Microorganisms constitute more than 90% of the marine biomass.

A microorganism (or
microbe) is a microscopic living organism, which may be single-celled[65] or
multicellular. Microorganisms are very diverse and include all bacteria, archaea
and most protozoa. This group also contains some species of fungi, algae, and
certain microscopic animals, such as rotifers.

Many macroscopic animals and plants have microscopic juvenile stages. Some
microbiologists also classify viruses (and viroids) as microorganisms, but others
consider these as nonliving.[66][67] In July 2016, scientists reported identifying
a set of 355 genes from the last universal common ancestor (LUCA) of all life,
including microorganisms, living on Earth.[68]

Marine microbial loop

Microorganisms are crucial to nutrient recycling in ecosystems as they act as
decomposers. A small proportion of microorganisms are pathogenic, causing disease
and even death in plants and animals.[69] As inhabitants of the largest environment
on Earth, microbial marine systems drive changes in every global system. Microbes
are responsible for virtually all the photosynthesis that occurs in the ocean, as
well as the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients and trace
elements.[70]

Microscopic life undersea is incredibly diverse and still poorly understood. For
example, the role of viruses in marine ecosystems is barely being explored even in
the beginning of the 21st century.[71]

A teaspoon of seawater contains about one million viruses.[72] Most of these are
bacteriophages, which are harmless to plants and animals, and are in fact essential
to the regulation of saltwater and freshwater ecosystems.[73] They infect and
destroy bacteria in aquatic microbial communities, and are the most important
mechanism of recycling carbon in the marine environment. The organic molecules
released from the dead bacterial cells stimulate fresh bacterial and algal growth.
[74] Viral activity may also contribute to the biological pump, the process whereby
carbon is sequestered in the deep ocean.[75]

Marine bacteriophages are viruses that live as obligate parasitic agents in marine
bacteria such as cyanobacteria.[76] Their existence was discovered through electron
microscopy and epifluorescence microscopy of ecological water samples, and later
through metagenomic sampling of uncultured viral samples.[76][77] The tailed
bacteriophages appear to dominate marine ecosystems in number and diversity of
organisms.[76] However, viruses belonging to families Corticoviridae,[78]
Inoviridae[79] and Microviridae[80] are also known to infect diverse marine
bacteria. Metagenomic evidence suggests that microviruses (icosahedral ssDNA
phages) are particularly prevalent in marine habitats.[80]

Bacteriophages, viruses that are parasitic on bacteria, were first discovered in

the early twentieth century. Scientists today consider that their importance in
ecosystems, particularly marine ecosystems, has been underestimated, leading to
these infectious agents being poorly investigated and their numbers and species
biodiversity being greatly under reported.[81]

Microscopic organisms live in every part of the biosphere. The mass of prokaryote
microorganisms � which includes bacteria and archaea, but not the nucleated
eukaryote microorganisms � may be as much as 0.8 trillion tons of carbon (of the
total biosphere mass, estimated at between 1 and 4 trillion tons).[82] Barophilic
marine microbes have been found at more than a depth of 10,000 m (33,000 ft; 6.2
mi) in the Mariana Trench, the deepest spot in the Earth's oceans.[83] In fact,
single-celled life forms have been found in the deepest part of the Mariana Trench,
by the Challenger Deep, at depths of 11,034 m (36,201 ft; 6.856 mi).[84][85][86]
Other researchers reported related studies that microorganisms thrive inside rocks
up to 580 m (1,900 ft; 0.36 mi) below the sea floor under 2,590 m (8,500 ft; 1.61
mi) of ocean off the coast of the northwestern United States,[85][87] as well as
2,400 m (7,900 ft; 1.5 mi) beneath the seabed off Japan.[88] The greatest known
temperature at which microbial life can exist is 122 �C (252 �F) (Methanopyrus
kandleri).[89] On 20 August 2014, scientists confirmed the existence of
microorganisms living 800 m (2,600 ft; 0.50 mi) below the ice of Antarctica.[90]
[91] According to one researcher, "You can find microbes everywhere � they're
extremely adaptable to conditions, and survive wherever they are."[85]