unit 2 Flashcards
How do the abiotic and biotic components link in a tropical rainforest ecosystem?
They are liked by energy flow and nutrient cycle.
State the trophic levels and names
First - producers ( autotrophs)
2nd - primary consumer ( herbivores)
3rd - Secondary consumer (carnivores)
4th- Tertiary consumer ( Carnivores + Omnivores)
How are the energy lost at all stages of the food chain?
respiration and excretion
Explain the 10 percent law
Only 10% of the energy from one trophic level can pass to the next higher level because some food are not edible and some parts of the food cannot be digested, some are consumed for growth and repair.
Can there be many trophic levels
no, because the energy flow is insufficient to support many levels of food chain.
Explain the nutrient cycling
nutrients are inorganic substances, air and rainfall provides nutrients. plants turn the inorganic substance into organic matter, when they die, organic matter and decomposed into inorganic nutrients
Nutrient cycle: where are nutrients stored in biomass?
stored in plant tissue that are produced by photosynthesis using solar energy.
also stored in animal tissues.
Nutrient cycle: where are the nutrient stored/ flow in litter
From dead plant materials, animal wastes
dissolved nutrients from falling rain
Nutrient cycle: where are the nutrient stored. flow in soil?
broken down from decomposed litter and weathered rocks
Why is the nutrient storage in biomass huge?
- under high temperature
- year long growing season
- vegetation dense
- supports large number of animals
- rapid and dense vegetation results in strong littering
Why is the storage in soil small?
although active decomposition, weathering supply a lot of nutrients.
- rain leads to intense leaching
- rapid vegetation growth, dense vegetation quickly absorb soil nutrients
Why is the storage in litter small
- hot and wet climate favours decomposition , litter quickly broken down into soil nutrients
- surface runoff washes away a lot of litter
Why is the TRF a complex ecosystem?
high biodiversity
diverse habitats
high density of species with relatively small plot of land
What is the definition of resistance stability of the ecosystem?
an ecosystem’s ability to withstand disturbance and maintain its current status
What is the definition of resilience stability of ecosystem?
an ecosystem’s ability to restore to its previous state after disturbance
When does the ecosystem becomes fragile?
When does the resistance stability increase?
When facing large-scale destructions (deforestation and fire)
rainforest’s high resistance stability is only limited to small-scale disturbance
- it increases with increasing complexity of the ecosystem when disturbance is in small scale.
What 3 main activities are the cause of deforestation?
agricultural development
resource extraction
urban development
explain the process of shifting cultivation and how it leads to deforestation
Explain sedentary farming
Explain plantations
Explain livestock rearing and how it leads to deforestation
list the resources extraction, firewood, timber, hydro-electric power, minerals
Explain urban development
why are tropical rainforest disappearing at a faster rate today than the past?
- growing population
- rising living standards
- foreign debts
- poverty
- political instability
