Topic 6: (LEC&LAB) Ecosystem Ecology Flashcards
The direct and indirect contributions or benefits that could be derived from the ecosystem
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
■ Mangroves forests - regulate impact of waves
■ Forests and oceans - absorb carbon dioxide
■ Trees - provide shade and reduce temperatures
Regulating services
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
■ Fungi and bacteria - decompose organic matter to help recycle nutrients, sustaining plant growth and productivity
■ Coral reefs - provide habitat for fishes in the seas
Supporting services
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
■ Food source - fruits of trees
■ Herbal medicine - leaves, roots, or flowers of plants
Provisioning services
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
■ Orchids-decoration
■ Whale sharks - ecotourism
■ Citrus thorns - used in Northern Philippines tattooing process
Cultural services
The percentage of usable chemical energy transferred as biomass from one trophic level to the next
ECOLOGICAL EFFICIENCY
Dry weight of all organic matter contained in its organisms.
In a food chain/web, chemical energy is stored here and is transferred from one trophic level to another.
Biomass
Elements such as carbon and nitrogen are passed between the biotic and abiotic components of the ecosystem
CHEMICAL CYCLING
Both energy and chemicals are transformed in ecosystems through ______________ and ___________
- photosynthesis
- feeding relationships
Unlike chemicals, energy cannot be _________
recycled
nonliving organic material, such as the remains of dead organisms, feces, and fallen leaves
Detritus
Percentage of energy stored in assimilated food that is used for growth and reproduction, not respiration
Production efficiency
What is Production efficiency formula?
PE = (Net secondary production/ Assimilation of primary production) x 100
The amount of energy an organism has consumed and used for growth and reproduction
Net secondary production
The total amount of energy an organism has consumed and used for growth, reproduction, and respiration
Assimilation of primary production
These species depend mainly on external heat sources, and their body temperature changes with the temperature of the environment
Ectotherms
These species use Internally generated heat to maintain body temperature.
Their body temperature tends to stay steady regardless of environment
Endotherms
This is the amount of biomass gained through growth and reproduction
Calculated as:
food intake-energy lost through respiration, egestion, and excretion
PRODUCTION
Production of new organic matter, or biomass, by autotrophs in an ecosystem per unit area or volume during some period of time
primary production
Total primary production by all primary producers in the ecosystem
Gross primary production
Gross primary production minus respiration by primary producers
- This is the amount of energy in the form of biomass available to the consumers in an ecosystem
Net primary production
Production of biomass by heterotrophic consumer organisms feeding on plants, animals, microbes, fungi, or detritus during some period of time.
- Includes consumer growth, reproduction, and mortality at the population level
secondary production
Elements that are required for the development, maintenance, and reproduction of organisms
NUTRIENTS
The use, transformation, movement, and reuse of nutrients in ecosystems
Nutrient cycling
The amount of a particular nutrient stored in a portion, or compartment, of an ecosystem
Nutrient pool
A part of the biosphere where a particular nutrient is absorbed faster than it is released
- For example: Nutrient settle in bottom sediment as insoluble precipitate
Nutrient sink
A portion of the biosphere where a particular nutrient is released faster than it is absorbed
- For example: Burning of fossil fuels acts as a source of carbon dioxide to the global ecosystem
Nutrient source
It forms part of the ATP, RNA, DNA, and phospholipid molecules
- Not very abundant in the biosphere
Phosphorus
Soil < ph 4 > ph 8 = phosphorus starts to become tied up with other compounds, making it less available to plants
Phosphorus Cycle
Forms part of key biomolecules such as amino acids, nucleic acids, and the porphyrin rings of chlorophyll and hemoglobin
Nitrogen
The following are _________
- Cyanobacteria or blue-green algae (freshwater, marine, and soil)
- Free-living bacteria (soil)
- Rhizobia (soil)
- Actinomycetes (soil)
Nitrogen fixers
An important process in nitrogen cycle where N2 reduced to NH3 (ammonia) by nitrogenase enzymes under anaerobic conditions
- Industrial fixation producing NH4+ (ammonium) fertilizer
Fixation
This process in the nitrogen cycle converts organic nitrogenous matter from living organisms into ammonium (NH4+)
- Upon the death of organisms, nitrogen in its tissues can be released as NH4+ by fungi and bacteria
Ammonification
A process in the nitrogen cycle in which NH4+ can be converted to nitrate (NO3-)
- Ammonium and nitrate can be used directly by bacteria, fungi, or plants
Nitrification
In the nitrogen cycle, this energy-yielding process occurs under anaerobic conditions and converts nitrate to molecular nitrogen, N2
Denitrification
An essential part of all organic molecules, and, carbon compounds such as carbon dioxide, CO2, and methane CH4, as constituents of the atmosphere, substantially influence global climate
Carbon
[CARBON CYCLE]
- ________ removes _____ from the atmosphere
- ________ by _______ producers and consumers, including decomposers, returns _____ to the atmosphere in the form of _____
- Photosynthesis
- CO2
- Respiration
- primary
- carbon
- CO2
[CARBON CYCLE]
In aquatic ecosystem, _____ must first dissolve in water before being used by aquatic ______ producers
- _____ enters a ______________ with bicarbonate, ____-, and carbonate, ____-.
- ________ may precipitate out of solution as _____________ and may be buried in ocean sediment
- CO2
- primary
- CO2
- chemical equilibrium
- HCO3
- CO3
- Carbonate
- calcium carbonate
