mesopelagic zone

American  

[me-zuh-puh-laj-ik zohn, me-suh-, mee-zuh-] / ˌmɛ zə pəˈlædʒ ɪk ˈzoʊn, ˌmɛ sə-, ˌmi zə- /

noun

1. Oceanography. Also called twilight zone. the layer of the ocean between the epipelagic zone and the bathypelagic zone, lying at the dimly lit depth of 660–3,300 ft (200–1,000 m) and experiencing the greatest temperature changes in the ocean.

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mesopelagic zone Scientific  

/ mĕz′ə-pə-lăj′ĭk /

1. A layer of the oceanic zone lying beneath the epipelagic zone and above the bathypelagic zone, at depths generally between 200 and 1,000 m (656 and 3,280 ft). The mesopelagic zone receives very little sunlight and is home to many bioluminescent organisms. Because food is scarce in this region, most mesopelagic organisms migrate to the surface to feed at night or live off the falling detritus from the epipelagic ecosystem.

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Example Sentences

Superflex chose to highlight the siphonophore as a representative of the mesopelagic zone of the sea, known as the twilight zone, which receives little to no sunlight.

From New York Times • Sep. 14, 2021

Given that knowledge, it was long suggested that this region — known as the mesopelagic zone, from the Greek words for “middle” and “sea” — was relatively empty.

From New York Times • Jun. 29, 2015

The mesopelagic zone extends from 200 m to 1,000 m; the bathypelagic zone from 1,000 m to 4,000 m; and abyssalpelagic zone is deeper than 4,000 m.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

This dive will take place at night, when fish living in the deep ocean do their daily vertical migration to the mid-ocean, or mesopelagic zone, about 300 meters deep.

From Scientific American • Mar. 3, 2014

In the middle depths of the ocean—the mesopelagic zone that is located 200 to 1000 meters below the surface—the vast majority of organisms can bioluminesce.

From Science Magazine • Sep. 7, 2012