1.8 primary productivity

primary productivity

rate that solar energy is converted into organic compound through photosynthesis (how much sugars are we making?)
- photosynthesis = growth

units for primary productivity

kcal/m²/yr (energy, area, time)

high pp =

lots of food, shelter for animals, and higher biodiversity

ecosystems with high pp are usually more

biodiverse

calculating pp

npp=gpp-rl

npp

the amount of energy(biomass) leftover for consumers after plants have used some for respiration

*think of npp as the actual amount of plant’s paycheck it keeps after taxes

rp (respiration loss)

plants use some energy they generate via photosynt. by doing cellular respiration (movement, internal transportation, etc.), think of rl as taxes plants need to pay

gpp

total amount of sun energy that plants capture and convert into energy through photosynthesis.

*think as gpp as the total paycheck before taxes

ecological efficiency

the portion of incoming solar energy that's captured by plants and converted into biomass (npp or food available for consumers)

how much % of incoming sunlight is captured and converted into gpp?

1%

how much % of the 1% is converted into biomass/plant growth/npp?

40%

what was the 60% of the 1% lost to

respiration

the more productive a biome is the more

the wider diversity of animal life it can support

what biomes support high diversity

tropical rainforest, swamps & marshes, coral reefs

crucial nutrients in diverse bioime

nitrogen, phosphate, maybe sulfur