Which characteristic allows the water in aquatic ecosystems to absorb large amounts of energy without a large rise in temperature?

The specific heat of water.

The water has a unique quality of not being heated upto a certain temperature and absorbing the energy provided to it in the form of specific heat.

The sunlight that falls on the water, it absorbs a huge amount of energy but the temperature of the water does not rises upto a certain limit.

This helps the organism present in water to survive using this energy( specific heat).

a. decomposes use carbon from dead organisms as fuel for cellular respiration, returning carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere.