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Chapter 5: Ecosystems: Energy, patterns, and disturbances - Coggle Diagram
Chapter 5: Ecosystems: Energy, patterns, and disturbances
Trophic categories:
Producers
Chemotrophs: producers use inorganic molecules to gain energy for survival
Autotrophs: produce organic compounds to survive
Consumers:
Heterotrophs: consume organic materials to survive
Trophic levels
Food level defined by primary source of energy
Food chains or webs → trophic levels and complex interactions
Aquatic ecosystems
reverse compared with terrestrial pyramid (smaller at bottom)
Most organisms (fish etc.) cold blooded - more efficient at transforming energy- more biomass higher up pyramid
Ecosystem disturbances
System equilibrium:
species interact constantly in well balanced relationship
Succession: transition of one biotic community to another
Primary
Secondary
Aquatic
solid particles eroded from land or plant detritus build up in ponds or lakes, eventually filling them
area cleared by disturbance and then reinvaded by plants and animals from other ecosystems
area lacking plants and soils is initially invaded by plants when soil forms
Disturbance (wildfire)
Fire and succession
Resilience
Tipping point
Situation in human impacted ecosystems where small action catalyzes major change in system state
Ability of ecosystems to return to normal after disturbance
Some pine species require fire (serotiny)
after ecosystem disturbances
Ecosystem capital must be used to manage ecosystems- maintain resources
Ecosystem services: sustainability
Restoration: return ecosystem back to original state
Requirements: abiotic factors unaltered or can be returned to original state, viable populations formerly inhabiting ecosystem must still exist
Management: (if restoration is not possible) manage ecosystem in current state
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
2001-2005
Produced report about earth's ecosystem
Strain on earth to sustain future generations
We depend on nature and ecosystem services but are living off them unsustainably
N and P cycles raise nutrients in land and water 2-3 times higher
Global deforestation
We may lose up to 50% of world's biodiversity
Biome
Difference between ecosystems and biomes (2 MAJOR FACTORS)
climate
vegetation
large geographical area with similar biotic community
Biome productivity