Lab 4: Eutrophication in Aquatic Ecosystems Flashcards
Eutrophication
Process of water body enrichment in nutrients from terrestrial ecosystems
Oligotrophic
Describes healthy aquatic ecosystems with low dissolved nutrient levels
Eutrophic
Describes aquatic ecosystems with high nutrient levels dominated by algae and/or other aquatic surface plants
Cultural eutrophication
Eutrophication caused or accelerated by human activities, such as the addition of fertilizers to aquatic systems
Nitrogen (N)
Major nutrient needed by plants and algae, a constituent of proteins and DNA
Phosphorous (P)
Major nutrient needed by plants and algae, a constituent of proteins and DNA
Potassium (K)
Major nutrient needed by plants and algae, essential for maintaining turgor pressure in plant cells and activating enzymes
Green algae
Algae that cannot fix gaseous nitrogen and require nitrogen-rich environments to survive
Cyanobacteria
Bacteria that can fix gaseous nitrogen into a usable form, allowing them to survive in nitrogen-poor environments
Limiting factor
Factor that restricts the growth of plants and algae, often the availability of mineral nutrients like nitrogen
Microcosms
Experimental setups simulating terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems to study the effects of fertilizer application
Upper chamber
Simulates a terrestrial ecosystem or ‘field’ in the microcosms, contains soil
Lower chamber
Simulates an aquatic ecosystem or ‘pond’ in the microcosms, contains water
Phytoplankton
Aquatic photoautotrophs, including cyanobacteria and eukaryotic algae, foundation of most aquatic food webs
Zooplankton
Organisms that feed on phytoplankton in aquatic ecosystems
