Download Chapter 42 Abiotic: nonliving factors in an ecosystem Biotic: living

Chapter 42
Abiotic: nonliving factors in an ecosystem
Biotic: living factors in an ecosystem
Ecological System: ecological community functioning together with its environment and
acting as one
Ecology: The branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another
and to their physical surroundings.
Population: A group of individuals of the same species that live, interact, and interbreed
in a particular geographic area at the same time.
Community: Interacting populations of different species with a particular geographic
area.
Landscapes: A area that contains multiple communities.
Biosphere: All the organisms and environments of the planet.
Ecosystem: Communities plus their physical environment (modern terms)
Weather: State of atmospheric conditions in a particular place at a particular time
Climate: Average state and pattern of variation over longer periods
Seasonality: Flunctuations in temperature over the course of the year
Adiabatically: occurring without loss or gain of heat
Hadley Cells: the process of two patterns of vertical atmospheric circulation-one north
and one south of the equator
Current: Massive circulation patterns in the surface waters of the oceans
Climate Diagram: Used to summarize the climate of any location
Topography: Variation in the elevation of Earth’s surface
Biome: distinct physical environment that’s inhabited by ecologically similar organisms
with similar adaptations
Permafrost: A thick subsurface layer of soil that remains frozen throughout the year
Tundra: A vast, flat, treeless Arctic region of Europe, Asia, and North America in which
the subsoil is permanently frozen.
Boreal forest (taiga): A forest located in the Earth's far northern regions, consisting
mainly of cone-bearing evergreens, such as firs, pines, and spruces, and some deciduous
trees, such as larches, birches, and aspens. The taiga is found just south of the tundra.
Temperate Rain Forest: coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone
and receive high rainfall.
Temperate deciduous: These trees are known to shed their leaves, and they produce nuts
and seeds
Temperate Grassland: open fields of grass with very few trees, cold climate and little
precipitation
Chaparral: hot dry summers and cool moist winters and dominated by a dense growth of
mostly small-leaved evergreen shrubs, as that found in the foothills of California.
Desert: A dry, often sandy region of little rainfall, extreme temperatures, and sparse
vegetation.
Savanna: A flat grassland of tropical or subtropical regions.
Tropical Rain Forest: luxuriant forest, generally composed of broad-leaved trees and
found in wet tropical uplands and lowlands around the Equator.
Plankton: The collection of small or microscopic organisms, including algae and
protozoans, that float or drift in great numbers in fresh or salt water, especially at or near
the surface, and serve as food for fish and other larger organisms.
Nekton: Aquatic animals that are able to swim and move independently of water
currents.
Benthos: The flora and fauna found on the bottom, or in the bottom sediments, of a sea,
lake, or other body of water.
Phytoplankton: Plankton consisting of microscopic plants.
Zooplankton: Plankton consisting of small animals and the immature stages of larger
animals
Flowing-water Ecosystems: any type of water that has a constant flow over top of land.
Standing-water Ecosystems: One that has actually developed in stagnant water. No
water flows in or out.
Littoral Zone: near shore regions of lakes or oceans
Limnetic Zone: open-water
Profundal Zone: deep zone of a body of water
Freshwater Wetlands: a broad, flat piece of land covered with freshwater most of the
time and containing freshwater grasses and plants.
Ecosystem Services: Humankind benefits from a multitude of resources and processes
that are supplied by ecosystems.
Estuary: The tidal mouth of a river, where the tide meets the stream.
Salt Marshes: An area of coastal grassland that is regularly flooded by seawater.
Mangrove Forests: are various types of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow
in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics
Intertidal Zone: The area between the land and sea that is covered by water at high tide
and uncovered at low tide.
Benthic Environment: The environment at the bottom of bodies of water
Sea Grasses, Kelps: various seaweeds that grow underwater in shallow beds
Coral Reefs: a marine ridge or reef consisting of coral and other organic material
consolidated into limestone
Neritic Province: region of water lying directly above the sublittoral zone of the sea
bottom.
Euphotic Zone: layer of sea water that receives enough sunlight for photosynthesis to
occur.
Oceanic Province: The water of the ocean that lies seaward of the break in the
continental shelf.
Marine Snow: small particles of organic biogenic marine sediment, including the
remains of organisms, fecal matter, and the shells of planktonic organisms, that slowly
drift down to the sea floor
Eutrophic: Having waters rich in mineral and organic nutrients that promote a
proliferation of plant life, especially algae, which reduces the dissolved oxygen content
and often causes the extinction of other organisms.
Ecotone: region of transition between two biological communities
1. Abiotic factors are the nonliving components of the environment, while the biotic
factors are the living components of the environment. Abiotic factors include
water, temperature, and sunlight, while biotic factors include grass and trees.
2. Weather is the state of atmospheric conditions in a particular place at a specific
time, while climate is the average state and pattern of variation over longer
periods.
3. Solar energy input varies with latitude because the angle of incoming sunlight
affects the amount of solar energy that reaches a given area of Earth’s surface.
Lower latitudes have more solar energy input per unit of surface area than higher
latitudes. Also, air temperatures decrease from low latitudes to high latitudes, so
low latitudes have warmer climates. Lastly, high latitudes also undergo more
pronounced seasonality, which are greater fluctuations in temperature over the
course of a year.
4. Latitudinal differences in solar energy output cause global patterns of atmospheric
circulation, and oceanic circulation is driven by atmospheric circulation. In
tropical climates, warm and moist air rises and expands, and then it cools. It then
drops its moisture and flows towards the poles. This cool air retains its moisture
and is pushed away from the equator. Also, ocean surface currents are caused by
prevailing winds and are deflected by continents. Because water has a high heat
capacity, it moderates terrestrial climates around the world. The ocean currents
that flowing towards the poles carry heat from the tropics, which moderates the
climates toward the poles.
5. A biome is a specific physical environment that is inhabited by ecologically
similar organisms with similar adaptations. The nine major terrestrial biomes are
the tropical rainforest, temperate rain forest, temperate seasonal forest, boreal
forest, savanna, subtropical desert, woodland, desert, and tundra. The tropical
rainforest is a forest in a region of year-round warmth and heavy rainfall. It has a
humid climate and more types of trees than any other biome. It has diverse
wildlife, including bamboo, mangrove trees, orangutans, and sloths. The top soil
of the forest floor is of poor quality because hardly any sunlight reaches the forest
floor. The temperate rain forest is found along coasts in temperate climates, and
the soil on the forest floor is poor because barely any sunlight reaches it. It has
heavy rainfall. Wildlife includes plants like trees and epiphyte plants along with
animals such as elk and wolves. The temperate seasonal forest is significant
because it goes through four seasons. It is often found between the polar and
tropic regions. It includes hot summers and cold winters, and around 1000 mm of
precipitation occurs each year. Wildlife includes trees such as oaks and maples
along with animals like deer and coyotes. It contains better soil. Next, the boreal
forest has a cold climate. Winters are long and cold, while summers are short and
cool. Most of the precipitation is in the form of snow, and it varies. Plants in the
boreal forest include firs and pines, and it also includes animals such as the bobcat
and porcupine. The soil order is spodosol. The savanna is a rolling grassland
scattered with isolated trees, and it has warm temperature year round. It has a dry
season and a wet season, and not enough precipitation occurs to support forests.
Plants in the savanna have adaptations in order to survive in long periods of
drought. Animals like hyenas and cheetahs are present in the savanna as well. The
soil of the savanna is porous. Next, the subtropical desert has a low amount of
precipitation and very dry land. It has a hot and dry climate year round. Plants in
the subtropical desert include the cactus and prickly pear, and animals in this
biome include lizards and camels. The woodland contains sparse to dense woody
vegetation of low trees and shrubs, usually with evergreen leaves. Summers
include little rain, and average precipitation is about 100 cm. Typical plants
include oaks and low pines, and animals include birds and reptiles. The temperate
desert includes a semiarid climate and around 25 cm of precipitation each year. It
consists of mostly grasslands, and it often has hot summers. The soil is deep and
dark, and wildlife consists of bison, deer, buffalo grass, and blue gamma grass.
Lastly, the tundra is the coldest of all the biomes. It consists of low temperatures,
low precipitation, bad nutrients, and frost-molded landscapes. It has a low biotic
diversity. Caribou, wolves, lichen, and mosses are present in the tundra. A subsoil
called permafrost is also present in the tundra.
6. Because many of the plants in the tropical rain forest are used for medicines, a
loss of plants has occurred. Deforestation affects the temperate rain forest and the
temperate seasonal forest because it leads to a loss of both plants and animals in
the biome. The savanna has been negatively impacted by human actions because
the grassland has been turned into farmland for growing crops, thus destroying the
original biome. The boreal forest has been negatively impacted due to
overhunting of animals there. Invasions by non-native plants have affected
subtropical deserts, and overhunting and extinction of animals have impacted the
temperate desert. The most severe threat to the tundra is global warming, caused
by human actions and greenhouse gases. Lastly, the woodland is affected by
deforestation.
7.
Tropical
Temperate
Rainforest
Rainforest
Savanna
Temperate
Woodland
Seasonal
Boreal
Temperate Subtropical
Forest
Desert
Tundra
Desert
Forest
Located
Located
Located
Eastern
Mediterra-
Northern
Located
Located
Located
near
along coasts
on either
Asia,
nean basin,
North
mostly
near
near
equator
in temperate
side of
Eastern
South
America
above the
equator and poles
zone
equator on
United
America,
and
equator
in Australia
edge of
States,
southern
Eurasia
tropical
Central
Africa
rain
Europe
forests
Year round
Moderate
Warm
Hot
Hot
Cold
Semiarid
Hot and
Extreme-
warmth
climate
climate
summers,
summers
climate
climate
dry climate
ly cold
cold
and mild
winters
winters
Hyenas,
Deer,
Gecko,
Elk,
Bison,
Lizards,
Caribou,
cheetahs
coyotes
snakes
porcupin
deer
camels
wolves
Around 5
Around 25
Around
C
C
-10 C
Apes,
Elk, wolves
monkeys,
sloths
e
Annual
Annual
Around 25 About 10 C Around 10
temperatu-
temperature
C
re above 20 above 0 C
C
climate
C
-5 to 5 C
Rainfall
Around 250
About 150
varies 250
cm/year of
to 400
rainfall
About 150
Less than
Around
Around
Less than
Less than
cm/year of cm/year of
100
100
25
100
100
rainfall
cm/year of
cm/year
cm/year
cm/year of
cm/year
rainfall
cm/year
rainfall
of rainfall rain
of
precipitat
ion
Bamboo,
Trees,
Palm
Oaks,
Oaks, low
Spruces,
Buffalo
Cactus,
Lichen,
mangrove
epiphyte
trees,
maples
pines
hemlocks
grass,
prickly
mosses
trees
plants
acacia
blue
pear
trees
gamma
grass
Earth’s
Certain
Consists
Consists
Fire is
The
Strong
most
trees like
of two
of four
one of the
boreal
temperature adapt to
biotic
complex
the Sitka
seasons:
seasons
key
forest’s
contrasts
the low
diversity
biome
Spruce
dry
elements
growing
between
amount of
are only
season
of the
season is
summer
rainfall by
found in
and wet
ecosystem less than
and winter
an
this
season
biome
3 months
Plants
extensive
root
system
Low
8. In aquatic ecosystems, climate is less of a distinguishing factor. The primary
distinction among aquatic biomes is salinity, and aquatic biomes can then be
classified as freshwater, saltwater, and estuarine. Salinity determines the types of
organisms that are present in the biome. Other factors affecting aquatic
environments include topography and the velocity of water flow. Water flows
slowly down gradual slopes and rapidly down steep slopes. The depth of a body
of water helps to determine its temperature, pressure, and water movement.