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Chapter 54

Chapter 54. Ecosystems. Ecosystem. Ecosystem consists of all the organisms living in a community, as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact. Energy and other limiting factors control primary production in ecosystems.

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Chapter 54

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  1. Chapter 54 Ecosystems

  2. Ecosystem • Ecosystem consists of all the organisms living in a community, as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact

  3. Energy and other limiting factors control primary production in ecosystems • Primary production in an ecosystem is the amount of light energy converted to chemical energy by autotrophs during a given time period • Gross primary production (GPP)- total primary production • Net primary production (NPP)- GPP minus energy used by primary producers for respiration • Only NPP is available to consumers

  4. Global net primary production in 2002 · Net primary production (kg carbon/m2·yr) 0 1 3 2

  5. Limiting Factors • In marine and freshwater ecosystems, both light and nutrients control primary production • A limiting nutrient is the element that must be added for production to increase in an area • Nitrogen and phosphorous are typically the nutrients that most often limit marine production • In terrestrial ecosystems, temperature and moisture affect primary production on a large scale

  6. Energy transfer between trophic levels is typically only 10% efficient • Secondary production of an ecosystem is the amount of chemical energy in food converted to new biomass during a given period of time • Trophic efficiency is the percentage of production transferred from one trophic level to the next • It usually ranges from 5% to 20% • Approximately 0.1% of chemical energy fixed by photosynthesis reaches a tertiary consumer

  7. Tertiary consumers 10 J Secondary consumers 100 J Primary consumers 1,000 J Primary producers 10,000 J 1,000,000 J of sunlight

  8. Biogeochemical Cycles • Biogeochemical cycles- nutrient circuits in ecosystems that involve biotic and abiotic

  9. The Water Cycle • 97% of the biosphere’s water is contained in the oceans, 2% is in glaciers and polar ice caps, and 1% is in lakes, rivers, and groundwater • Water moves by the processes of evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, and movement through surface and groundwater

  10. Transport over land Solar energy Net movement of water vapor by wind Precipitation over land Precipitation over ocean Evaporation from ocean Evapotranspiration from land Percolation through soil Runoff and groundwater

  11. The Carbon Cycle • CO2 is taken up and released through photosynthesis and respiration; additionally, volcanoes and the burning of fossil fuels contribute CO2 to the atmosphere

  12. CO2 in atmosphere Photosynthesis Cellular respiration Photo- synthesis Burning of fossil fuels and wood Phyto- plankton Higher-level consumers Primary consumers Carbon compounds in water Detritus Decomposition

  13. The Terrestrial Nitrogen Cycle • The main reservoir of nitrogen is the atmosphere (N2), though this nitrogen must be converted to NH4+ or NO3– for uptake by plants, via nitrogen fixation by bacteria • Organic nitrogen is decomposed to NH4+ by ammonification, and NH4+ is decomposed to NO3– by nitrification • Denitrification converts NO3– back to N2

  14. N2 in atmosphere Assimilation Denitrifying bacteria NO3 – Nitrogen-fixing bacteria Decomposers Nitrifying bacteria Ammonification Nitrification NH3 NH4 NO2 – + Nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria Nitrifying bacteria

  15. The Phosphorus Cycle • Phosphate (PO43–) is the most important inorganic form of phosphorus • The largest reservoirs are sedimentary rocks of marine origin, the oceans, and organisms • Phosphate binds with soil particles, and movement is often localized

  16. Precipitation Geologic uplift Weathering of rocks Runoff Consumption Decomposition Plant uptake of PO43– Plankton Dissolved PO43– Soil Uptake Leaching Sedimentation

  17. Acid Precipitation • Combustion of fossil fuels is the main cause of acid precipitation • Changes soil pH and causes leaching of calcium and other nutrients

  18. Toxins in the Environment • Biological magnification concentrates toxins at higher trophic levels, where biomass is lower • PCBs and many pesticides such as DDT are subject to biological magnification in ecosystems • In the 1960s Rachel Carson brought attention to the biomagnification of DDT in birds in her book Silent Spring

  19. Biological magnification of PCBs in a Great Lakes food web Herring gull eggs 124 ppm Lake trout 4.83 ppm Concentration of PCBs Smelt 1.04 ppm Zooplankton 0.123 ppm Phytoplankton 0.025 ppm

  20. Greenhouse Gases and Global Warming • Due to the burning of fossil fuels, the concentration of atmospheric CO2 has been steadily increasing • Greenhouse effect- CO2, water vapor, and other greenhouse gases reflect infrared radiation back toward Earth.This is important for keeping Earth’s surface at a habitable temperature • Increased levels of atmospheric CO2 are magnifying the greenhouse effect, which could cause global warming and climatic change

  21. Depletion of Atmospheric Ozone • Life on Earth is protected from damaging effects of UV radiation by a protective layer of ozone molecules in the atmosphere • Satellite studies suggest that the ozone layer has been gradually thinning since 1975 • Destruction ozone results from pollutants such as CFCs

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