Section B: The living world

what is an ecosystem?

it is the interaction of a community of living organisms (biotic) with the non-living biotic parts of the environment.

What is a producer?

Use the sunlight to create its own food

what are decomposers?

Organism that gets its energy by breaking down dead material

Examples of decomposers?

• bacteria

• fungi

state one role of decomposers in an ecosystem.

Breakdown organic matter and return it to the soil

what is the process of the nutrient cycle?

1. When dead material decomposes nutrients are released into the soil

2. The nutrients are taken up from the soil by plants the plants may be eaten by consumers

3. When the plants or consumers die, the nutrients returned to the soil

4. This transfer of nutrients is called nutrient cycling

what is a food chain?

simple models of the feeding relationship in communities

what is a food web?

Show lots of food chains and how they overlap

what is our small ecosystem case study?

A pond

What is an example of a food chain for a pond?

Waterlily→dragonfly→frog→grey heron

What is rewilding?

restoring ecosystems whilst allowing ecosystems to develop themselves

what is the climate like in the tundra?

Winters are very cold summers are brief and there is little rainfall. There’s a layer of permanently frozen ground called Permafrost

where is the tundra found and what country does are classified as tundra?

Found at high altitudes (above 60° north).

Canada/Alaska

what are the two types of grasslands?

• savannah (found between tropics)

• temperate grasslands

What’s the climate like in Savannah grasslands?

There are distinct dry and wet seasons, although rainfall is still relatively low

what is the climate like in temperate grasslands?

More variation in temperature and less rainfall

what is the climate like in temperate deciduous forests?

Summers are warm winters are relatively mild and there’s rainfall all year round

where are temperate deciduous forests found?

Mid latitudes (includes the UK)

what is the climate like in polar ecosystems?

very cold, icy and dry. Not much grows at all they remain dark for several months each year so the growing season is very short.

Where are polar ecosystems found?

Found around the north and south poles

why is there a short growing season in polar ecosystems?

They remain dark for several months, so the growing season is very short

what’s the climate like inhot desert ecosystems?

Little rainfall, very hot during the day and very cold at night

where are hot desert ecosystems found?

Between 15° and 35° north and south of the equator

what is the Climate like in tropical rainforest ecosystems?

Hot and wet all year round

where are tropical Rainforest ecosystems found and what countries do they include?

Found around the equator between the tropics (Brazil)

what is the climate like in Boreal Forest/Taiga ecosystems?

Winters are cold and dry and summers are mild and moist

where are the real forest/taiga ecosystems found?

Between 50 and 60° north

What’s the temperature generally stay between in tropical rainforest?

20-28°

describe the distribution of the worlds tropical rainforests.

Tropical rainforest are largely found within the tropic of cancer (around the equator)

What is the shrub layer?

between 0-10metres and is made of smaller plants such as orchids and ground animals such as jaguars

what is the under canopy?

between 10 to 20 m and it is made of young trees growing quickly to compete for sunlight

what is the canopy?

A bit like an umbrella shading the trees below you will find lianas and epiphyte here

what is the emergent layer?

At 30 to 40 m the emergent trees are some of the tallest trees in the rainforest. They will have huge buttress roots to support them.

what is the definition of biodiversity?

The variety of organisms living in a particular area

are rainforest independent ecosystems?

yes

what is it about Amazon rainforest that help the fungi and bacteria on the forest floor decompose dead plant material rapidly?

Warm and wet climate

what are symbiotic relationships?

Where species depend on each other for survival

How could deforestation cause drought?

Trees take up lots of water and release it back into the atmosphere providing moisture for rainfall. By reducing tree cover may increase the risk of drought.

what are the three main ways plants are adapted to the physical conditions in tropical rainforests?

• drip tips

• grow tall

• buttress roots

how are drip tips a good adaption of plants in the rainforest?

Water can run off the Leaf so the weight of the water doesn’t damage the plant. This also means there is no standing water for fungi and bacteria to grow in

how are trees growing tall a good adaptation?

They can compete for sunlight

how are buttress roots a good adaption for trees?

They have a large safe area to absorb lots of nutrients and provide stability so they can grow tall

What are epiphytes?

Plants which live on branches of trees high up the canopy they get their nutrients from air and water, not soil

what are the lianas?

Roots draped to surface to access extra nutrients from the soil

how are sloths adapted to the conditions in the Amazon rainforest?

• Their nocturnal so they feed at night when it’s cooler- this helps them save energy

• Their fur face downwards so water can run off more easily so they don’t get cold

• sharp claws to allow good grip on branches- get away from predators

describe and explain how plants and animals have adapted to the physical conditions of the tropical rainforests? (6 marks)

trees have butchers roots to provide stability as they grow incredibly tall (over 50metres in some cases) As there is great competition for sunlight. The Buttress roots also increases the surface area so it can absorb as much nutrients as possible. The bark of the trees are thin and smooth to allow free flow of water and because the high temperatures mean there is no need for protection against cold. due to the high rainfall leaves on plants often have dripped tips which allow the water to be channelled to the end and fall to the leaf does not break. Leaf stems are also flexible to allow leaves to move with the Sun.

The spider monkey has a prehensile tail. The prehensile tale allows the SpiderMonkey to be able to grasp the branches of rainforest trees. The monkey can hang by its tail swing by it pick fruit a need avoid predators. sloths are nocturnal which allow them to find food in the night when it’s cooler to preserve energy. their fur also faces downward so the water runs off so they didn’t get cold as there is lots of rainfall on the rainforest. Lastly, sloths have long claw so they can get to branches and get away from predators

how much area does the Amazon rainforest cover?

8,000,000 km²

what are the five main reasons the Amazon is being cut down?

• Farming

• Logging

• Mineral extraction

• Energy development

• Road building

why is the Amazon being cut down for farming?

• Forest is cleared to make space for cattle and to grow crops at a large scale

  • Forest is cleared by small scale farmers who need to grow food for themselves and their families.

Why is the Amazon being cut down for logging?

The Amazon is full of valuable hardwood trees which make logging extremely tempting to businesses

why is the Amazon being cut down for mineral extraction?

Gold, iron and copper are mined and exported to help boosts countries development

why is the Amazon being cut down for energy development?

Building hydroelectric dams flood large areas of forest

why is the Amazon being cut down for road building?

The 4000 km trans Amazonian highway connect to Brazilian coast to Peru for trade

how long is the Trans-Amazonian highway?

4000 km

what is a type of food that the Amazon farmers can grow a lot of?

soy beans

what are the advantages of human impacts on the rainforest? (for humans)

• Profit, makes brazil richer

• long term jobs created

• Multiplier effect

What are the disadvantages of human impacts on the rainforest?

• Native Indians, such as Yanomami have lost their culture, homeland and way of life

• habitats destroyed

• CO2 emissions

what are the four main methods of sustainable management in tropical rainforest?

• Wildlife Corridors

• Eco tourism

• Debt reduction

• Selective logging

what is wildlife corridors?

Planting strips of forest to connect the remaining forest together

how do wildlife corridors manage the rainforest?

Allows animals to move freely from one area of forest to another without coming into conflict with people

what is Eco tourism?

Introduce people to the natural world without causing any environmental damage

how does eco-tourism manage the rainforest?

Enable the disturb natural environment to create a source of income for local people without being destroyed

what is debt reduction?

Where countries agree to cancel certain amounts of debt if they do not carry out deforestation

how does debt reduction manage the rainforest?

Deforestation often occurs as a way of making money to pay debt by cancelling debt Less trees will be cut down

what is selective logging?

Plant as many trees, did you cut down?

How to selective logging manage the rainforest?

You won’t run out of trees and cause any problems

what is our case study for cold environments?

Alaska

what are the four main opportunities in Alaska?

• Mineral resource

• Energy

• Tourism

• Fishing

How are mineral resources an opportunity for Alaska?

Alaska has abundant mineral resources, including coal, copper, copper, silver copper, gold, and zinc. 20% of Alaska’s mineral wealth lies in gold.

how is energy an opportunity for Alaska?

There are vast reserves of oil and gas in the north of Alaska. One third of the state income comes from the industry which employs over 100,000 people.

how is tourism an opportunity for Alaska?

Alaska’s amazing environments come with mountains and glaciers, attract 2 million tourists every year.

how is fishing an opportunity for Alaska?

The fishing industry employees 80,000 people in Alaska Alaska’s 3000 rivers 3 million lakes and 10,686 km of coastline are rich in fish.

how many people does the fishing industry employ in Alaska?

80,000

How many rivers and lakes does alaska have?

3,000 rivers and 3 million lakes

what are the three main challenges in Alaska?

• extreme weather

• inaccessibility

• building and infrastructure

explanation of the extreme temperature in Alaska and how it limits development

-9° is Alaska’s highest temperature and -47° is its lowest. Extreme cold makes working outside dangerous so opportunities for work/development are limited

explanation of inaccessibility in Alaska and how it limits developments

Limited roads and risk of avalanches which means there’s a limited emergency services/resources and you can’t build on it because the risks are too high

what is our example for inaccessibility in Alaska?

Sheldon chalet which can only be accessed by helicopter

explanation of buildings and infrastructure in Alaska and how they limit development

This difficulty to build on soft or frozen ground. it’s a risk because permafrost is starting to melt. houses built on stilts.

what are the four main of for Alaska?

• Off-road vehicles

• Oil pollution

• Climate change

• mining

how to off-road vehicles cause threats to Alaska?

Deep tracks can harm tundra and they take a long time to recover

how can oil pollution cause threat to Alaska?

Rivers become polluted and is totally lifeless, scars landscape, disrupts food chain

how does climate change cause threat to Alaska?

It makes the sea warmer, so there’s a lot of marine species which store carbon. Increasing temperatures causes permafrost to melt

how can mining cause threat to Alaska?

Noise pollution, which scares animals and disrupt the balance of ecosystems

what are the four main mitigation strategies for Alaska?

• Conservation groups

• Action by government

• International

• Use of technology

how to conservation groups reduce the risk to Alaska?

They work with companies to reduce environmental impacts and work with local community’s to manage critical ecosystems

how does action by the government reduce the risk to Alaska?

Alaska has implemented environmental laws. The 1964 wilderness act to protect designated wilderness areas

how does international agreement reduce the risk to Alaska?

• Agreement between countries to preserve the natural environment

• Controls tourists and keeps disturbance to a minimum

• Nuclear free zone

how does the use of technology reduce the risk to Alaska?

• Can raise homes above permafrost

• Rice pipelines in Alaska above the permafrost