Ecosystems Unit, SNC 1W1, Chp 2, Sec 2.1-2.9

salt concentration in Aquatic ecosystems

• Fresh water = < 1%.
• Ocean = 3%

Oligotrophic bodies of water

• Low nutrient levels
• deep and clear
• photosynthetic
  organisms have difficulty obtaining enough nutrients

Eutrophic bodies of water

• High nutrient levels
• Photosynthetic
  organisms grow rapidly and support a large
  biomass of consumers.
• are often clouded with suspended microscopic plankton.

Marsh

• Constantly
  flooded with
  water from a
  specific source
  (e.g. river, lake,
  ocean, etc.)
• Rich in mineral
  deposits
• Plants are mostly
  grasses, reeds,
  and rushes.

Swamp

• Waterlogged soil
  with areas of dry land
• Most develop from
  marshes
• found on the
  edge of rivers,
  lakes or oceans
• abundance of
  trees.

Bog

• sealed clay
  bottom prevents water
  from seeping out.
• Form when
  plants decay in
  lakes and fill
  them up, forming
  peat.
• Lack nutrients
  due to slow rate
  of decay.
• Mosses, fungi,
  small shrubs.

open ocean

nutrient poor
and unable to support many photosynthesizing organisms.

Deep ocean

lightless environment, so photosynthesis is impossible.

intertidal zone location

The area between the low-tide and high-tide lines on ocean coastlines.

adaptations of intertidal species

Protective body coatings and tough tissues to withstand wave action.

common species in the intertidal zone

Seaweeds, barnacles, sea stars, and urchins.

Limiting Factor

Any factor that restricts the size of a population (eg. food(biotic) or water(aboitic)

Tolerance Range

The range of abiotic factors within which a species can survive.

Mutualism

An interaction where both individuals benefit each other.

Commensalism

An interaction where one individual benefits and the other neither benefits nor is harmed.

Parasitism

An interaction where one individual lives on or in and feeds on a host organism.

Predation

An interaction where one individual (predator) feeds on another (prey).

Competition

An interaction where two individuals vie for the same resource.

Carrying Capacity

The upper sustainable limit that an ecosystem can support, determined by resource availability and population density.

Biome

A large geographical region defined by climate, with a specific set of biotic and abiotic features.

Tundra- Abiotic Factors

• Low temperatures
• Short growing season
• Permafrost
• Precipitation from 0 to 25 cm/year
• Poor soil quality

Tundra- Biotic Factors

• Low diversity
• Rapid-flowering plants
• Mosses and lichens
• Caribou
• Ptarmigan
• Lemmings
• Arctic foxes

Boreal Forest (Taiga) - Abiotic

• Warmer than tundra
• No permafrost
• Changeable weather
• Soil contains some water and is acidic
• Precipitation 40 cm/year or more

Boreal Forest (Taiga) - Biotic

• Coniferous trees
• Seed-eating birds
• Squirrels
• Voles
• Snowshoe hares
• Black bears
• Pine martens
• Grey wolves

Temperate Deciduous Forest - Abiotic

• Longer growing season than boreal forest
• Higher temperatures than tundra or
boreal forest (4 seasons)
• Fertile soil
• Precipitation up to 100 cm/year

Temperate Deciduous Forest - Biotic

• Deciduous trees and other flowering
plants
• Tree and ground squirrels
• Many insects
• Shrews and mice
• Deer
• Black bears
• Hummingbirds
• Weasels

Grassland - Abiotic

• Longer growing season than boreal
forest
• Higher temperatures than tundra or
boreal forest
• Rich, fertile soil
• Precipitation from 25 to 75 cm/year
• No trees due to less rainfall than the
deciduous forest biome

Grassland - Biotic

• Fescue grasses
• Grasshoppers
• Bison
• Voles and mice
• Snakes
• Hawks
• Coyotes

Mountain Forest - Abiotic

• Temperatures vary with elevation
• Cool summers
• Windy conditions
• Heavy precipitation on leeward side of
mountains
• Fast-flowing rivers

Mountain Forest - Biotic

• Marmots
• Squirrels
• Elk
• Black and Grizzly bear
• Cougar
• Large coniferous trees
• Ferns

Water cycle

Liquid water evaporates into water vapour, condenses to form clouds, and precipitates back to earth.

Niche

The way an organism interacts with other species and its environment, what it feeds on, what eats it and how it behaves.

Herbivore

An animal that eats plants or other producers

Omnivore

An animal that eats both plants and animals

Carnivore

An animal that eats other animals

Scavenger

An animal that feeds on the remains of another
organism.

Food chain

a sequence of organisms
each feeding on the next, showing how energy is transferred
from one organism to another

Trophic level

The position or feeding level of an organism in a food chain.

Food web

a series of food chains that are
interconnected.

indicator species

essential to food web

pyramid of energy

10% of energy at one trophic level is transferred to the next. (why so few trophic levels)

pyramid of numbers

-Show numbers of organisms
-because of energy lost at organisms at the top of the pyramid need more organisms to support them.

• no account for the varying support of organisms

pyramid of biomass

• biomass (in kg) of different organisms following a food chain
• More accurate version of energy
  transfer than a pyramid of numbers.

Law of Conservation of Mass

particles of matter cannot be created or destroyed; they must be produced or obtained from existing chemicals.

carbon cycle

The movement of carbon between abiotic and biotic parts of an ecosystem, primarily through photosynthesis and respiration.

Habitat

Where an organism lives.

Atmosphere

The layer of gases surrounding Earth, critical to life, moderating surface temps(too hot days, too cold nights) and blocking most U.V. radiation.

Lithosphere

The rocky outer shell of Earth, consisting of rocks and minerals that make up mountains, ocean floors, and solid landscape.

Hydrosphere

All of the Earth's water in solid, liquid, and gas form, including oceans, lakes, ice, rivers, groundwater, and clouds. oceans are 97% of water.

Biosphere

The zone around Earth where life can exist, very thin compared to Earth itself.

Ecosystem

All of the living organisms and their physical and chemical environment

Abiotic factors

Non-living physical and chemical components in an ecosystem (e.g. sunlight, temperature, wind, water, minerals).

Biotic factors

The living components of an ecosystem, including all organisms, their remains, and their products or wastes.

Species

A group of similar organisms that can reproduce and whose offspring can also reproduce.

Population

All members of the SAME species found in the same area.

Community

Members of DIFFERENT species found in the same area.

Sustainability

Ability to maintain natural ecological conditions or processes without interruptions, weakening, or loss of value.

Sun's Radiant Energy

The Sun's radiant energy provides us with invisible energy (ex. UV rays) and visible or light energy.

Absorption of energy from the sun

-70% is absorbed by the Earth and converted to thermal energy
-30% is reflected by the clouds or Earth's surface
-0.023% is absorbed by plants.

Photosynthesis

organisms convert light energy into chemical energy

Photosynthesis Equation

carbon dioxide + water (light energy) sugar + oxygen

Consumers

Cannot photosynthesize and must consume other organisms for food.

Producers

Make their own food (glucose) through photosynthesis.

Cellular Respiration

To use the sugar made from photosynthesis and obtain its stored energy.

Cellular Respiration Equation

sugar + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water + energy.