...Marine Biomes Shonda Morton October 20, 2013 SCI/230 Paula Roberts A marine biome is a large aquatic zone that takes up almost 75% of Earth’s surface, has a salt concentration around 3%, and is distinguished from other biomes by its physical environment. According to Campbell Essential Biology with Physiology, (2010), the habitats of a marine biome varies depending on the level of the sea that it exists (pp.382). The layers or “zones” that make up the marine biome consist of the pelagic realm, the intertidal zone, the photic zone, the aphotic zone, and the benthic realm. The pelagic realm is the part of the marine biome that includes all open water. (Dickey, Reece, & Simon, 2010) explains “the intertidal zone is the part where the ocean surface meets land, or fresh water (pp.383).” The level of the marine biome is home to sedentary organisms such as algae, mussels, and barnacles. The photic zone was named mainly because of the fact that light is available for photosynthesis, and known as the upper or shallow layer of the marine biome. In Campbell Essential Biology with Physiology, (2010), the aphotic zone is the layer of the marine biome where the light levels are too low to support photosynthesis (pp.380). The benthic realm which exists in all aquatic biomes is the area of the seafloor, made up of sand, and organic and inorganic sediments. There are many organisms that exist in a marine biome, and each one exists at different levels...
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...| Midterm Review Project | Chapter 4-14 | | | 1/16/2014 | AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CHAPTER 4 EARTH SYSTEMS AND RESOURCES I. The Nature of Ecology a. Ecology is the study of connections in nature i. Ecology is the study of how organisms interact with one another and with their non-living environment ii. An organism is any form of life. The cell is the basic unit of life in organisms. b. Population i. Members of a species interact in groups called populations. ii. Species of the same population live together in a particular place or habitat. c. Communities and Ecosystems i. A community consists of populations of different species living and interacting in an area ii. An ecosystem is a community interacting with its physical environment of matter and energy. II. The Earth’s life support systems a. The different spheres of life-parts of Earth that support life systems. i. The Earth is made up of interconnected spherical layers that contain air, water, soil, minerals, and life. i.i Atmosphere: thin envelope or membrane of air around the planet. Its inner layer is the troposphere; it extends only about 17 km above sea level. i.ii Stratosphere: subsequent layer; its lower portion contains ozone to filter out the sun’s harmful...
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...Bacteria’s sole purpose is to replicate. Some are beneficial and even necessary to animal life, while others, called pathogens, are harmful and cause disease. Protozoans are protists that live primarily by ingesting food; they thrive in all types of aquatic environments. Algae are photosynthetic protists whose chloroplasts support food chains in fresh-water and marine...
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...------------------------------------------------- Freshwater ecosystem From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Freshwater angelfish Freshwater ecosystems are a subset of Earth's aquatic ecosystems. They include lakes and ponds, rivers, streams, springs, and wetlands. They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems, which have a larger salt content. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different factors, including temperature, light penetration, and vegetation. Freshwater ecosystems can be divided into lentic ecosystems (still water) andlotic ecosystems (flowing water). Limnology (and its branch freshwater biology) is a study about freshwater ecosystems. It is a part of hydrobiology. Original efforts to understand and monitor freshwater ecosystems were spurred on by threats to human health (ex. Cholera outbreaks due to sewage contamination). Early monitoring focussed on chemical indicators, then bacteria, and finally algae, fungi and protozoa. A new type of monitoring involves differing groups of organisms (macroinvertebrates, macrophytes and fish) and the stream conditions associated with them. Current biomonitering techniques focus mainly on community structure or biochemical oxygen demand. Responses are measured by behavioural changes, altered rates of growth, reproduction or mortality. Macroinvertebrates are most often used in these models because of well known taxonomy, ease of collection, sensitivity to a range of stressors, and their overall value to the ecosystem...
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...Terrestrial Ecosystems Tundra is a treeless biome occurring in areas with cold climates and a short growing season. Alpine tundra occurs at high altitudes on mountains, while arctic tundra occurs at high latitudes. Most tundra receives a very small amount of water as precipitation , but nevertheless their soil may be moist or wet. Boreal forests are cold, conifer dominated forests covering large portions of Europe, Asia, and North America. They have short damp summers; long, cold winters; and short growing seasons.Their thin soil is acidic and nutriently poor. Precipitation mostly comes in the form of snow and is roughly equivalent to 16 to 40 inches of rain a year. Animals inhabiting the boreal forest include weasels, woodpeckers, hawks, moose, bear, squirrels, fox and bats. The tropical rainforest biome is an ecosystem that covers 7% of the earth’s surface. They are found all over the world but the majority of the tropical rainforest lies in south america in brazil.The average temperature of the tropical rainforest remains between 70 and 85 degrees F. The tropical rainforest is very rainy. Most of the animals living in the tropical rainforest live in the trees. There they can find all of their necessities and rarely have to come down to the floor. Because of the amount of trees in the tropical rainforest biome, it is responsible for the majority of oxygen production in the air that we breathe. Coniferous forest is a kind of biome situated in temperature regions of the...
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...Homework #1 – Basic Terms and Concepts Name: Intro to the Environment - Eco Footprint - Homework #1 (HW1) – Fall 2012 1. An ecosystem is a community of organisms living in a particular environment and also the physical elements in that given environment, in which these organisms interact. Its diversity is profoundly substantial. An ecosystem can extend from the icy artic zones to the tropical forests. They occur in many different scales with smaller systems pierced inside larger systems. Depending on the scale, an ecosystem can be small or profoundly large. 2. Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water. In plants, photosynthesis generally involves the green pigment chlorophyll and generates oxygen as a byproduct. 3. A producer in an ecosystem, converts energy from the environment into carbon bonds. For instance, green plants use energy from the sun to create more complex molecules like carbon dioxide into glucose. Consumers on the other hand are organisms that obtain nutrients from other organisms. They attain their energy from the carbon bonds made by the producers. An example of a consumer is animal that gets its energy from plants. It is also called an herbivore. A few examples of herbivores include cows, moose, gazelles, rabbits and elephants. The trophic level of an organism is where the organism is situated in the food chain. A food chain is similar to...
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...Biotic Pertaining to living organisms. Carrying capacity A maximum number of individuals or maximum population density that a habitat can support. Community All the organisms that live within a given area. Consumer An organism that obtains food from other living organisms. Ecological succession Changes in the species composition of an ecosystem following a disturbance. Ecology The study of how organisms interact with their environments. Ecosystem All the organisms that live within a given area and all the abiotic features of their environment. Exponential growth A model of population growth in which a population grows at a rate proportional to its size. Life history strategy The position a population of organisms occupies on the continuum between producing a large number of “inexpensive” offspring and a small number of “expensive” offspring. Logistic growth A model of population growth in which growth slows as the population approaches the carrying capacity of its habitat. Niche The total set of biotic and abiotic resources a species uses within a community. Population A group of individuals of a single species that occupies a given area. Producer An organism that makes organic molecules from inorganic materials and energy. Symbiosis A situation in which individuals of two species live in close association with one another. Trophic level One of the feeding levels in a food chain, including producers, primary consumers, secondary...
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...Key words !!! Key words !!! Alien species- An alien species is a species introduced outside its normal distribution. Invasive alien species are alien species whose establishment and spread modify ecosystems, habitats, or species. Anaerobic- Living or occurring in the absence of free oxygen: anaerobic bacteria. Aquaculture- The rearing of aquatic animals or the cultivation of aquatic plants for food. Biodiversity- The variety of plant and animal life in the world or in a particular habitat, a high level of which is usually considered to be important and desirable. Biodiversity hotspot- A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region that is both a significant reservoir of biodiversity and is threatened with destruction. The term biodiversity hotspot specifically refers to 25 biologically rich areas around the world that have lost at least 70 percent of their original habitat. Biomass- The total quantity or weight of organisms in a given area or volume. Biome- A large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat, e.g. forest or tundra. Buy-back- The buying back of goods by the original seller. A form of borrowing in which shares or bonds are sold with an agreement to repurchase them at a later date. Carbon sequestration- A natural or artificial process by which carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere and held in solid or liquid form. Conservation- The protection, preservation, management, or restoration of wildlife and natural resources...
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...Natural Resources and Energy Paper A forest is a natural resource needed by the earth, humans, and species. There are three types of forests. The three types include “tropical, temperate, boreal forests” (The forest biome p. 1, 2006). Recently forests occupy about “one-third of Earth’s land area, and account for over two-thirds of the leaf area of land plants, and contain about 70% of carbon present in living things” (The forest biome p. 1, 2006). Forests produce vital oxygen and provide homes for people and wildlife. Forests play a critical role in mitigating climate change. A forest have several management practices for sustainability and conservation. There are several risks and benefits of extracting and using one type of nonrenewable and one type of renewable energy. The growth of human population has affected forest resources in several ways. The affected forests have caused harm to the population of wild species and have majorly impacted agriculture. Impacts associated with agriculture Between 2000 and 2010 about 13 million hectares of forests were lost per year to agriculture and other uses (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2013). Agroecosystems are very different from the ecosystems seen in nature. Unlike natural ecosystems, agroecosystems are large areas that have been planted with a single species or single strain or subspecies. This often makes them more susceptible to disease. Also, the agroecosystems are often planted in simple geometric...
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...emissions affecting the earth’s climate. Human acts such as; burning fossil fuels and energy for deforestation is large contributors to an increase in green house gases. Humans are pouring carbon dioxide (CO2) in to the atmosphere much faster than plants and oceans can absorb it. This has been going on for years and because of the build up of emissions, it is impossible to prevent global warming. Deforestation Deforestation causes extinction in certain species. Humans are a species and we depend on other species for our survival. Land use directly leads to species extinction (Turk, J & Bensel T 2011 chapter 4). Humans should reserve biomes and aquatic zones because life is dependent upon it. An interruption to these zones causes a depleting effect creating irreversible lose of important organisms. Extinction is a natural selection process...
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...James Shin Per 7b/8 Ecology Take Home Test 1) In the given info, there were two groups, an experimental and control group of flowers and sagebrush in a desert landscape that were identical except that the experimental group had a fence enclosed around it. Also, there was a predation relationship between the wildflowers and the kangaroo rats because the kangaroo rats eat wildflowers. Assuming that the fence was limiting the space of the experimental plot, competitive exclusion caused the extinction of the 4 other wild flowers. To begin, there was some interspecific competition, which happens when individuals of different species compete for a resource that limits their survival, between the 5 flower species in the experimental plot because they had their space limited to the fence that they were enclosed in. this competition was a density dependent factor in that the death rate rose when population density in the plot rose. Also, some of the specie’s ecological niches (like what nutrients they needed and how many branches would form) would have had to been the same or else they could coexist together. Then, one of the species of wildflower might have had a reproductive advantage like thorns to repel the kangaroo rats which would have allowed them to prosper and the other species to die out. This is the principle of competitive exclusion. On a tangent, the kangaroo rats would have learned to stay away from the wildflower with thorns by classical conditioning because they...
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...climate A Mediterranean climate is the climate typical of the lands in theMediterranean Basin, and is a particular variety of subtropical climate. The lands around the Mediterranean Sea form the largest area where this climate type is found, but it also prevails in much of California, in parts of Western andSouth Australia, in southwestern South Africa, sections of Central Asia, and in parts of central coastal Chile. Contents [hide] * 1 Köppen climate classification * 2 Precipitation * 3 Temperature * 4 Mediterranean Biome * 4.1 Natural vegetation * 5 Hot-summer Mediterranean climate * 6 Warm-summer Mediterranean climate * 7 See also * 8 References * 9 External links | ------------------------------------------------- Köppen climate classification[edit] Under the Köppen climate classification, "dry-summer subtropical" climates (classified as Csa and Csb) are often referred to as "Mediterranean". Under the Köppen-Geiger system, "C" zones have an average temperature above 10 °C (50 °F) in their warmest months, and an average in the coldest between 18 to −3 °C (64 to 27 °F) (or, in some applications, between 20 to 0 °C (68 to 32 °F)). The second letter indicates the precipitation pattern: "s" represents dry summers: first, Köppen has defined a dry month as a month with less than one-third that of the wettest winter month, and with less than 30 mm of precipitation in a summer month. Some, however, use a 40 mm level.[1][2] The third letter indicates the degree...
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...The Arctic and subarctic regions Compared with other biomes, the tundra biome is relatively young, having its origin in the Pleistocene (1,600,000 to 10,000 years ago). Individual plant and animal species of the tundra, however, probably first appeared in the Late Miocene (11.2 to 5.3 million years ago) or Early Pliocene (5.3 to 3.4 million years ago). Coniferous forests were present on Ellesmere Island and in northern Greenland, the northernmost land areas, in the mid-Pliocene (2.5 million years ago). Most paleoecologists believe that tundra flora evolved from plants of the coniferous forests and alpine areas as continents drifted into higher and cooler latitudes during the Miocene (23.7 to 5.3 million years ago). The Antarctic region Antarctica has been isolated from other continental landmasses by broad expanses of ocean since early in the Tertiary Period, about 60 to 40 million years ago. Prior to its separation it existed, along with Australia, South America, peninsular India, and Africa, as part of the landmass known as Gondwanaland. This long separation has impeded the establishment and development of land-based flora and fauna in the Antarctic. Other significant factors that have hampered terrestrial biotic evolution are the harsh climate, the ice cover that completely engulfed the continent during the Pleistocene glaciations, and the present limited number of ice-free land areas, which are restricted primarily to the coastal fringes and nunataks (mountain peaks surrounded...
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...The phosphorus cycle is the slowest one of the matter cycles. Phosphorus cycles through plants and animals much faster than it does through rocks and sediments. When animals and plants die, phosphates will return to the soils or oceans again during decay. After that, phosphorus will end up in sediments or rock formations again, remaining there for millions of years. Eventually, phosphorus is released again through weathering and the cycle starts over. Biodiversity is the variety of different types of life found on the Earth and the variations within species. It is a measure of the variety of organisms present in different ecosystems (Farabee). This can refer to genetic variation, ecosystem variation, or species variation within an area, biome, or planet. The main reason why biodiversity is so important is that it makes ecosystems so resilient to change. Human behavior impacts biodiversity in many ways. The permanent destruction of forests or deforestation is one of the most obvious impacts. One of the more immediate impacts that humans have is by introducing nonnative species and overharvesting. What is population? A population is group of individuals of the same species living in the same geographic area (Farabee). In brief I will discuss the population growth model. There are two modes of population growth, the Exponential and Logistic curve. Exponential curve occurs when there is no limit to population size, where the Logistic curve shows the effect of a limiting factor. Nearly...
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...inhabit a territory or state; the number of inhabitants (either the total number or the number of a particular race or class) in a given place (country or city etc.) 5. community - noun (ecology) a group of interdependent organisms inhabiting the same region and interacting with each other; a group of people living in a particular local area; a group of people having ethnic or cultural or religious characteristics in common; a group of nations having common interests; common ownership; agreement as to goals; the body of people in a learned occupation; a district where people live; occupied primarily by private residences 6. ecosystem - noun a system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment 7. biome - noun a major biotic community characterized by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate 8. autotroph - noun plant capable of synthesizing its own food from simple organic substances 9. producer - noun something that produces; someone who finds financing for and supervises the making and presentation of a show (play or film or program or similar work); someone who manufactures something 10. photosynthesis - noun synthesis of compounds with the aid of radiant energy (especially in...
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