lecture 2 Flashcards
3 ecosystem components?
- Primary producers (autotrophs)
2. Consumers (heterotrophs)
Decomposers (autotrophs)
describe autotrophs
Autotrophs- manufacture organic requirements from inorganic sources
describe heterotrophs
○ Heterotrophs- obtain organic requirements from other organisms and the environment
what do trophic relationships follow? carbon as a currency?
○ Trophic relationships - following the path of energy/carbon through the system
○ Carbon as a currency - accounted for and integrated into our understanding of how ecosystems function
describe primary producers. what is chemosynthesi s
- Green plants
- Photosynthesis: use solar energy to convert inorganic molecules into organic molecules
- Phytoplankton -> trees
- Not all plants are autotrophs!! Ex. Corpse plant (not green, not an autotroph)
- Some bacteria
○ Chemosynthesis: use chemical energy to synthesize organic compounds
describe consumers
- Heterotrophs
- 1degree consumers (herbivores) feed on plants
- 2nd degree and higher order consumers feed on other animals
- Omnivores are generalists
describe decomposers
- Organisms that obtain nutrients by breaking down organic matter
- Especially fungi, bacteria, invertebrates
- Heterotrophs
Essential step
what are the 4 abiotic components of an ecosystem
- Substrate/matrix: soil, parent material;
- Solar or other energy source
- Chemicals/compounds/minerals: contained in soil, air, water
Climate: temp, wind, precipitation, light, humidity etc (micro and macro)
ecosystem processes? (6)
pp
translocation
decomp
trophic lvl relationships
biogeochemical cycling
energy flow
describe photosynth
Photosynthesis/primary production: conversion of light energy into chemical energy (fixation of C)
describe translocation
Translocation: nutrients, water, carbs, moved within plant
describe decomp
- Decomposition: breaking down OM into simpler forms
what is cycled in biogeochemical cycling?
(e.g. water, nitrogen, phosphorous)
* Energy flow
is ecosystem ecology interdisciplinary?
yes, encompasses many contexts and mechanisms
why study ecosystem ecology?
whole system” approach critical for long term sustainable management biodiversity, populations and resources
* Cannot manage a species (resource, biodiversity) while ignoring important components of its ecosystem
peruvian anchovy fishery ex?
- Used single species data to build harvesting model
- Max Sustainable Yield= approx. 10 million tons/yr (based on avg. environmental conditions)
- Bottom up approach- lots of food to drive the anchovy populations
- Deep water tends to be highly nutrient rich bc of decomp of sinking dead organisms
○ Upwelling fertilizes organisms that are photosynthesizing on the surface - In 1972 - el nino warmed water and lowered fish productivity - movement of air changes, air blows inland instead of out to the ocean - no more upwelling/movement of water from upwelling, nutrients not moving up/being replenished
fishery collapsed
what are ecosystem services? 4 services?
- Direct and indirect contributions of ecosystems to human well being
- Regulating of ecosystem processes
- Provising (obtained from ecosystem)
- Cultural (non material benefits)
4.Supporting (necessary for production of all ecosystem services)
describe Regulating of ecosystem processes
○ Climate, air quality, extreme events, water flow, soil retention, nutrients, pollination, biological control regulated
describe provising
- Provising (obtained from ecosystem)
○ Food, raw materials, fresh water, genetic resources (diversity), pharmaceutical
describe cultural ecosystem services
- Cultural (non material benefits)
○ Spiritual enrichment, intellectual development, recreation, aesthetic values, etc
describe supporting ecosystem services
- Supporting (necessary for production of all ecosystem services): primary production, soil formation, habitat, baseline genetic diversity
what do ecosystem ecology questions address?
ocus on integrated systems rather than individual organisms or physical components
* Addresses interactions that link biotic systems with abiotic systems on which they depend
what materials flow through the ecosystem?
○ Carbon
○ Water
○ Nitrogen
○ Rock derived elements (ie phosporous)
○ Novel chemicals (e.g. pesticides)
Found in biotic and abiotic pools
look at flow diagram
ok
open vs closed systems?
- Closed - all energy is contained within the system- easier to study
- Open- energy is exchanged between biotic and abiotic
Most systems are open
- Open- energy is exchanged between biotic and abiotic
what are pools?
- Pools -quantity of energy or material in a system
○ Abiotic (soil, rock, water, atmosphere)
○ Biotic (plants, animals, microbes)
what are fluxes? examples?
- Fluxes - flow of energy or materials from one pool to another
○ Weathering of rocks
○ Evaporation of water
○ Dissolution of material in water
○ absorption of minerals by plants
○ Fall of leaves in autumn
Consumption of herbivores by carnivores
how is ecosystem ecology scale determined
ppropriate temporal and spatial scale depends on the question
Methods vary tremendously
describe an ecosystem dynamic - temporal scales
Microseconds to millions of years
look at ex in notes
