Download The Chaparral Ecosystem

The Chaparral Ecosystem
Overview
The Chaparral biome, found throughout california and other arid regions, displays a wide variety of
plants, animals, and land features that over the years have been shaped by the hot, dry weather the
landscape has endured. The chaparral itself as defined by The California Chaparral Champaign is, ”a
semi-arid, shrub dominated association of sclerophyllous, woody plants shaped by summer drought,
mild, wet winters, and infrequent fires” (California Chaparral Champaign). Sclerophyllous,a term
coined by a herbalist, refers to the development and shape of the leaves of the dense vegetation as
caused by the mediterranean climate of the inland coastal areas around california, ie the chaparral.
Over all because of this dense vegetation, the chaparral can support over a hundred if not a
thousand different species of various adaptations.
These adaptations allow the animals within the environment to form various behaviors, as well as
evolve physical adaptations like horns, spikes and multiple skin patterns. Because of the hot climate,
evolving characteristics, or physical details that are specific to one or more animal(s), that will
provide them with advantages are key to surviving the fight for the limited resources in the arid
weather.
Interactions: Overview
Interactions between species consist in a numerous amount of varying forms. Some of these forms
are; Competitive actions, Predation, and Symbiosis. All of the following relationships between
animals occur more often in the chaparral due to not only the biome itself, but the large amount of
biodiverse species found within the habitat. As demonstrated by the visuals below,
the chaparral is home to many different subspecies of animals. The sighting of these animals,
continue to support reasoning that much more relationships between species are formed in the
chaparral. With over 90 sightings of bird, including differing subspecies, it is not hard to imagine
these species competing for food (competitive actions) or bonding with another species in order
to gain food collectively (symbiosis). This competition for food has forced animals in this diverse
habitat to evolve new forms of interactions between species, predation.
Food Chains
Food chains are chains that link one or more species
based on consumption or predation and help to depict
the numerous relationships of animals found within the
area. This biome, or distinct climate, holds limited
resources of water which plants compete for. Due to the
competition of plants, animals who primarily ingest plant
matter are limited and the so are their own consumers.
The diagram to the right illustrates the importance of this
fact, as the number of top consumers in this system, must
be fewer in order for the remaining levels of the system to
not become scarce. This food Chain demonstrates the
interactions of the Pinyon mouse as it is consumed by the
diamondback rattlesnake. The rattle snake, carrying a
smaller amount of energy from its meal, is then consumed
by the red-tailed hawk and its energy is likewise diluted.
The Organisms contained within this chain are sorted
into levels in the the food chain based on dietary
consumption of other organisms. Such classification of the chaparral animals are broken into three
different categories: Carnivores, Herbivores, and Producers, these categories being the most common as
others stages of consumption do exist.
Producers/Autotrophs
Producers and autotrophs, otherwise known as plants
produce their own food from sunlight, water, and
various chemicals found within the soil to help
supplement their growth. As displayed by the graph on
the right side of this text, producers in the chaparral
make up 26.3% of the organisms identified in the fall of
2014. One of the largest percent of organisms found
within that time. This is attributed to the fact that
producers serve as the base of the food chain. The
Coyote Brush with its thick and coarse greenery, for
example helps provide nutrition to multiple animals,
including the larger Black Eared Jackrabbits. Everything
to be on the level of a producer is dependent on these organisms to serve as vital nutrition sources.
The animals whom depend greatly upon these producers are called herbivores.
Herbivores
Herbivores and the second largest group that help to make up the Trophic scale used to contain all
food webs. Examples of herbivores in the shop around include
the Pinyon Mouse, the moon snail, and cabbage butterflies animals with entirely plant based diets or those the feed off
other plant attributes like nectar. While examining the
Herbivore, the Pinyon Mouse, we find that these animals
often evolve different features such as, small grinding teeth or
body size that help ingest the specific type of plant matter they
consume. Because of the fact these plant eating primary
consumers are demanded as part of the diet of secondary
consumers, more bio diverse animals have evolved within
that trophic level, specifically in the insect species.
Carnivores
Carnivores are animals with the meat based diet, these animals make up secondary and tertiary
consumers and serve as the top of the trophic level scale. Animals who make up these categories
range from that of frogs, secondary consumers, like the Pacific tree frog, to birds like the Osprey,
tertiary consumers.
Such gather data has derived many conclusions about the chaparral. Helping to shape the
knowledge the populace has on the quite unknown but common area of land. Studying the
chaparral has lead to the surprising find, that the chaparral is an ecosystems full of biodivers life in a
large quantity. Over all the chaparral serves as a much needed habitat and shelter to the animals that
exist within it and the removal of this ecosystem from the territory of california would prove
disastrous for many and all species in the chaparral.