" parent="root"/><term thcode="62" code="root" name="CMECS" scope="Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard: Category terms encompassing waters from the head of tide or inland incursion of ocean salinity to the splash zone of the coasts to the deepest portions of the oceans and the deep waters of the Great Lakes."/></bt><nt><term thcode="62" code="BC-471" name="Coccolithophore Aggregation" parent="BC-412" scope="Biotic Group: Waters dominated by coccolithophores. This group is distributed throughout the oceans and tends to have high light requirements, often aggregating in the upper water column and surface layer."/><term thcode="62" code="BC-472" name="Coccolithophore Bloom" parent="BC-412" scope="Biotic Group: Surface waters where rapid growth and very high densities of coccolithophores occur. These organisms form enormous blooms in the coastal and offshore oceans. Blooms may be linked to upwelling events."/><term thcode="62" code="BC-473" name="Coccolithophore Maximum Layer" parent="BC-412" scope="Biotic Group: Relatively thin layer dominated by coccolithophores at depth in the water column where nutrients are optimal. ..."/></nt></descriptor>