2. Pertaining to the environment of deposition and the organisms of the ocean between depths of 200 meters [656 feet], the edge of the continental shelf, and 2,000 meters [6,560 feet]: The average temperature of the bathyal zone is around 4°C (39°F.) and is so deep that sunlight does not penetrate down that far.
The bathyal environment is intermediate between the "neritic"* environment and the "abyss"*.
* "Neritic" is a description of the environment and conditions of the marine zone between low tide and the edge of the continental shelf, a depth of roughly 200 meters [656 feet]. A neritic environment supports marine organisms, also described as neritic, that are capable of surviving in shallow water with moderate exposure to sunlight.
* The "abyss", or the abyssal, is described as the depositional environment of the deepest area of the ocean basins. The depositional energy is low, the abyssal plain is flat and nearly horizontal, and fine-grained sediments are deposited slowly by waning turbidity currents or from suspension in the water. The water is thousands of meters deep (about 2,000 meters) [about 6,520 feet], so the water is cold and sunlight is minimal, if it exists at all.