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Ecosystems and Their Interactions Environmental & Ecology PA State Standard 4.6.12.ABC Ecosystems are a fine balance. An introduction of one species can interrupt an entire ecosystem. In 1988, human actions accidentally intervened in the Great Lakes with the introduction of the zebra mussel, an aquatic shelled animal smaller than an adult thumb. Zebra mussel They came in or on a boat from Europe. (Most likely in the ballast water of a cargo ship) Zebra mussel waterway invasion •Zebra mussels have spread largely due to boaters Pros & Cons of zebra mussels Pros Cleanse water of some pollutants Lakes are clearer allowing light to penetrate deeper for more aquatic plant growth. Cons Grow in clumps and clog intake pipes for power plants and municipal water plants. Interfere with feeding, growth, and reproduction of native mussels Eat all the phytoplankton & zooplankton that are the foundation of aquatic food chains Ecologists learned that a small change (one organisms) can have a large impact on the entire ecosystem, even if it is accidental. THINK ABOUT THAT THE NEXT TIME YOU WANT TO RELEASE YOUR UNWANTED PET INTO THE ENVIRONMENT. Biosphere A layer of soil, water, and air that sustains life. Ecosystem Consist of a group of living organisms that interact with one another and the nonliving physical environment as one unit Terrestrial (land) ecosystems Forest Desert Grasslands These vary depending climate and soil in the area, as well as the type of organisms in it. Forest Ecosystems Common in PA- more than half the state Oak-hickory most common in PA 47% Largest & most important plants in this ecosystem Northern hardwoods 38% of state Birch, sugar, maple, beech, & black cherry Aquatic Ecosystems Freshwater ecosystems Ponds, lakes, rivers, streams, & wetlands Marine ecosystems Estuaries, coastal marshes, coral reefs, and the open ocean Hierarchy of ecosystems 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Organism: any form of life Species: a group of organisms alike in several ways that can breed Population: a group of individuals of the same species in a given area Community: populations of living organisms that interact with one another in an ecosystem Ecosystem: living & nonliving interacting Examples Habitat The place where a particular species lives and from which it obtains what it needs for survival Can be as large as the Atlantic Ocean or as small as a rotting log in a hardwood forest in northwestern PA Biotic Factors in an ecosystem All living things Ex: plants, animals, fungi, & microorganisms Can you list some in a PA forest??? These biotic factors interact with one another (predator-prey relationships) Abiotic factors in an ecosystem Nonliving physical and chemical parts of an ecosystem Although they are nonliving they still greatly influence the biotic factors Can you think of some abiotic factors on land???? How about water????? How are they interdependent on one another? Each species survives best in a specific range of environmental conditions Remember the macroinvertebrate study What types of water did trout prefer? Caddisflies? leeches? In PA beech trees survive best in shade whereas black cherry prefer open sunny locations In closed canopies, young black cherries cannot survive Human interaction can disrupt ecosystems Constructing a dam can change the conditions of the stream downstream They block nutrient rich sediment from going downstream because they back up behind the dam wall. Many plants & animals downstream suffer Can block fish from heading upstream to reproduce(salmon) Alter the temperatures by raising and lowering the water level Human interaction can disrupt ecosystems Concentration of toxic substances in air, water, and soil Electric Power plants Acid rain Matter & Energy in an ecosystem Food chain: the transfer of energy from one organism to another As one organism eats another organism, that energy is transferred Forest Food Chain Food Web: A network that shows many connected food chains Food chain vs Food web A food chain is a linear depiction while a food web shows the interconnectedness between all the organisms in the food chains Regardless, all of the energy begins with the sun Plants photosynthesis glucose Producers Uses elements from the environment to make its own food Convert solar energy to chemical energy and store it in their cells Consumer An organism gets its energy and nutrients by feeding on other organisms Different consumers: Herbivore, carnivore, omnivore Primary consumer: feed on plants(herbivores) Secondary consumer: feeds on primary consumers (carnivore/omnivore) Tertiary consumer: feeds on primary & secondary consumers List some examples of each Scavengers & Decomposers Scavenger: feeds on dead organisms Decomposers: usually a type of bacteria or fungus that breaks down dead organisms and wastes These are both important because they breakdown wastes in the environment Trophic levels Contains all organisms in a feeding level that are the same number of steps away from the sun As you move up from one trophic level to another in an ecosystem, there is a 90% loss of energy(as heat) Trophic levels & energy That means only 10% of energy is passed from one trophic level to the next. Food webs usually have no more than 4-5 trophic levels There is too little energy left to support many higher organism (energy pyramid) Soil- a major part of an ecosystem Soil is a precious renewable resource because it takes so many years to produce. Soils vary from place to place depending on the parent material from which it is derived. Each layer is called a soil horizon Soil erosion Depends on climate-precipitation Human impact-logging, farming These factors increase the rate of erosion, supporting fewer producers and ultimately fewer consumers Sediment Sedimentation- areas where large deposit of sediment accumulate These are fertile area because they carry a lot of nutrients. These can form deltas Carrying capacity of an Ecosystem The number of individuals of a species that it can support Carrying capacity Populations cannot grow indefinitely, individuals are born, migrate and or die There are many factors which affect these processes. Example Adequate rainfall, good weather, leads to high production of acorns, which leads to more turkeys surviving winter, therefore increased reproduction of turkeys. Therefore, weather, habitat quality, species survival, and reproduction all affect population growth. Limiting factors Factors that limit the growth of a population This is the most important factor because it gives an ecosystem a finite capacity for growth Exponential growth A line graph that shows exponential growth forms a Jshaped curve This cannot sustain itself indefinitely Carrying capacity Population reaches its carrying capacity forming a S-shaped curve Grows slowly at first then increases more & more quickly depending on limiting factors Overshooting the carrying capacity Deer population explodes Eats tons of young shrubs and trees which deprives many other forest organisms that rely on it Some pops will die back, some will migrate to another area. Many other species will die back before the deer would Habitat & niches Habitat is an area where an organism lives A forest ecosystem may include tree branches, rotting logs, soil, holes in the tree trunks, or spaces under a rock Niche is the role an organism plays within an ecosystem Includes the food an organism eats and how it obtains its food Ex predator/prey diurnal/nocturnal Niche No two species can occupy the same niche in one ecosystem. If they did for a short time, competition for food, water, and space would cause one species to eliminate the other. Darwin’s Finches Modify environment-plant send out toxins to keep other plants away Beavers build dams and restrict the flow of water Eastern wood rat Knowing an organisms niche helps protect it Eastern wood rat is threatened in PA Ecologists are studying its niche to try to help preserve the species Exotic species Exotic species often occupy the same niche as native species but are better able to compete with them because the exotic species have no natural enemies in the new ecosystem Homeostasis The natural stability in an ecosystem It helps an ecosystem resist transformation and helps it recover when stresses are so great that they cause serious problems Organisms in the ecosystem have the ability to resist change, but it is a delicate balance Ecosystems can bounce back Hurricanes and fires occur in areas and devastate them However, organisms have a way of bouncing back but it may change that particular ecosystem. But some changes are too drastic and it may not be able to repair itself. Biomes A geographical region of Earth that is inhabited by a community of distinct types of plant and associated animal species Defined by climate (annual temps and precipitation), soils, latitude & altitude Types of biomes Land Grassland Desert Highland Ice cap Land biomes/forests: Tropical rain forest Central SA, Africa, Southeast Asia & N.Australia Largest in South America- Amazon Heavy rainfall, lush vegetation growing in distinct layers Lowest layer must adapt to limited sun Poor soil-trees’ roots grow laterally to absorb nutrients from leaf litter Greatest species diversity on Earth-80% of species but it covers only 2% of land surface Land biomes/forests: Tropical Deciduous/Scrub forest A deciduous tree is a tree that survives during a cold or dry season by dropping its leaves. TD is similar to TR but less rain and less intensity, trees are less lush and dense than TR Scrub forests have small deciduous and evergreen trees. Land biomes/forests: Temperate Deciduous Moist areas with long, warm summers and cold winters (precipitation all year) PA is in this biome Dominate trees: oaks, hickories, maples, beeches, and sycamores Animals: bear, deer, squirrels, rabbits, raccoons Land Biomes/Forests: Temperate Mid-latitude coastal areas with mild winters/ heavy rainfall Coniferous forest(cone bearing trees) dominate (pines, firs, spruces) Oregon, Washington, Canada Land Biomes/Forests: Boreal Taiga- northern most forest Evergreen conifers dominate Thin needles of evergreens help tree to survive in the cold weather Long, cold, dry winters Little diversity, poor soil Grassland Biomes Less rain than forests but more than desert biomes Periodic drought & seasonal fires help maintain natural grasslands from shrubs taking over Grassland biome: Savanna Grasslands of the tropic/subtropic Warm all year, short wet season, long dry season Largest in southern Africa, central South America, Australia Giraffes have specific niche to eat tops of trees, zebras grass on ground Grassland Biome: Temperate Grassland Most interior of North America Tall-grass prairie of the Midwest & short-grass areas of western Plains Winters very cold, summers hot and dry Fertile soil due to the upper portion of the grass dies off each year Corn Belt/ wheat Prairie dogs, jackrabbits, squirrels, coyotes, wolves, bobcats Grassland Biome: Tundra AKA: Polar grasslands Treeless plains, cold all year, little precipitation(snow) Plants are well adapted to the cold, waxy Mosses, lichens, short shrubs Hares, squirrels, and lemmings(thick fur) Desert An area that typically gets less than 10 inches of rain each year ( can be hot or cold) Tropical: high temps all year low precipitation ex southern Sahara Sand dunes rock formations Temperate:hot summers/cool winters, more annual rain ex:Mohave Cold:cold winters/hot summers ex: Gobi desert of China & Antarctica Desert Plants Special adaptations to extreme environment Store water Succulents have thick, wax coated leaves that cut down on moisture loss Extensive root systems Animals burrow underground to escape the heat Chaparral Mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers Southern California, around the Mediterranean Sea Evergreens with hard leathery leaves Prone to wildfires in late summer and fall Many seeds need fires to open & sprout seeds Highland: Mountains Temperature drops with elevation Depending on windward, precipitation changes Eastern side drier Ice caps Polar areas that are always cold & where snow builds up from year to year into enormous ice sheets that cover the land surface Antarctica and the interior of Greenland Aquatic Biomes: Freshwater Streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, and wetlands that occur inland Less conc. of salt Pa has all of these 41% of the world’s fish species live in them Aquatic biome: Marine Saltwater, the oceans, cover most of the Earth Estuaries & coastal salt marshes- breeding ground for many aquatic animals & waterfowl Pa does not have an ocean coastline, but the southeastern corner borders Delaware near the Delaware Bay Ecosystem Review Hierarchy of ecosystems 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Organism: any form of life Species: a group of organisms alike in several ways that can breed Population: a group of individuals of the same species in a given area Community: populations of living organisms that interact with one another in an ecosystem Ecosystem: living & nonliving interacting Habitat The place where a particular species lives and from which it obtains what it needs for survival Biotic Factors in an ecosystem All living things Ex: plants, animals, fungi, & microorganisms These biotic factors interact with one another (predator-prey relationships) Abiotic factors in an ecosystem Nonliving physical and chemical parts of an ecosystem Although they are nonliving they still greatly influence the biotic factors Producers Uses elements from the environment to make its own food Convert solar energy to chemical energy and store it in their cells Consumer An organism gets its energy and nutrients by feeding on other organisms Different consumers: Herbivore, carnivore, omnivore Primary consumer: feed on plants(herbivores) Secondary consumer: feeds on primary consumers (carnivore/omnivore) Tertiary consumer: feeds on primary & secondary consumers Scavengers & Decomposers Scavenger: feeds on dead organisms Decomposers: usually a type of bacteria or fungus that breaks down dead organisms and wastes These are both important because they breakdown wastes in the environment Trophic levels Contains all organisms in a feeding level that are the same number of steps away from the sun As you move up from one trophic level to another in an ecosystem, there is a 90% loss of energy(as heat) Exponential growth A line graph that shows exponential growth forms a Jshaped curve This cannot sustain itself indefinitely Carrying capacity Population reaches its carrying capacity forming a S-shaped curve Grows slowly at first then increases more & more quickly depending on limiting factors Habitat & niches Habitat is an area where an organism lives A forest ecosystem may include tree branches, rotting logs, soil, holes in the tree trunks, or spaces under a rock Niche is the role an organism plays within an ecosystem Includes the food an organism eats and how it obtains its food Ex predator/prey diurnal/nocturnal