Biology Exam 4 Nutrient Cycling

Basics of Nitrogen cycle

Major reservoirs (pools), processes to move among those pools, and how humans changed these pools and processes

Nutrient cycle

the cyclic pathway nutrients pass from the physical environment to living organisms and back again

stages of nutrients

absorbed, transferred, released, and reabsorbed

Components of nutrient cycling

Biotic components and Abiotic components

Biotic components

Living organisms that play a role in the uptake, transformation and reease of nutrients

Abiotic components

Non-living elements such as air, water, soil and minerals that provide the necessary environment for nutrient cycling

Nutrient pools (reservoirs/storage)

Soil pool, atmospheric pool, biomass pool

Dead zones

Areas in aquatic ecosystems where oxygen levels are so low, most marine life cannot survive

Nutrient loading

Excess nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) in water bodies

Dead zones are caused by nutrient loading

Leads to harmful algal blooms

Basics of the Phosphorus cycle

Major reservoirs (pools), processes to move among those pools, how humans changed the pools and processes

Human contributions to Nutrient Loading

Agricultural practices, urbanization, wastewater treatment plants, air pollution

Impact on Dead Zones

Seasonal variability (peak during warmer months), ecosystem disruption, increased size+duration

Major reservoirs (pools) of phosphorus cycle

Marine sediments, soil, phosphorite minerals, biological organisms, water bodies

Processes to move among phosphorus cycle pools

Weathering and erosion (sedimentary rocks), uptake by pants, consumption by animals, death and decomposition, mineralization, adsorption and desorption, sedimentation, geological uplift

Human changes to processes of the phosphorus cycle

Mining+fertilizer production, agricultural runoff, wastewater management, livestock farming, recycling alternative

Why is phosphorous cycle considered a local cycle

There is no gaseous state

Peak phosphorus

The maximum rate of phosphorus extraction from the Earth’s crest is reached

Carbon cycle reservoirs (pools)

Atmosphere, oceans, terrestrial ecosystems, geological deposits

Processes of carbon cycle

Photosynthesis, respiration, decomposition, ocean exchange

phosphorus cycle components

Weathering of rocks, absorption by plants, transfer through food webs, return to soil through decomposition, sedimentation and oceanic processes

Strategies to reduce one’s carbon footprint

Transportation (drive less), Food choices (eat less meat), Home energy use, Consumption habits (reduce, reuse, recycle)