ecosystems Flashcards
5 different biomes
Tundra (north Canada), rainforest (Malaysia), savanna grassland (Kenya), desert (Egypt), Boreal or taiga (coniferous forest) (Russia) and prairie (USA).
Pond ecosystem
- producers e.g. Algae
- consumers e.g. Snails, fish
- decomposers e.g. Bacteria on leaves
Pond surface: lots of light, animals live here
Margin: food found here e.g. Algae, Shelter for animals
Mid water: the main predators e.g. Fish
Bottom: the pond bottom has little oxygen, decomposers and scavengers live here.
Natural and human changes on ecosystems
Natural: weather, climate change, plants dry out and die.
Human: fertilisers, drowning of ponds, hedgerows removed, agriculture
Short and long-term affects on ecosystems
Short: temperature – freeze/evaporate
Long: climate change (global Warming), deforestation
nutrient cycle
1) nutrients and minerals enter soil as rocks are weathered and as decomposers break down surface material.
2) Roots of plants absorb the minerals, like nitrate ions and potassium, necessary for growth from soil or water.
3) An animal like a squirrel then eats the leaves off the tree gaining the minerals and nutrients.
4) then that squirrel dies and decomposers decompose the squirrel so the nutrients go back into the soil.