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CHAPTER 3 ECOLOGY
3.2 COMMUNITY AND ECOSYSTEM CYCLES 3.3 FOOD WEBS, FOOD PYRAMIDS, ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION
ECOSYSTEMS, ENERGY, AND MATTER 1. An ecosystem consists of all the organisms living in a community. 1. As well as all the abiotic factors with which they interact. 2. The dynamics of an ecosystem involve two processes: energy flow and chemical cycling. 2. Energy enters most ecosystems in the form of sunlight. 3. It is converted to chemical energy by autotrophs, passed to heterotrophs in the organic compounds of food, and dissipated as heat. 4. Chemical elements are cycled among abiotic and biotic components of the ecosystem. 5. A carbon or nitrogen atom moves from one trophic level to another and eventually to the decomposers and back again. 3. Energy, unlike matter. 6. Cannot be recycled. 7. An ecosystem must be powered by a continuous influx of energy from an external source, usually the sun. 8. Energy flows through ecosystems, while matter cycles within them. 4. Ecosystems can range form a microcosm, such as an aquarium 9. To a large area such as a lake or forest. ECOSYSTEMS AND PHYSICAL LAWS 1. The laws of physics and chemistry apply to ecosystems - Particularly in regard to the flow of energy. 2. The law of conservation of energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed but only transformed. 3. Plants and other photosynthetic organisms convert solar energy to chemical energy, but the total amount of energy does not change. 4. The total amount of energy stored in organic molecules plus the amounts reflected and dissipated as heat must equal the total solar energy intercepted by the plant. 5. The second law of thermodynamics states that some energy is lost as heat in any conversion process. 6. We can measure the efficiency of ecological energy conversions. 7. Energy is conserved but degraded to heat during ecosystem processes.
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TROPHIC RELATIONSHIPS

1. Trophic Relationships: Determine the routes of energy flow and

chemical cycling in ecosystems. 2. Energy and nutrients pass from primary producers (autotrophs) to primary consumers (herbivores) and then to secondary consumers (carnivores)

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3. Autotrophs, the primary producers of the ecosystem, ultimately

support all other organisms. 4. Most autotrophs are photosynthetic plants, algae or bacteria that use light energy to synthesize sugars and other organic compounds. 5. Chemosynthetic prokaryotes are the primary producers in deep-sea hydrothermal vents. 6. Heterotrophs are at trophic levels above the primary producers and depend on their photosynthetic output. 7. Herbivores that eat primary producers are called primary consumers. 8. Carnivores that eat herbivores are called secondary consumers. 9. Carnivores that eat secondary producers are called tertiary consumers. 10. Another important group of heterotrophs is the detritivores, or decomposers. They get energy from detritus, nonliving organic material such as the remains of dead organisms, feces, fallen leaves, and wood. 11.Detritivores play an important role in material cycling. 12. Energy flows through an ecosystem entering as light and exiting as heat. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL FACTORS LIMIT PRIMARY PRODUCTION IN ECOSYSTEMS.

1. Primary production in an ecosystem

10. Is the amount of light energy converted to chemical energy by autotrophs during a given time period. 11. Most primary producers use light energy to synthesize organic molecules, which can be broke down to produce ATP. 2. The extent of photosynthetic production 12. Sets the spending limit for the energy budget of the entire ecosystem 13. Every day, Earth is bombarded by approximately 1023 joules of solar radiation. 14. The intensity of solar energy striking Earth varies with latitude, with the tropics receiving the greatest input. 15. Most of this radiation is scattered, absorbed, or reflected by the atmosphere. 16. Much of the solar radiation that reaches Earths surface lands on bare ground or bodies of water that either absorb or reflect the energy. 17. Only a small fraction actually strikes algae, photosynthetic prokaryotes, or plants, and only some of this is of wavelengths suitable for photosynthesis. 18. Of the visible light that reaches photosynthetic organisms, only about 1% is converted to chemical energy. 19. Although this is a small amount, primary producers produce about 170 billion tons of organic material per year. THE GLOBAL ENERGY BUDGET

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1. The amount of solar radiation reaching the surface of the Earth limits
the photosynthetic output of ecosystems. organisms.

2. Only a small fraction of solar energy actually strikes photosynthetic

GROSS AND NET PRIMARY PRODUCTION 1. Total primary production in an ecosystem. 20. Is known as that ecosystems gross primary production (GPP) 21. This is the amount of light energy that is converted into chemical energy per unit time. 22. Plants use some of these molecules as fuel in their own cellular respiration. 2. Not all of this production 23. Is stored as organic material in the growing plants. Net primary production (NPP)

1. Is equal to gross primary production minus the energy used by the

primary producers for respiration (R): NPP = GPP R 2. To ecologists, net primary production is the key measurement, because it represents the storage of chemical energy that is available to consumers in the ecosystem. 3. Only NPP is available to consumers 4. Primary production can be expressed as energy per unit time, or as biomass of vegetation added to the ecosystem per unit area per unit time. 5. Primary production is the amount of new biomass added in a given period of time. 6. Total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs present in a given time, which is called the standing crop. 7. Although a forest has a large standing cross biomass, its primary production may actually be less than that of some grassland, which does not accumulate vegetation because animals consume the plants rapidly. 8. Different ecosystems differ greatly in their production as well as in their contribution to the total production of the Earth. 9. Tropical rain forests are among the most productive terrestrial ecosystems. 10.Estuaries and coral reefs also are very productive, but they cover only a small area compared to that covered by tropical rain forests. 11. The open ocean has a relatively low production per unit area but contributes more net primary production than any other single ecosystem because of its very large size. 12.Overall, terrestrial ecosystems contribute two-thirds of global net primary production, and marine ecosystems contribute approximately one-third.
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13. Different ecosystems vary considerably in their net primary production

and in their contribution to the total NPP on Earth. PRIMARY PRODUCTION IN MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS 1. In marine and freshwater ecosystems 24. Both light and nutrients are important in controlling primary production Light Limitation The depth of light penetration 25.Affects primary production throughout the photic zone of an ocean or lake 26.Light is a key variable controlling primary production in oceans, since solar radiation can only penetrate to a certain depth known as the photic zone. 27.The first meter of water absorbs more than half of the solar radiation. 28. If light were the main variables limiting primary production in the ocean, we would expect production to increase along a gradient from the poles toward the equator, which receives the greatest intensity of light there is no such gradient. 29.There are parts of the ocean in the tropics and subtropics that exhibit low primary production, while some high-latitude ocean regions are relatively productive. 30.More than light, nutrients limit primary production in aquatic ecosystems. Nutrient Limitation More than light, nutrients limit primary production Both in different geographic regions of the ocean and inlakes A limiting nutrient is the element that must be added In order for production to increase in a particular area Nitrogen and phosphorus Are typically the nutrients that most often limit marine production. A limiting nutrient is an element that must be added for production to increase in a particular area. The nutrient most often limiting marine production is either nitrogen or phosphorus. In the open ocean, nitrogen and phosphorus levels are very low in the photic zone but are higher in deeper water where light does not penetrate. Nitrogen is the nutrient that limits phytoplankton growth in many parts of the ocean. This knowledge can be used to prevent algal blooms by limiting pollution that fertilizes phytoplankton. Some areas of the ocean have low phytoplankton density despite their relatively high nitrogen concentrations.
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For example, the Sargasso Sea has a very low density of phytoplankton. Nutrient enrichment experiments Confirmed that nitrogen was limiting phytoplankton growth in an area of the ocean. EXPERIMENT Pollution from duck farms concentrated near Moriches Bay adds both nitrogen and phosphorus to the coastal water off Long Island. Researchers cultured the phytoplankton Nannochloris atomus with water collected from several bays. Result: Phytoplankton abundance parallels the abundance of phosphorus in the water Nitrogen, however, is immediately taken up by algae, and no free nitrogen is measured in the coastal waters. The addition of ammonium (NH4+) caused heavy phytoplankton growth in bay water, but the addition of phosphate (PO43+) did not induce algal growth. Conclusion: Since adding phosphorus, which was already in rich supply, had no effect on Nannochloris growth, whereas adding nitrogen increased algal density dramatically, researches concluded that nitrogen was the nutrient limiting phytoplankton growth in this ecosystem. 2. Marine ecologists carried out large-scale field experiments in the Pacific Ocean, spreading low concentrations of dissolved iron over 72 km2 of ocean. A massive phytoplankton bloom occurred, with a 27-fold increase in chlorophyll concentration in water samples from test sites. 3. Why are iron concentrations naturally low in certain oceanic areas? Windblown dust from the land delivers iron to the ocean, and relatively little dust reach the central Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The iron factor in marine ecosystems is related to the nitrogen factor. When iron is limiting, adding iron stimulates the growth of cyanobacteria that fix nitrogen. Phytoplankton proliferates, once released from nitrogen limitation. Iron > cyanobacteria> nitrogen fixation> phytoplankton production In areas of upwelling, nutrient-rich deep waters circulate to the ocean surface. 4. These areas have exceptionally high primary production, supporting the hypothesis that nutrient availability determines marine primary production. Areas of upwelling are prime fishing locations.
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Experiments in another ocean region Showed that iron limited

primary production.

5. The addition of large amounts of nutrients to lakes:

Has a wide range of ecological impacts Nutrient limitation is also common in freshwater lakes. Sewage and fertilizer pollution can add nutrients to lakes. Additional nutrients shifted many lakes from phytoplankton communities dominated by diatoms and green algae to communities dominated by cyanobacteria. This process is called eutrophication and has a wide range of ecological impacts, including the loss of most fish species. David Schindler of the University of Alberta conducted a series of whole lake experiments that identified phosphorus as the nutrient that limited cyanobacteria growth. His research led to the use of phosphate-free detergents and other water quality reforms. 6. In some areas, sewage runoff has caused eutrophication of lakes, which can lead to the eventual loss of most fish species from the lakes. PRIMARY PRODUCTION IN TERRESTRIAL AND WETLAND ECOSYSTEMS

1. In terrestrial and wetland ecosystems climatic factors such as

temperature and moisture, affect primary production on a large geographic scale. 2. Tropical rain forests, with their warm, wet conditions, are the most productive of all terrestrial ecosystems. 3. By contrast, low productivity ecosystems are generally dry (deserts) or dry and cold (arctic tundra). 4. Between these extremes lie temperate forest and grassland ecosystems with moderate climates and intermediate productivity. 5. These contrasts in climate can be represented by a measure called Actual evapotranspiration is the amount of water annually transpired by plants and evaporated from a landscape 6. This related to net primary production 7. Increase with precipitation and with the amount of solar energy available to drive evaporation and transpiration. 8. On a more local scale, mineral nutrients in the soil can play a key role in limiting primary production in terrestrial ecosystems. 9. Primary production removes soil nutrients. 10.A single nutrient deficiency may cause plant growth to slow and cease. 11.Nitrogen and phosphorus are the soil nutrients that most commonly limit terrestrial production. 12.Scientific studies relating nutrients to terrestrial primary production have practical applications in agriculture. 13. Farmers can maximize crop yields with the right balance of nutrients for the local soil and type of crop. 14. On a moral local scale a soil nutrient is often the limiting factor in primary production.
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EXPERIMENT Over the summer of 1980, researches added phosphorus to some experimental plots in the salt marsh, nitrogen to other plots, and both phosphorus and nitrogen to others. Some plots were left, unfertilized as controls. Conclusion: These nutrient enrichment experiments confirmed that nitrogen was the nutrient limiting plant growth in this salt marsh. 15.Energy transfer between trophic levels is usually less than 20% efficient. 16. The secondary production of an ecosystem is the amount of chemical energy in consumers food that is converted to their own new biomass during a given period of time. PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY

1. When a caterpillar feeds on a plant leaf, only about one-sixth of the

energy in the leaf is used for secondary production. 2. The production efficiency of an organism is the fraction of energy stored in food that is not used for respiration 3. This differs among organisms: Birds and mammals generally have low production efficiencies of between 1% and 3% because they use so much energy to maintain a constant body temperature. Fishes have production efficiencies of around 10%. Insects are even more efficient, with production efficiencies averaging 40%. TROPHIC EFFICIENCY AND ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS

1. Trophic efficiency is the percentage of production transferred from one

trophic level to the next 2. Usually ranges from 5% to 20% PYRAMIDS OF PRODUCTION

1. This loss of energy with each transfer in a food chain can be represented
by a pyramid of net production. PYRAMIDS OF BIOMASS

1. One important ecological consequence of low trophic efficiencies can be

represented in a biomass pyramid 2. Biomass pyramids represent the ecological consequences of low trophic efficiencies.

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3. Most biomass pyramids narrow sharply from primary producers to toplevel carnivores because energy transfers are so inefficient. 4. In some aquatic ecosystems, the pyramid is inverted and primary consumers outweigh producers. 5. Such inverted biomass pyramids occur because the producersphytoplankton-grow, reproduce, and are consumed by zooplankton so rapidly that they never develop a large standing crop. 6. They have a short turnover time, which means they have a small standing crop biomass compared to their production. 7. Because the phytoplankton replaces their biomass at such a rapid rate, they can support a biomass of zooplankton much greater than their own biomass. 8. Because of the progressive loss of energy along a food chain, any ecosystem cannot support a large biomass of top-level carnivores. 9. With some exceptions, predators are usually larger than the prey they eat. 10.Top-level predators tend to be fairly large animals. 4. As a result, the limited biomass at the top of an ecological pyramid is concentrated in a small number of large individuals. 11. Most biomass pyramids show a sharp decrease at successively higher trophic levels. PYRAMIDS OF NUMBERS

1. A pyramid of numbers represents the number of individual organisms in

each trophic level. ENERGY FLOW

1. The dynamics of energy flow through ecosystems have important

implications for the human population

2. Eating meat is a relatively inefficient way of tapping photosynthetic

production. 3. Worldwide agriculture could successfully feed many more people if humans all fed more efficiently, eating only plant material. THE GREEN WORLD HYPOTHESIS

1. According to the green world hypothesis terrestrial herbivores consume

relatively little plant biomass because they are held in check by a variety of factors 2. Most terrestrial ecosystems have large standing crops despite the large numbers of herbivores. 3. The green world hypothesis proposes several factors that keep herbivores in check: Plants have defenses against herbivores Nutrients, not energy supply, usually limit herbivores
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4.

5.
6. 7.

Abiotic factors limit herbivores: Temperature and moisture may restrict carrying capacities for herbivores below the level that would strip vegetation. Intraspecific competition can limit herbivore numbers: Territorial behavior and competitive behaviors may reduce herbivore population density. Interspecific interactions check herbivore densities: Parasites, predators, and disease limit the growth of herbivore populations. Herbivores consume a small percentage of vegetation: the green world hypothesis. According to the green world hypothesis, herbivores consume relatively little plant biomass because they are held in check by a variety of factors, including predators, parasites, and disease. How green is our world? 1. 83 * 1010 metric tons of carbon is stored in the plant biomass of terrestrial ecosystems. Herbivores annually consume less than 17% of the total net primary production.

BIOLOGICAL & BIOGEOCHEMICAL PROCESSES 1. Biological and geochemical processes move nutrients between organic and inorganic parts of the ecosystem. 2. Life on Earth Depends on the recycling of essential chemical elements 3. Nutrients circuits that cycle matter through an ecosystem Involve both biotic and abiotic components and are often called biogeochemical. A GENERAL MODEL OF CHEMICAL CYCLING

1. Gaseous forms of carbon, oxygen, sulfur, and nitrogen occur in the

atmosphere and cycle globally. 2. Less mobile elements, including phosphorus, potassium, and calcium cycle on a more local level 3. Chemical elements are available to ecosystems only in limited amounts. 4. Life on Earth depends on the recycling of essential chemical elements. 5. Nutrient circuits involve both biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems and are called biogeochemical cycles. 6. There are two general categories of biogeochemical cycles: global and regional. 7. Gaseous forms of carbon, oxygen, sulfur, and nitrogen occur in the atmosphere, and cycles of these elements are global. 8. Elements those are less mobile in the environment, such as phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and trace elements generally cycle on a more localized scale in the short term. 9. Soil is the main abiotic reservoir for these elements. 10.We will consider a general model of chemical cycling that includes the main reservoirs of elements and the processes that transfer elements between reservoirs.

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11.Each reservoir is defined by two characteristics: whether it contains organic or inorganic materials and whether or not the materials are directly available for use by organisms. Reservoir a. The nutrients in living organisms and in detritus are available to other organisms when consumers feed and when detritivores consume nonliving organic material. Reservoir b. Some materials move to the fossilized organic reservoir as dead organisms and are buried by sedimentation over millions of years. Nutrients in fossilized deposits cannot be assimilated directly. Reservoir c. Inorganic elements and compounds that are dissolved in water or present in soil or air are available for use by organisms. Reservoir d. Inorganic elements present in rocks are not directly available for use by organisms. These nutrients may gradually become available for use by organisms. These nutrients may gradually become available through erosion and weathering. 12.Describing biogeochemical cycles in general terms is much simpler than trying to trace elements through these cycles. 13.Ecologists study chemical cycling by adding tiny amounts of radioactive isotopes to the elements they are tracing. 14. A general model of nutrient cycling includes the main reservoirs of elements and the processes that transfer elements between reservoirs. The water cycle

4. Biological importance: Water is essential to all organisms and its 5. 6.

7.

8.

availability influences rates of ecosystem processes. Biologically available forms: Liquid water is the primary form in which water is used. Reservoirs: The oceans contain 97% of the water in the biosphere, 2% is bound as ice, and 1% is in lake, rivers, and groundwater. A negligible amount is in the atmosphere. Key processes: The main processes driving the water cycle are evaporation of liquid water by solar energy, condensation of water vapor into clouds, and precipitation. Transpiration by terrestrial plants moves significant amounts of water. Surface and groundwater flow returns water to the oceans.

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The carbon cycle

1. Biological importance: Organic molecules have a carbon framework.

2. Autotrophs convert carbon dioxide to organic molecules that are used by heterotrophs. 3. Most of the nitrogen cycling in natural ecosystems, Involves local cycles between organisms and soil or water

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The nitrogen cycle

1. Biological importance: Nitrogen is a component of amino acids, proteins,

and nucleic acids. 2. It may be a limiting plant nutrient. 3. Biologically available forms: Plants and algae can use ammonium (NH4+) or nitrate (NO3-). Various bacteria can also use NH4+, NO3-, or NO2. Animals can use only organic forms of nitrogen. 4. Reservoirs: The major reservoir of nitrogen is the atmosphere, which is 80% nitrogen gas (N2). Nitrogen is also bound in soils and the sediments of lakes, rivers and oceans. Some nitrogen is dissolved in surface water and groundwater. Nitrogen is stored in living biomass. 5. Key processes: Nitrogen enters ecosystems primarily through bacterial nitrogen fixation.

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Some nitrogen is fixed by lightning and industrial fertilizer production. Ammonification by bacteria decomposes organic nitrogen. In nitrification, bacteria convert NH4+ to NO3-. In denitrification, bacteria use NO3- for metabolism instead of O2, releasing N2. The phosphorus cycle

1. Biological importance:
Phosphorus is a component of nucleic acids, phospholipids, and ATP and other energy-storing molecules. o It is a mineral constituent of bones and teeth 2. Biologically available forms: o The only biologically important inorganic form of phosphorus is phosphate (PO43-) which plants absorb and use to synthesize organic compounds. 3. Reservoirs: o The major reservoir of phosphorus is sedimentary rocks of marine origin. o There are also large quantities of phosphorus in soils, dissolved in the oceans, and in organisms. 4. Key processes: o Weathering of rocks gradually adds phosphate to soil. o Some phosphate leaches into groundwater and surface water and moves to the sea. o Phosphate may be taken up by producers and incorporated into organic material. o It is returned to soil or water through decomposition of biomass or excretion by consumers. o DECOMPOSITION AND NUTRIENT CYCLING RATES

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1. Decomposers (detritivores) play a key role in the general pattern of

chemical cycling. 2. The rates at which nutrients cycle in different ecosystems are extremely variable as a result of variable rates of decomposition. 3. Decomposition takes an average of four to six years in temperate forests, while in a tropical rain forest; most organic material decomposes in a few months to a few years. 4. The difference is largely the result of warmer temperatures and more abundant precipitation in tropical rain forests. 5. Like net primary production, the rate of decomposition increases with actual evapotranspiration. 6. In tropical rain forests, relatively little organic material accumulates as leaf litter on the forest floor. 7. 75% of the nutrients in the ecosystem are present in the woody trunks of trees. 8. 10% of the nutrients are concentrated in the soil. 9. In temperate forests, where decomposition is slower, the soil may contain 50% of the organic material. 10.In aquatic ecosystems, decomposition in anaerobic mud of bottom sediments can take 50 years or more. 11.However, algae and aquatic plants usually assimilate nutrients directly from the water. 12.Aquatic sediments may constitute a nutrient sink. 13. The rates at which nutrients cycle in different ecosystems are extremely variable, mostly as a result of differences in rates of decomposition. 14. Long-term ecological research projects monitor ecosystem dynamics over relatively long periods of time. 15. The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest has been used to study nutrient cycling in a forest ecosystem since 1963. VEGETATION AND NUTRIENT CYCLING: THE HUBBARD BROOK EXPERIMENTAL FOREST

1. Nutrient cycling is strongly regulated by vegetation.

2. Long-term ecological research (LTER) monitors the dynamics of ecosystems over long periods of time. 3. The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest has been studied since 1963. 4. The study site is a deciduous forest with several valleys, each drained by a small creek that is a tributary of Hubbard Brook. 5. Preliminary studies confirmed that internal cycling within a terrestrial ecosystem conserves most of the mineral nutrients. 6. Some areas were completely logged and then sprayed with herbicides for three years to prevent regrowth of plants. 7. All the original plant material was left in place to decompose. 8. Water runoff from the altered watershed increased by 30-40%, apparently because there were no plants to absorb and transpire water from the soil. 9. The concentration of Ca2+ in the creek increased four-fold, while concentration of K+ increased by a factor of 15. 10.Nitrate loss was increased by a factor of 60.
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11.This study demonstrates that the amount of nutrients leaving an intact forest ecosystem is controlled by the plants. 12. Result of the Hubbard Brook studies assess natural ecosystem dynamics and provide insight into the mechanisms by which human activities affect ecosystem processes. 13. The research team constructed a dam on the site to monitor water and mineral loss. Concrete dams and weirs built across streams at the bottom of watersheds enabled researchers to monitor the outflow of water and nutrients from the ecosystem. 14. In one experiment, the trees in one valley were cut down and the valley was sprayed with herbicides One watershed was clear cut to study the effects of the loss Net losses of water and minerals were studied and found to be greater than in an undisturbed area. 15. These results showed how human activity can affect ecosystems. 16.The concentration of nitrate in runoff from the deforested watershed was 60 times greater than in a control (unlogged) watershed. 17.Human activity intrudes in nutrient cycles. 18.Nutrients from farm soil may run off into streams and lakes, depleting nutrients in one area, causing excesses in another, and disrupting chemical cycles in both places. 19.Humans also add entirely new materials-many toxic-to ecosystems. 20.In agricultural ecosystems, a large amount of nutrients are removed from the area as crop biomass. 21.After a while, the natural store of nutrients can become exhausted. 22.The soil cannot be used to grow crops without nutrient supplementation. 23.Nitrogen is the main nutrient lost through agriculture. 24.Plowing and mixing the soil increase the decomposition rate of organic matter, releasing usable nitrogen that is then removed from the ecosystem when crops are harvested. 25.Recent studies indicate that human activities have approximately doubled the worldwide supply of fixed nitrogen, due to the use of fertilizers, cultivation of legumes, and burning. 26.This may increase the amount of nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere and contribute to atmospheric warming, depletion of ozone, and possibly acid precipitation. 27. The key problem with excess nitrogen seems to be critical load, the amount of added nitrogen that can be absorbed by plants without damaging the ecosystem. 28.Nitrogenous minerals in the soil that exceed the critical load eventually leach into groundwater or run off into freshwater and marine ecosystems, contaminating water supplies, choking waterways, and killing fish. 29. Lakes are classified by nutrient availability as oligotrophic or eutrophic. 30.In an oligotrophic lake, primary productivity is relatively low because the mineral nutrients required by phytoplankton are scarce. 31.Overall productivity is higher in eutrophic lakes.

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32.Human intrusion has disrupted freshwater ecosystems by cultural eutrophication. 33.Sewage and factory wastes and runoff of animal wastes from pastures and stockyards have overloaded many freshwater streams and lakes with nitrogen. 34.This result is an explosive increase in the density of photosynthetic organisms, released from nutrient limitation. 35.Shallow areas become choked with weeds and algae. 36. As photosynthetic organisms die and organic materials accumulate at the lake bottom, detritivores use all the available oxygen in the deeper waters this can eliminate fish species. THE HUMAN POPULATION IS DISRUPTING CHEMICAL CYCLES THROUGHPUT THE BIOSPHERE

1. As the human population has grown in size, our activities have disrupted
the trophic structure, energy flow, and chemical cycling of ecosystems in most parts of the world. 2. In addition to transporting nutrients from one location to another humans have added entirely new materials, some of them toxins, to ecosystems 3. Agriculture constantly removes nutrients from ecosystems that would ordinarily be cycled back into the soil. 4. Nitrogen is the main nutrient lost through agriculture thus; agriculture has a great impact on the nitrogen cycle. 5. Industrially produced fertilizer is typically used to replace lost nitrogen, but the effects on an ecosystem can be harmful. 6. The critical load for a nutrient is the amount of that nutrient that can be absorbed by plants in an ecosystem without damaging it. 7. When excess nutrients are added to an ecosystem, the critical load is exceeded and the remaining nutrients can contaminate groundwater and freshwater and marine ecosystems. 8. Sewage runoff contaminates freshwater ecosystems causing cultural eutrophication, excessive algal growth, which can cause significant harm to these ecosystems. 9. Combustion of fossil fuels is the main cause of acid precipitation 10.The burning of fossil fuels releases oxides of sulfur and nitrogen that react with water in the atmosphere to produce sulfuric and nitric acids. 11.These acids fall back to earth as acid precipitation-rain, snow, sleet or fog with a pH less than 5.6. 12.Acid precipitation is a regional or global problem, rather than a local one. 13.The tall exhaust stacks built for smelters and generating plans export the problem far downwind. 14.Acid precipitation lowers the pH of soil and water and affects the soil chemistry of terrestrial ecosystems. 15.With decreased pH, calcium and other nutrients leach from the soil. 16.The resulting nutrient deficiencies affect the health of plants and limit their growth.
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17.Freshwater ecosystems are very sensitive to acid precipitation. 18.Lakes underlain by granite bedrock have poor buffering capacity because of low bicarbonate levels. 19.Fish populations have declined in many lakes in Norway, Sweden, and Canada as pH levels fall. Lake trout are keystone predators in many Canadian lakes. When they are replaced by acid-tolerant species, the dynamics of food webs in the lakes change dramatically. 20.Environmental regulations and new industrial technologies have led to reduced sulfur dioxide emissions in many developed countries. 21.The water chemistry of many streams and freshwater lakes is slowly improving as a result. 22.Ecologists estimate that it will take another 10 to 20 years for these ecosystems to recover, even if emissions continue to decline. 23. Massive emissions of sulfur dioxide and acid precipitation continue in parts of central and Eastern Europe. 24. North American and European ecosystems downwind from industrial regions have been damaged by rain and snow containing nitric and sulfuric acid. 25. By the year 2000 the entire contiguous United States was affected by acid precipitation. 26. Environmental regulations and new industrial technologies have allowed many developed countries to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions in the past 30 years. 27. Humans release an immense variety of toxic chemicals including thousands of synthetics previously unknown to nature 28. One of the reasons such toxins are so harmful is that they become more concentrated in successive trophic levels of a food web. 29.Humans introduce many toxic chemicals into ecosystems. 30.These substances are ingested and metabolized by organisms and can accumulate in the fatty tissues of animals. 31. These toxins become more concentrated in successive trophic levels of a food web, a process called biological magnification. Magnification occurs because the biomass at any given trophic level is produced from a much larger biomass ingested from the level below. Thus, top-level carnivores tend to be the organisms most severely affected by toxic compounds in the environment. 32.Many toxins cannot be degraded by microbes and persist in the environment for years or decades. 33.Other chemicals may be converted to more toxic products by reaction with other substances or by the metabolism of microbes. 34.For example, mercury was routinely expelled into rivers and oceans in an insoluble form. 35.Bacteria in the bottom mud converted it to methyl mercury, an extremely toxic soluble compound that accumulated in the tissues of organisms, including humans who fished in contaminated waters. 36. In biological magnification toxins concentrate at higher trophic levels because at these levels biomass tends to be lower.
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37. In some cases, harmful substances persist for long periods of time in an
ecosystem and continue to cause harm

38. One pressing problem caused by human activities is the rising level of
atmospheric carbon dioxide. 39. Since the Industrial Revolution, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has increased greatly as a result of burning fossil fuels and wood removed by deforestation. 40. The average CO2 concentration in the environment was 274 ppm before 1850. 41.Measurements in 1958 read 316 ppm and have increased to 370 ppm today. 42.If CO2 emissions continue to increase at the present rate, the atmospheric concentration of this gas will be double what it was at the start of the Industrial Revolution by the year 2075. 43. Increased productivity by vegetation is one consequence of increasing CO2 levels. 44. Because C3 plants are more limited than C4 plants by CO2 availability, one effect of increasing CO2 levels may be the spread of C3 species into terrestrial habitats previously favoring C4 plants. 45. For example, corn may be replaced on farms by wheat and soybeans. 46. To assess the effect of rising levels of atmospheric CO2 on temperate forests, scientists at Duke University began the Forest-Atmosphere Carbon Transfer and Storage (FACTS-1) experiment. 47. The (FACTS-1) study is testing how elevated CO2 influences tree growth, carbon concentration in soils, insect populations, soil moisture, under story plant growth, and other factors over a ten-year period. 48. Rising atmospheric CO2 levels may have an impact on Earths heat budget. 49.When light energy hits the Earth, much of it is reflected off the surface. CO2 causes the Earth to retain some of the energy that would ordinarily escape the atmosphere. This phenomenon is called the greenhouse effect. If it were not for this effect, the average air temperature on Earth would be -18C. A number of studies predict that by the end of the 21st century, atmospheric CO2 concentration will have doubled and average global temperature will rise by 2C. 50. An increase of only 1.3OC would make the world warmer than at any time in the past 100,000 years. 51.If increased temperatures caused the polar ice caps to melt, sea levels would rise by an estimated 100 m, flooding coastal areas 150 km inland from current coastlines. 52.A warming trend would also alter geographic distribution of precipitation, making major U.S. agricultural areas much drier. 53.Scientists continue to construct models to predict how increasing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere will affect Earth. 54.Global warming is a problem of uncertain consequences and no certain solutions.

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55. Stabilizing CO2 emissions will require concerted international effort and

the acceptance of dramatic changes in personal lifestyles and industrial processes. 56.Many ecologists think that this effort suffered a major setback in 2001, when the United States pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol, a 1997 pledge by industrialized nations to reduce their CO2 output by 5% over a tenyear period. 57. Rising Atmospheric CO2 due to the increased burning of fossil fuels and other human activities. 58. The greenhouse effect is caused by atmospheric CO2, but is necessary to keep the surface of the Earth at a habitable temperature. 59. Increased levels of atmospheric CO2 are magnifying the greenhouse effect. 60. Depletion of Atmospheric Ozone: Life on Earth is protected from the damaging effects of UV radiation. 61.By a protective layer or ozone molecules present in the atmosphere. 62. Life on Earth is protected from the damaging affects of ultraviolet radiation (UV) by a layer of O3, or ozone, which is present in the lower stratosphere. 63.Studies suggest that the ozone layer has been gradually thinning since 1975. 64.The destruction of ozone probably results from the accumulation of CFCs, or chlorofluorocarbons-chemicals used in refrigeration, as propellant in aerosol cans, and for certain manufacturing processes. 65. The breakdown products from these chemicals rise to the stratosphere, where the chlorine they contain reacts with ozone to reduce it to O2. Subsequent reactions liberate the chlorine, allowing it to react with other ozone molecules in a catalytic chain reaction. At middle latitudes, ozone levels have decreased by 2-10% during the past 20 years. 66.The result of a reduction in the ozone layer may be increased levels of UV radiation that reach the surface of the Earth. Some scientists expect increases in skin cancer and cataracts, as well as unpredictable effects on crops and natural communities. Even if all chlorofluorocarbons were banned globally today, chlorine molecules already present in the atmosphere will continue to reduce ozone levels for at least a century. 67.The impact of human activity on the ozone layer is one more example of how much we are able to disrupt ecosystems and the entire biosphere. 68. Satellite studies of the atmosphere suggest that the ozone layer has been gradually thinning since 1975 69. The destruction of atmospheric ozone probably results from chlorinereleasing pollutants produced by human activity. 70. Scientists first described an ozone hole over Antarctica in 1985; it has increased in size as ozone depletion has increased.

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EXERCISE

1. _________ is the least frequent of the dispersal patterns seen in nature,

although it may be seen in situations in which the environment is particularly homogeneous. A. Random dispersion B. Aggregated distribution C. Uniform dispersion D. Clumped dispersion
[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

2. Which of the following trophic levels would contain the lowest quantity
of energy (kcal per m2)?
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A. B. C. D. 3. A. B. C. D.

Tertiary consumers Secondary consumers Primary consumers Herbivores Nitrogen-fixing bacteria convert gaseous nitrogen into amino acids. ammonia. nitrite. nitrate.
[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

4. Which of the following best explains the meaning of the term ecological niche? A. The place where a specific organism is always found. B. The place where a specific organism gets its food. C. The place where a specific organism gets shelter. D. The overall method by which an environment is used by a specific organism. 5. All of the following statements about communities are correct EXCEPT A. Some animal species distributions within a community are linked to other species. B. The distribution of almost all organisms is probably affected to some extent by both abiotic gradients and interactions with other species. C. Ecologists refer to species richness as the number of species within a community. D. The trophic structure of a community describes abiotic factors such as rainfall and temperature affecting members of the community.

[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

6. The rate of absorption of light energy measured in grassland is 7400 kJ

m-2 day-1. Only 1% of this energy is transformed into plant net production. 10% of the net production at a trophic level is transferred to the next trophic level. What is the total energy that enters the secondary consumer level? A. 74 kJ m-2 day-1 B. 7.4 kJ m-2 day-1 C. 0.74 kJ m-2 day-1 D. 0.074 kJ m-2 day-1
[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

7. A. B. C. D.

Pyramid of numbers are of limited usefulness because they do not indicate the biomass of the organisms at a given time. do not indicate the gross primary productivity of each species. do not include energy flow through the ecosystem. include three trophic levels.
[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

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8. If you were to study all of the insect-eating birds in a forest, you would
see that many birds eat insects, yet you may not see any evidence of competition. What is the most probable explanation? A. The birds are exhibiting resource partitioning. B. The birds are exhibiting intraspecific competition only. C. There is no keystone species in this community. D. There is not enough species richness to see evidence of competition. 9. A. B. C. D. Competitive exclusion is a result of interspecific competition. intraspecific competition. succession. community complexity.

[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

10. The relationship between a cow and the cellulose-digesting bacteria in

the rumen of its alimentary tract would best be described as A. predation. B. parasitism. C. mutualism. D. commensalism. 11.Primary succession may be seen A. on sand dunes. B. after a fire. C. when farmland is abandoned. D. only in tropical rain forest.
[AS/APR 2007/BIO200]

12.An ecological pyramid of biomass is a representation of the ecosystem's A. energy flow through each trophic level. B. tissue at each trophic level. C. populations in each food web. D. biologic material in relation to abiotic material. 13.Which of the following conversions does not represent a step in the nitrogen cycle? A. Ammonia to nitrites B. Nitrites to nitrates C. Organic nitrogen to ammonia D. Ammonia to nitrogen

[AS/APR 2007/BIO200]

[AS/APR 2007/BIO200]

[AS/APR 2007/BIO200]

14. The relationship between species A and species B is described as

commensalism. This means that A. both species suffer. B. one species benefits and the other species suffers. C. both species benefit. D. one species benefits and the other species is unaffected.
[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

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15. __________ begins in an area where there was a preexisting community

and well-formed soil. A. Character displacement B. Species richness C. Primary succession D. Secondary succession

16.Bacterial decomposition of organic nitrogen results in the production of A. ammonia. B. nitrates. C. nitrites. D. urea. 17.Which of the following is incorrectly paired? A. Schooling fish - aggregated distribution B. Nesting seabirds - random dispersion C. Grove of aspen - clumped dispersion D. Adult sand pine - uniform dispersion

[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

18. After a volcanic eruption has covered an area with lava, which of the
following is the most likely order of succession in the repopulation of the area? A. Lichens - grasses - shrubs - trees. B. Mosses - grasses - lichens - trees. C. Grasses - trees - mosses - lichens. D. Shrubs - grasses - trees - lichens.
[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

19. A pyramid of biomass shows the relationship of the amount of organic

biomass produced (g m-2) found at different trophic levels of a food chain. Following are disadvantages of pyramid of biomass EXCEPT A. pyramid of biomass does not take into account the changes of biomass which may occur at different seasons of the year or the different stages in the life cycle of organism. B. it shows the estimated productivity. C. the biomass determination involves the killing and drying of certain microorganism. D. comparison of wet masses is inaccurate because the water content of organisms may fluctuate.
[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

20. Which of the following bacteria play an important role in the fixation of
atmospheric nitrogen? I. Azotobacter II. Rhizobium III. Thiobacillus IV. Nitrosomonas A. I and II
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B. I, II and IV C. II, III and IV D. III and IV

[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

21. Define ecological succession and distinguish between primary and

secondary succession. (5 marks)
[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

22. Describe the five steps of the nitrogen cycle. Include the bacteria and
other organisms that are involved in each step. (5 marks)
[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

23. Distinguish among mutualism, commensalism and parasitism, and give

examples of each. (6 marks)
[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

mechanisms below: i. Physical defenses ii. Camouflage

24. Explain briefly the behaviours of both predator and prey in the defense

[AS/APR 2006/BIO200]

(4 marks)

i. ii. iii. iv. v.

25.Explain the difference between: primary succession and secondary succession food web and food chain dominant species and keystone species species richness and relative abundance habitat and niche
[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

(10 marks)

26. How have human activities interfered with the nitrogen cycle? (10

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marks)

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[AS/OCT 2006/BIO200]

27. State whether each of the following is a producer, primary consumer,

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secondary (or higher) consumer, or detritivore : squirrel, grass, woodlice, shark, phytoplankton, moose, vulture, and cheetah. (4 marks)

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______________________________________________________
[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

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[AS/OCT 2007/BIO200]

28. Expain the carbon cycyle. (6 marks)

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29. Define interspecific and intraspecific competition. (2 marks)

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______________________________________________________
[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

30. Explain FOUR types of biotic interactions which involves in a community.

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[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

(8 marks)

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31. Draw a labeled diagram of hydrological cycle and describe all processes
involved. (10 marks)

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_______________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________

[AS/APR 2008/BIO200]

Community and ecosystem cycles carbon cycle nitrogen cycle phosphorus cycle water cycle [labeled diagrams, biological importance, forms available to life, reservoir, key processes] ~Campbell,Reece (2008), 8th edition, Benjamin Cummings (Pg:1232-1233) Food webs, food pyramids, ecological succession dominant species keystone species foundation species [Definition of each and labeled diagrams of food webs, food pyramid & ecological succession] ~Campbell,Reece (2008), 8th edition, Benjamin Cummings (Pg:1205-1208)

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