Ecosystem Literature Review
The aquatic ecosystems are home to some of the most diverse life forms on the planet. From plankton and plants to fish and even to large mammals, the aquatic ecosystem provides shelter to such a diverse range of life that few other ecosystems can ever compare to this large scope. In the aquatic ecosystem, there are many factors that allow for biotic life to flourish. Some of these factors include biodiversity, energy flow, and nutrient cycling. Not only do these factors allow for the prosperity of the aquatic ecosystem function, but also allow for the proper function of the other factors.
Ecosystem function can be seen as the "collective metabolic activities of organisms within a habitat consume energy and move matter between organic and inorganic pools". Biodiversity helps ecosystem maintain these actives in a stable manner. (Shahid 2002). Biodiversity, which is both genetic and ecological diversity in an ecosystem, allows for an ecosystem to react and survive under changing conditions (Hooper/ et all 2005). Biodiversity's role in the aquatic ecosystem can be described as the "security blanket" because biodiversity helps promote the resilience of an ecosystem, which comes into place through the interactions between biota and their environment (Cropp and Gabric 2002). As biodiversity increases, the ability of an ecosystem to overcome not only physical challenges, but also its ability to combat invasive species also increases. This ability to combat "local invasions" occurs because the native species use the limited resources that are present in an area. So, if an invasive species tries to colonize an area with high biodiversity, it will have a lot of trouble due to the limited amount of "free" r...
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... Paradigm. Ecology. 83(6): 1537-1552.
Srivastava Diane S., Vellend. 2005. Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Research: Is it Relevant to
Conservation?. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics. 36: 267-294.
Stachowicz John J., Fried Heather, Osman Richard W., Whitlatch Robert B.. 2002. Biodiversity,
Invasion Resistance, and Marine Ecosystem Function: Reconciling Pattern and Process.
Ecology. 83(9): 2575-2590.
Vanni Michael J.. 2002. Nutrient Cycling by Animals in Freshwater Ecosystems. Annual Review
of Ecology and Systematics. 33:341-370.
Vanni Michael J., Bowling Anne M., Dickman Elizabeth M., Hale Scott R., Higgins Karen A.,
Horgan Martin J., Knoll Lesley B., Renwick William H., Stein Roy A.. 2006. Nutrient Cycling by Fish Supports Relatively More Primary Production as Lake Productivity Increases. Ecology. 87(7): 1696-1709.
Fish habitat is the underwater world which many people do not see. It is just like the world that people live. Fish and plants reproduce, eat, and live in this environment, and even face challenges such as invasive species. It is said that “Invasive species are non-native species that threaten the diversity or abundance of native species due to their uncontrollable population growth, causing ecological or economic impacts” (“Invasive” par. 1). Vegetation plays a big role for fish habitat and for a lake itself. Aquatic habitat provides living space for not only fish but also for many aquatic insects. These insects then in turn provide fish and other species of animals with food (“Native” par. 4).
Once that step is determined, scientists will assign that group of species to a trophic level; to either the primary producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, or the tertiary consumers. The bottom of the chain and the trophic level that depends upon by all others is the primary producers. These primary producers consist of autotrophs, which are capable of deriving their food and energy source without consuming organisms or substances taken from other organisms. In the Arctic lake of Alaska, one of it’s primary producers consists of aquatic plants and algae. These aquatic and algae contain chlorophyll, which means that they can use light energy from the sun to synthesize glucose and other organic compounds, that they can use for cellular respiration and building material for growth.
The preservation of any species that contributes to the biodiversity of an area. In an ecosystem, the absence of one species creates unfavorable conditions for the others. The. The absence of the spotted owl could have a significant effect on the North Coast forest ecosystems. In order to send the owl population to the right.
With more primitive ocean species occurring more in our oceans many problems are posed by them. One thing is that they interfere more and more with the cycle that our oceans go through the animal’s way of life is changing. For example the Australian algae has definitely disrupted ecosyst...
The ecosystem I have chosen is tropical rainforest. In the following paragraphs, I am going to firstly introduced the structure of tropical rainforest in brief, with the second part of the plant ecology and last the diversity within this ecosystem.
Robert J., S., Bonnie, G., Sue, F., Douglas, R., Steven A., S., Todd, H., & ... Thomas E., K.
Purpose: The purpose of this lab is to investigate the various components of different ecosystems in a smaller representation and study the conditions required for the ecosystem’s sustainability as well as the connections between
The United Nations designated 2011-2020 as the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity. In biodiversity, each species, no matter how big or small has an important role to play in ecosystem. Various plant and animal species depend on each other what each offers and these diverse species ensures natural sustainability for all life forms. A healthy and solid biodiversity can recover itself from variety of disasters. It is estimated that the current species extinction rate is between 1,000 and 10,000
I am particularly surprised how the agricultural industry inflicts these problems on themselves, by excessive use of sewage systems and pollutants which find their way to local rivers [Fig 1.]. The trophic state (i.e. the natural nutrition factors) and biodiversity of lakes and rivers are greatly effected by the main nutrients involved, nitrates and phosphates. The transition occurs mainly between a mesotropic state, with an average biological productivity to a eutrophic state where there is a larger production of organisms due to high nutrient concentrations. Tropical reservoirs in particular often become eutrophic.
Thomas, C., Britt, P., Blackbourn, J. M., Blackbourn, R., Papason, B., Tyler, J. L., &
People have been relying for their daily needs and well-being on nature. The natural ecosystem provides varieties of goods and services to us, for instance, fresh water, fisheries, timber, water purification etc. The benefits that people directly get from the natural systems are called ecosystem services (ES).
In many parts of the world, ecosystems’ temperatures begin to rise and fall to extreme levels making it very difficult for animals and plants to adapt in time to survive. Climate has never been stable here on Earth. Climate is an important environmental influence on ecosystems. Climate changes the impacts of climate change, and affects ecosystems in a variety of ways. For instance, warming could force species to migrate to higher latitudes or higher elevations where temperatures are more conducive to their survival. Similarly, as sea level rises, saltwater intrusion into a freshwater sys...
Scientists have begun to say that we have to do more to protect our ecosystem, because our very existence is depending upon it. When the ecosystem is not functioning properly the continuation of plant, animal and human life ecosystems would be impossible. Life cycles can not function without ecosystems. The ecosystem provides us with clean air, water, habitats for fish and other services. They also aid in the mod...
Biodiversity is affected by five main pressures: habitat loss and degradation, climate change, excessive nutrient load and pollution, over-exploitation, and invasive alien species. As mentioned before, humans are not the only force that influences the environment. Natural events such as volcanic eruptions can potentially disrupt an ecosystem’s balance as well. However, at least three out of five of the principle pressures are caused by humans, although it is arguable that we do play a crucial role in speeding climate change and transporting invasive species. Ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss is almost like the result of the other issues.
NEED AND PURPOSE FOR CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY: Biodiversity, a contraction of “biological diversity,” generally refers to the variety and variability of life on Earth. The very existence of human species and sustainable development depend on biodiversity conservation, therefore the need for conservation of biodiversity is basically for this reason that all living creatures need other creatures and plants in one way or the other. At least 40 per cent of the world’s economy and 80 per cent of the needs of the poor are mainly derived from biological resources. Biodiversity is necessary for our existence as well as valuable in its own right as it provides the fundamental building blocks for the many goods and services which are essential