Ecosystems are the basic biological units of ecology, and consist of biotic organisms and their interactions amongst other living organisms, as well as the surrounding abiotic environment (Putman and Wratten 1984). One facet of ecosystems that is less-often mentioned is the process of decomposition, as it many may view it as an unclean, unpleasant process that occurs after an organism has ceased to exist. To those with an ecological framework, however, decomposition is viewed as the opposite – an interesting, intricate process teeming with biological activity and life (Swan and Kominoski 2012). What is decomposition? Formally, decomposition is defined as the process to which complex organic matter is broken down to its basic constituents (i.e. …show more content…
2008). In this experiment, two deciduous tree species, speckled alder (Alnus incana ssp. rugosa) and white birch (Betula papyrifera), dominant in the lowland and highland ecosystems respectively, will be compared and contrasted in terms of their decomposition rate, leaf senescence, leaf herbivory, arthropod presence, soil characteristics, and microclimate. In other words, how do the abiotic and biotic interactions of an ecosystem influence the decomposition rate of leaf litter in said ecosystem, and how does it compare to another, different ecosystem over the course of early to later fall? This question is of importance as it has ramifications for the functioning and interconnectedness of ecosystems around the world (Smith and Smith 2015). To investigate this phenomenon in action, the leaves from both tree species will be will be placed in their native habitat ecosystems as well as in the respective other to determine their decomposition rate and the degree to which the surrounding environment influences said decomposition. The highland ecosystem is noticeably more dry and rocky, with lower plant density and uneven topography than the lowland site – which is considerably more moist, muddy (i.e. wetland) and has a greater plant density than the highland. In leaf herbivory, the leaf damage caused by insect guilds is investigated to observe differences and changes between the two tree species over a period of time. Leaf senescence, the purposeful re-allocation of foliage nutrients to the plant body in preparation for winter, is studied in respect to the changing in the colour and appearance of leaves over the course of the experiment (Smith and Smith 2015). In addition, arthropod pitfall traps are used to characterize and compare the different species of arthropods and other organisms present within each
Moore, M. R., & Vankat, J. L. (1986). Responses of the herb layer to the gap dynamics of a mature beech-maple forest. American Midland Naturalist, 336-347.
Many old-growth forests across the landscape of northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan contain a mixture of tree species rather than a monoculture. Many researchers have put forward ideas to explain the competition and co-existence of tree species in such communities. A theory explaining competition and co-existence between two species is gap regeneration. Gap regeneration is when a gap is created upon death of a plant individual and a new individual, sometimes of the same species as died and sometimes not dependent on environmental heterogeneity, takes its place (Kenneth Lertzman). Canopy gaps during gap regeneration can be explained by either reciprocal replacement or habitat preference . In a reciprocal replacement, seedlings of one species would be found predominately under large trees ...
Human beings are naturally societal and relational. Even before the Neolithic revolution, humans roved around in groups, hence hunters and gatherers societies, not hunter or gatherer (singular). People stayed tougher not only for collective security, prosperity and necessity, but mainly for the benefit of the self. Whether for protection, emotional need or monetary gain, individuals, as a result, banded together in order to satisfy those needs first. If humans were always societal, in one form or the other (by societal, I mean always in conjunction with other humans: families, tribes, kingdoms, etc.), then the idea of a pure state of nature does not exist. A state of nature implies a time when people did not have societies but if humans always had societies, then what the history of man is simply a history of the ranging developments of different forms of societies over time. What political philosophers identified as “state of nature” are simply, observations or conjectures of human rationality, characteristics and the human condition. A “state of nature” has to exist only in order to justify the institutional arrangements of a group of people, whether it is real or not.
Discerning the spatial patterns of biodiversity and understanding their ultimate (why) and proximate (how) causes is very dear to biogeography and is one of the key concepts of Macro ecology. Some places on earth contain more species as compared to others. All species occurring at a given space and time either originated (speciated) there or dispersed and arrived from another place and settled there. Biogeographers try to understand the past and current distributions of species by incorporating historical, evolutionary and ecological factors. Earlier biogeographers or the ‘naturalists’ in their sacred quest to serve ‘the creator’, travelled to various parts of the world and imparted valuable knowledge about the diverse patterns and processes of nature. Linnaeus (1743), on the one hand, hypothesized that early Earth was filled with water except for it’s highest mountain top i.e., Mount Ararat which was known to be the site of paradise and as the sea level dropped the exposed land was colonized by plants and animals that migrated down from high elevational zones of Mount Ararat whereas Willdenow (1805) hypothesized that within each geographical region of the earth, plants and animals were first placed and later survived the great flood on many mountain ranges (Lomolino,2001). Von Humboldt and Darwin in the South American Andes and Wallace Southeast Asian islands noticed the decreasing trend in elevational species richness patterns (McCain and Grytnes, 2010). Later work done by Grinnell (1917), Whittaker (1952), Terborgh (1977, 1985) on elevational species richness became accepted and set a established pattern for all species for more than two decades (McCain and Grytnes, 2010). However current researches on elevational gradients are...
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
Ecological theory is a theory developed by Urie Bronfenbrenner that states that the “systems” around you are vitally important in human development. Within the theory there are many systems including the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem. Each system is defined by a different aspect of a person’s surroundings that would affect their development. The systems begin with the aspect that is closest to you, your day-to-day life. The Microsystem includes all of the places, people, and experiences that are found in your daily life. These include school, work, parents. friends, neighbors, and so forth. The next most impactful system is the exosystem. The mesosystem is defined by two entities within your microsysytem affecting each other. The next system is called the exosystem. The exosystem is full of things that don’t affect you directly but will eventually
According to the internet human behavior has a very big affect on the environment. Environmental settings such as air pollution, oceans, energy, or noise are all sources that can negatively impact the environmental quality and conditions. Our daily routines have a huge impact on the environment and we do not realize it. New laws that are passing and educating people will help a lot. People are being educated on how to use less water, use our cars less, how to use less energy, and even taking reusable bags when going grocery shopping because plastic bags are very bad for the environment. There are simple solutions that can help in getting started with these efforts. Every little step and effort we make in our daily routines count.
NEED AND PURPOSE FOR CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY Biodiversity conservation is about saving life on Earth in all its forms and keeping natural ecosystems functioning and healthy. Biodiversity is being depleted by the loss of habitat, fragmentation of habitat, over exploitation of resources, human sponsored ecosystems, climatic changes, pollution, invasive exotic species, diseases, shifting cultivation, poaching of wildlife etc. Since the human beings are enjoying all the benefits from biodiversity, they should take proper care for the preservation of biodiversity in all its forms and should prevent the degradation as well as the destruction of the habitats, thereby maintaining the biodiversity at its optimum level which will ultimately conserve the biodiversity for the future generation. 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 ecosystems.
Microbial decomposition releases nutrients into the environment that are needed by other organisms. Microbes are also involved in the cycling of many other important compounds in — and between — ecosystems, including oxygen, carbon and nitrogen. Many microbes use the energy of sunlight to convert carbon dioxide to oxygen, which we need to breathe. As they do this, they create new organic material — themselves — which are then eaten by other organisms. In this way, the cycling of nutrients and energy
All over the world there are animals dying from national disasters and plants are dying from animals. So the predator - prey relationships have a big deal on the population on plants and animals. But with the predator - prey relationships both animals have a connection together because that animals and the plants can be controlled with a keystone species. The one that controls how the population of all the factors is the keystone species because the keystone species is the animal that keep everything in check with the population of the plants and animals. But if the keystone species die and can it affect the ecosystem strongly and a trophic cascade would happen. So living and Nonliving factors have a big effect on the population of the and
Biology, is quite the expansive field in the world of science. The term itself has its roots in Greek with “bios” meaning life and “logos” meaning study. The term itself refers to the study of all walks of life that occur in nature. It covers all of the grandeur of life from the various structures of cells and the materials that comprise living creatures to the make up of primeval cells of the past. It encompasses the vast strata of the life from the infinitesimally small cells to the the gargantuan blue whales and other leviathans of the world. Underneath the umbrella of biology are a bevy of unique disciplines such as: physiology, genetics, ecology, and morphology.
Biodiversity loss can occur in many ways and this cause is very bad for the human , and the other species and the environment. These can lead down the surviving environment and mostly everyone living in that environment will suffer. There will be global warming, causing the earth to get warm and hot.
Deforestation is defined as the clearing of trees, and the absence of a forest. What most people seem to turn a blind eye to the fact that we need these trees and plants not just for our paper, pencils, or even furniture, but something much greater than any of these things put together. Indeed having a low costly grocery store within walking distance is pleasant, but there are negative consequences as well as positive consequences that coincide with the placement of a Wal-Mart in the city of Oviedo. It is understood to many that industrialization as well as being able to finally have a store that does not charge six dollars for orange juice is a blessing. Fretfully, the negative consequences will
An ecosystem is a community of plants, animals and smaller organisms that live, feed, reproduce and interact in the same area or environment. Each individual plant and animal could not exist by itself on planet Earth. All living organisms need millions of other living organisms to survive. How these organisms interact with the sun, soil, water, air and each other in a specific are is called an ecosystem. In the following paragraphs I will be organization that make up an ecosystem and their organizations.
Humans, no matter where they live or what their backgrounds are, we find ourselves at the center of the fight with concern for sustainability of the environment. Knowing the land that you live on is an important part of connecting with nature and life around you. It is especially important to connect with the environment for those who work and live in less developed part of the world. Those in third world countries, India for example, rely on nature to provide support and much of their livelihood. The role of nature and how ecological knowledge play a part in our lives is important to examine. There are distinctions within the certain aspects of life that involve the expertise of local practices, especially when addressing the ideas of cultural and development in certain parts of the world.