EcosystemEcologyI:EnergyandNutrients Todaysquestions: I. Howdoesenergymovethroughecosystems? g y II. Howdonutrientsmovethroughecosystems?

I.

Howdoesenergyflowthroughecosystems?

A.PatternsinnetprimaryproductivityI

1. WhereisNPP/km2 particularlyhigh?
In agal sea areas (by the coast line). Rainforest and coral reefs.

2. WhyisNPP/km2 intheopenoceansolow,iflotsof lightisavailableandthewateriswarm? light is available and the water is warm?

There aren't enough nutrients in the ocean.

3.WhydoessomuchofthetotalNPPcomefromthe openocean?
Because the open ocean covers a large part of the earth (has a large surface area).

PatternsinnetprimaryproductivityII

4.Arethedataonthemapconsistentwiththedatain h d h h h d thebarcharts?Explainanydiscrepancies.

5.Whatlimitsproductivityinterrestrialhabitats?
Temperature and water.

6.Intheopenocean,whathappenstonutrientsavailable inorganismslivingatthesurface?
They're being used up very quickly by photosynthesis. When the photosynthetic organisms died, the nutrients from their body sink to the bottom.

7.Intheopenocean,whyaren tnutrientsrecycledfrom 7 In the open ocean why arent nutrients recycled from thebenthos?
Away from the coastal areas, the ocean is so deep that there's no physical mechanism (no up-dwelling) to bring the nutrient back up.

8.Whataretheprosandconsoffertilizingtheopenocean?
Pros: Negative feedback. There are more nutrients so NPP goes up, and CO2 will go down and O2 will go up. Cons: Not sure what will happen to the biomass. What happens when we put a bunch of things at the bottom of the ocean?

B.WhathappenstoNPP? 1,254,000kcal/m2/yrinsunlight

10,032kcal/m2/yrcapturedbyphotosynthesis(0.8%)
4,514kcal/m2/yr 5,518kcal/m2/yrto togrowth(45%)respiration/maintenance(55%) to growth (45%) respiration/maintenance (55%) 1,103kcal/m /yr3,411kcal/m2/ 1 103 k l/ 2/ 3 411 k l/ /yr toconsumerstodecomposers

WhatpercentageofNPPgetseatenaslivingtissue?

C.Trophic levelsinafoodchainorfoodweb C. Trophic levels in a food chain or food web Trophic level l l FeedingstrategyGrazingfoodchain F di t t G i f d h i 540 consumerOrcas 430 consumerSalmon 320 consumerHerring,candlefish,other 210 consumer 2 1 consumerCopepods,othersmallanimals Copepods other small animals 1Autotroph Photosyntheticalgae&bacteria

D.EfficiencyofenergytransferatHubbardBrook 3gramsoftertiaryconsumer(~10%efficiency) g y ( y) 30gramsofsecondaryconsumer( 15%efficiency) 30 grams of secondary consumer (~15% efficiency) 200gramsofprimaryconsumer(20%efficiency) 200 grams of primary consumer (20% efficiency) Start:1000gramsofprimaryproducer Start: 1000 grams of primary producer ~1%ofincidentsunlighttoprimaryproduction

8.Whyissomuchenergylostateachtransfer?
Takes energy to make energy. Everything not used for growth or reproduction or maintenance (movement, breathing, repair of tissue, defense) or excreted is what is passed on, but by then, the amount is typically small.

9.Whichismoreefficientasaprimaryconsumer,afish oracow?Why? y
Fish because they spend less energy on maintenance. Not burning calories to maintain body heat.

10.Clamsandmusselseatdetritusaswellassmall primaryproducersandconsumers.Wouldyouconsider primary producers and consumers Would you consider themanefficientconsumer?
Probably more efficient because they can gather from more sources.

II.Howdonutrientsflowthroughecosystems? II How do nutrients flow through ecosystems? Nitrogencycle,watercycle,carboncycle,etc:atoms Nitrogen cycle, water cycle, carbon cycle, etc: atoms movethroughecosystems,fromorganismtoorganism infoodwebsandto/fromtheabiotic environment (water,soil,atmosphere)

Humansarealteringmostbiogeochemicalcyclesin massiveways massive ways e.g.alteringthenitrogencycle g g g y

WhydoesadeadzoneforminHoodCanal? Why does a dead zone form in Hood Canal? 1. Insummer,growthofalgaeandphotosynthetic bacteriapeaks. bacteria peaks 2.Whentheseorganismsdie,
They sink, decomposition takes up the oxygen, so it becomes an oxygen poor zone (anaerobic "dead zone").

Whataresomepossiblesolutions?