aqua pollut/ toxic

define pollutant

introduction of substances or energy into the environment that causes adverse effects

define contaminent

presence of a substance where it should not be or at concentrations above background

define toxicology

Field of science that helps us understand the harmful effects that chemicals, substances, or situations, can have on people, animals, and the environment. (From the National Institute of Environmental Health

Describe how water is distributed on Earth

Describe the water cycle

define ecosystems

include communities of living organisms (biotic) and the abiotic

components of the environment

define autotrophs

define heterotrophs

Diagram the structure of a grazing food chain and label the trophic levels

Give examples of organisms that function as primary producers in aquatic systems

dinoflagellate, algae, grass, kelp, cyanobacteria

Compare and contrast the source of energy and carbon for photoautotrophs, chemoautotrophs, and heterotroph

photo: sun

chemo: oxidation of chemical compounds

(chemosynthesis

hetero: acquire energy and carbon by consuming organic compounds

• Animals • Fungi * Most bacteria • Many protists

Explain why ecological efficiency is so low

• Energy Transfer Between Trophic Levels is Not 100% Efficient

• There is a decrease in the flux

  of food to higher trophic levels

• Ecological efficiencies are

  generally low (10-20%)

Explain why ecological efficiency can be higher in aquatic systems than in terrestrial systems

plants harder to breakdown while there is cyanobacteria with simpler structure so organisms feeding can obtain more energy

Discuss what is shown by ecological pyramids and describe scenarios where the pyramids may become inverted temporarily

• calories/energy/biomass/ # of organisms transferred from one level to the next

• more biomass herbivores than producers (a lot of production) temporary lots of herb but then die back down)

Define detritus and detritivore

Diagram the detritus food chain and give examples of what is found at each trophic level

Describe the microbial loop and explain its importance in linking the detritus and grazing food chains

Describe the interaction (and benefits of the interaction) between the detritus and grazing food chains

Explain how differences in the overall amount of photosynthesis vs. respiration can lead to eutrophication

Explain how cultural eutrophication differs from natural eutrophication processes

Describe food chain magnification.

• Biodegradable pollutants can be catabolized and rendered harmless

• Non-biodegradable pollutants, especially those that are stored within an organism’s body, can be passed through the grazing food chain

• Very high concentrations of a pollutant can occur at the higher levels of a food chain through food chain magnificatio

Why are carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus essential for organisms?

Trace the movement of carbon through the short term and long-term carbon cycles

• Short Term Carbon Cycle: Timescale of decades; driven primarily by biological activity

• Long Term Carbon Cycle: Timescale of centuries or longer; driven primarily by physical processes

List different forms of nitrogen in the nitrogen cycle. Which forms are most available for primary producers?

• nitrogen gas (N2) (dinitrogen)

• ammonia (NH3)

• ammonium (NH4+)

• nitrite

• nitrate

• nitrous oxide

• nitric oxide

• organic nitrogen

• most available: nitrate

Describe and distinguish between the processes within the nitrogen cycle and identify the types of organisms responsible for each. Also note whether the processes require oxygen or not

Trace the movement of nitrogen through the nitrogen cycle.

Trace the movement of phosphorus through the phosphorus cycle