Global Cycles Flashcards
The carbon cycle relies on what 2 main processes?
photosynthesis and respiration
What produces the carbon in the carbon cycle?
burning fossil fuels, deforestation, human/animal respiration, plant respiration, oceanic respiration
What absorbs carbon in the carbon cycle
oceanic photosynthesis and photosynthesis
What transfers carbon to the ground in the carbon cycle?
dead marine life becomes sediments, storage in land plants, organic matter (like poo)
Where is the most nitrogen?
the atmosphere
Plants can only use nitrogen in the form of ________ or ______
ammonium; nitrate
_________ convert atmospheric nitrogen to ammonium or nitrates, which is absorbed by plants
Bacteria
The phosphorus cycle heavily depends on the weathering of ____.
rock
_____ absorb dissolved phosphate ions from the soil.
Plants
____________ can return phosphates back to soil.
Decomposers
Because weathering is a slow process, phosphorous is often a limiting nutrient to _____ _____
plant growth
