ECOL PPT-Week 3 4 Class PPT PDF

 The mantle is the mostly-solid bulk of Earth's interior. The mantle lies between Earth's dense, super-heated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The mantle is about 2,900 kilometers (1,802 miles) thick, and makes up a whopping 84% of Earth's total volume  Biomes: The large bio...

 The mantle is the mostly-solid bulk of Earth's interior. The mantle lies between Earth's dense, super-heated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The mantle is about 2,900 kilometers (1,802 miles) thick, and makes up a whopping 84% of Earth's total volume  Biomes: The large biosphere is divided into large parts of biomes Scientists classified biomes into five different types: tundra, grassland, forests, deserts, and aquatic biomes Ecosystem: The ecosystem is made up of a biological community and the physical environment. And so, it includes both the biotic and abiotic factors. The living things and their physical environment function together as a unit The community of Species: A biological community, though, is defined as the assemblage of interacting organisms (either of the same or different species) coexisting in a particular area and time Population: All the members of the species living in the single habitat are known as Population The population size can vary from a few to thousands of members Organisms: The organisms are the living entities of the biosphere Do you Know? In Canada, we have the 4 overarching biomes: tundra, desert, grassland, and forest Within BC, we have the following subcategories: semi- arid desert, temperate rainforest, boreal forest (taiga), and alpine tundra The semi-arid desert in BC is in the Okanagan. It is characterized by very low precipitation levels, as well as extreme heat in the summer (cold at night) and quite dry winters Temperate rainforest runs along the whole coast of BC from northern California to southern Alaska Class Activity Where are borrel forests Located in Canada? Major types of biomes? Taiga? Do you Know? The boreal forest has coniferous trees, cold temperatures, and precipitation in the range of 20 and 200 cm. The precipitation is often in the form of snow The Alpine tundra is dependent on elevation and is restricted to the mountainous regions of BC. The average monthly temperature hovers between -4 and 0 °C. Therefore, the major type of precipitation here is snow, which ranges from 7 to 30 cm per year  Taiga or boreal forest is a biome that is characterized by coniferous forests made up of spruces, larches, and pines The taiga is the world’s largest terrestrial biome As the world’s largest land biome, it makes up 29 percent of the world’s forest cover Tropical forests are found in areas centered on the equator Temperatures ranging from 20oC to 34oC (68oF to 93oF) The annual rainfall in tropical rainforests ranges from 125 to 660 cm (50–200 in) with considerable seasonal variation Tropical forests have the highest biodiversity and primary productivity of any of the terrestrial biomes The tropical forest biome is estimated to contain over half of the terrestrial species on Earth The tropical forest biome is composed of several different sub-biomes, including evergreen rainforest, seasonal deciduous forest, tropical cloud forest, and mangrove forest Key Points Aquatic biomes are thus of the larger water bodies and the smaller ones, which are further differentiated by salt level Abiotic factors influencing this biome are sunlight, oxygen level, salt level, temperature range, and nutrient availability They are rich and diverse in species that are specially adapted for the different biomes and the ecosystem stratification that is in continuity within the biome  Population ecology, study of the processes that affect the distribution and abundance of animal and plant populations A population is a subset of individuals of one species that occupies a particular geographic area and, in sexually reproducing species, interbreeds Population Ecology vs Community Ecology? Key points: Populations and communities are groups of organisms A population is a group of the same species living in the same area A community is a group of different species living in the same area A species is typically defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding  Species level: Species is a group of individuals that are genetically linked with each other. They can interbreed to produce fertile young ones. Population level: Population is a group of organisms belonging to the same species. Populations live in same region and interact with one another. Community level: Community is the group of populations of different species living in a particular area. Populations of a community interact with one another. Ecosystem: It consists of all the communities of an area. An ecosystem is made of the biotic and abiotic factors in an area. Biosphere: Biosphere is the narrow zone where the life exists on Earth. It Biosphere is everything about life on earth Populations can be described by their size, density, or spatial extent For both species and populations, patterns of distribution and abundance can be considered in several ways. These include: 1.Size: How many total individuals there are? 2.Density: How many individuals per unit of area? 3.Dispersion: How are individuals in a population arranged spatially relative to another? Do they occur in clumps or are they evenly spread apart? 4.Occupancy: Does a species or member of a population occur in each habitat, or is it absent? 5.Population distribution: Where does a population occur in space? 6.Geographic range: What are the furthest geographic limits of where a species occurs? Estimating Population Size: For immobile organisms such as plants, or for very small and slow- moving organisms, a quadrat may be used A quadrat is a wood, plastic, or metal square that is randomly located on the ground and used to count the number of individuals that lie within its boundaries  For smaller mobile organisms, such as mammals, a technique called mark and recapture is often used This method involves humanely capturing a sample of animals, marking them in some way, and releasing them back into the environment to mix with the rest of the population Species Distribution: A species distribution pattern is the distribution of individuals within a habitat at a particular point in time Individuals within a population can be distributed at random, in groups, or equally spaced apart (more or less). These are known as random, clumped, and uniform distribution patterns, respectively  The distribution of the individuals within a population provides more information about how they interact with each other than does a simple density measurement Just as lower density species might have more difficulty finding a mate, solitary species with a random distribution might have a similar difficulty when compared to social species clumped together in groups Community Ecology The interacting populations occupying a given habitat form an ecological community The number of species occupying the same habitat and their relative abundance is known as the diversity of the community  Biogeochemical cycles mainly refer to the movement of nutrients and other elements between biotic and abiotic factors.” The term biogeochemical is derived from “bio” meaning biosphere, “geo” meaning the geological components and “chemical” meaning the elements that move through a cycle Key points Energy flows through an ecosystem and is dissipated as heat, but chemical elements are recycled The ways in which an element—or compound such as water—moves between its various living and nonliving forms and locations in the biosphere is called a biogeochemical cycle Biogeochemical cycles important to living organisms include the water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur cycles. Types of Biogeochemical Cycles: Biogeochemical cycles are basically divided into two types: Gaseous cycles – Includes Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen, and the Water cycle Sedimentary cycles – Includes Sulphur, Phosphorus, Rock cycle, etc Class Activity Transpiration? Evapotranspiration? Condensation?  Water cycle, also called hydrologic cycle, cycle that involves the continuous circulation of water in the Earth-atmosphere system The water cycle, or hydrologic cycle, is driven by the Sun’s energy The sun warms the ocean surface and other surface water, causing liquid water to evaporate and ice to sublime—turn directly from a solid to a gas These sun-driven processes move water into the atmosphere in the form of water vapor Key Points Decomposers and Transformers- These are living components of the ecosystem Decomposers and transformers help to maintain the dynamic structure of ecosystems The decomposers attack dead remains of producers and consumers Decomposers degrade the complex organic substances into simpler compounds Whereas the transformers change the organic compounds into inorganic forms that are suitable for reuse by the producers or green plants. For example, Fungi and Bacteria  Alongside potassium and phosphorus, nitrogen is among the top 3 vital nutrients for crop development, being responsible for the process of photosynthesis and chlorophyll contents Nitrogen fixation in soil is important for agriculture because even though dry atmospheric air is 78% nitrogen, it is not the nitrogen that plants can consume right away  An N-fixing crop is a natural way to provide plant- adjusted N without any industrial harm to nature. Using them in crop rotation allows nitrogen fixation for succeeding plants Another successful practice is to use nitrogen-fixing plant species in intercropping Crop rotation? Intercropping?  Nitrogen Cycle- Steps : Nitrogen fixation: Atmospheric nitrogen (N2) which is primarily available in an inert form, is converted into the usable form -ammonia (NH3) 1.Atmospheric fixation: A natural phenomenon where the energy of lightning breaks the nitrogen into nitrogen oxides, which are then used by plants 2.Industrial nitrogen fixation: It is a man-made alternative that aids in nitrogen fixation using ammonia 3.Biological nitrogen fixation: Bacteria like Rhizobium and blue-green algae transform the unusable form of nitrogen into other compounds that are more readily usable. These nitrogen compounds get fixed in the soil by these microbes  Nitrification: In this process, the ammonia is converted into nitrate by the presence of bacteria in the soil Nitrites are formed by the oxidation of ammonia with the help of Nitrosomonas bacteria species The reaction involved in the process of Nitrification is as follows: 2NH3 + 3O2 → 2NO2– + 2H+ + 2H2O 2NO2– + O2 → 2NO3– Simplified chemical reaction for conversion of ammonia to nitrite NH3 + O2 → NO2− + H+ Chemical reaction for conversion of nitrite to nitrate 2 NO2− + O2 → 2 NO3− Nitrification is the second step of the nitrogen cycle. Not all the ammonia produced during nitrogen fixation is used by plants  Assimilation: Nitrogen assimilation is the process by which inorganic nitrogen compounds are used to form organic nitrogen compounds such as amino acids, amides, etc. Ammonification-Mineralization: When plants or animals die, the nitrogen present in the organic matter is released back into the soil Denitrification is the process in which the nitrogen compounds make their way back into the atmosphere by converting nitrate (NO3-) into gaseous nitrogen (N). This process of the nitrogen cycle is the final stage and occurs in the absence of oxygen Summary Mineralization is the process by which microbes decompose organic N from manure, organic matter and crop residues to ammonium Nitrification is the process by which microorganisms convert ammonium to nitrate to obtain energy Denitrification occurs when N is lost through the conversion of nitrate to gaseous forms of N, such as nitric oxide, nitrous oxide and dinitrogen gas  Volatilization is the loss of N through the conversion of ammonium to ammonia gas, which is released to the atmosphere Immobilization refers to the process in which nitrate and ammonium are taken up by soil organisms and therefore become unavailable to crops Leaching is a pathway of N loss of a high concern to water quality  Immobilization is the reverse of mineralization. All living things require N; therefore, microorganisms in the soil compete with crops for N Immobilization refers to the process in which nitrate and ammonium are taken up by soil organisms and therefore become unavailable to crops Leaching is a pathway of N loss of a high concern to water quality. Soil particles do not retain nitrate very well because both are negatively charged. As a result, nitrate easily moves with water in the soil Conclusion Nitrogen is abundant in the atmosphere, but it is unusable to plants or animals unless it is converted into nitrogen compounds. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria play a crucial role in fixing atmospheric nitrogen into nitrogen compounds that can be used by plants. The plants absorb the usable nitrogen compounds from the soil through their roots. Then, these nitrogen compounds are used to produce proteins and other compounds in the plant cell. Animals assimilate nitrogen by consuming these plants or other animals that contain nitrogen. Humans consume proteins from these plants and animals. The nitrogen then assimilates into our body system. During the final stages of the nitrogen cycle, bacteria and fungi help decompose organic matter, where the nitrogenous compounds get dissolved into the soil which is again used by the plants. Some bacteria then convert these nitrogenous compounds in the soil and turn it into nitrogen gas. Eventually, it goes back to the atmosphere Do you Know? The symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria invade the root hairs of host plants, where they multiply and stimulate formation of root nodules, enlargements of plant cells and bacteria in intimate association Within the nodules the bacteria convert free nitrogen to ammonia, which the host plant utilizes for its development To ensure sufficient nodule formation and optimum growth of legumes (e.g., alfalfa, beans, clovers, peas, soybeans), seeds are usually inoculated with commercial cultures of appropriate Rhizobium species, especially in soils poor or lacking in the required bacterium.  Name: Carbon Atomic Number: 6 Element Symbol: C Group: 14 Period: 2 Block: p Element Family: nonmetal  The carbon cycle is vital to life on Earth. Nature tends to keep carbon levels balanced, meaning that the amount of carbon naturally released from reservoirs is equal to the amount that is naturally absorbed by reservoirs Maintaining this carbon balance allows the planet to remain hospitable for life Scientists believe that humans have upset this balance by burning fossil fuels, which has added more carbon to the atmosphere than usual and led to climate change and global warming Credit; National Geographic  Carbon is the giver of life: your skin and hair, blood and bone, muscle and sinews all depend on carbon. Bark, leaf, root and flower; fruit and nut; pollen and nectar; bee and butterfly; Doberman and dinosaur— all incorporate essential carbon Every cell in your body—indeed, every part of every cell—relies on a sturdy backbone of carbon Steps in Carbon Cycle: Carbon moves from the atmosphere to plants. In the atmosphere, carbon is attached to oxygen in a gas called carbon dioxide (CO2) Carbon moves from plants to animals Carbon moves from plants and animals to soils Carbon moves from living things to the atmosphere Carbon moves from fossil fuels to the atmosphere when fuels are burned Carbon moves from the atmosphere to the oceans  According to the National Academies of Sciences, 81 percent of the total energy used in the United States comes from coal, oil, and natural gas This is the energy that is used to heat and provide electricity to homes and businesses and to run cars and factories Steps in Phosphorous Cycle Phosphate compounds in the soil can be taken up by plants and, from there, transferred to animals that eat the plants When plants and animals excrete wastes or die, phosphates returned to the soil Phosphorus-containing compounds may also be carried in surface runoff to rivers, lakes, and oceans, where they are taken up by aquatic organisms When phosphorus-containing compounds from the bodies or wastes of marine organisms sink to the floor of the ocean, they form new sedimentary layers Key points Phosphorus is an essential nutrient found in the macromolecules of humans and other organisms Phosphorus is often the limiting nutrient, or nutrient that is most scarce and thus limits growth, in aquatic ecosystems When nitrogen and phosphorus from fertilizer are carried in runoff to lakes and oceans, they can cause eutrophication, the overgrowth of algae The algae may deplete oxygen from the water and create a dead zone Eutrophication Steps EXCESS NUTRIENTS: First, farmers apply fertilizer to the soil. Then, excess nutrients run off from the field into the water ALGAE BLOOM: Next, the fertilizer rich in nitrate and phosphate spark the overgrowth of algae in water bodies OXYGEN DEPLETION: When algae forms, it blocks sunlight from entering water and uses up oxygen. Eventually, water becomes oxygen-depleted DEAD ZONES: Finally, water that is completely depleted of oxygen becomes a dead zone and can no longer support life Useful Links https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/water-cycle https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/ecology/biogeochemical-cycles/ a/the-water-cycle https://byjus.com/biology/nitrogen-cycle/ https://www.britannica.com/science/nitrogen-fixing-bacteria https://climate-box.com/textbooks/the-problem-of-climate-change/2-2-effects- on-plants-and-animals/ https://bio.libretexts.org/Courses/Gettysburg_College/01%3A_Ecology_for_All/ 09%3A_The_Ecology_of_Populations/9.01%3A_What_is_population_ecology