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Structure of the Sea
The littoral (eulittoral) zone occurs at the seashore. This zone is subjected to alternate periods of flooding and drying at high and low tides respectively. The sublittoral zone extends from the low tide mark to the edge of the continental shelf. This region is also called as the neritic, or near shore zone. The term pelagic is used to designate open water or the high sea and includes portions of the neritic and the entirety of the oceanic province. The benthos or benthic region is the bottom, regardless of the overlying zone