Ecology and Environment Lecture 1 PDF

Ecology and Environment Lecture 1 “Pale Blue Dot” Only planet in the solar system to have abundant liquid water. 70% of the Earth’s Surface is water! Critical to all life on earth.  Earth Systems Science ATMOSPHERE...

Ecology and Environment Lecture 1 “Pale Blue Dot” Only planet in the solar system to have abundant liquid water. 70% of the Earth’s Surface is water! Critical to all life on earth.  Earth Systems Science ATMOSPHERE HYDROSPHERE GEOSPHERE BIOSPHERE  Earth Systems Medicine Wheel Hydrosphere - Water Total amount of water on the planet. Comprises water in all forms. – Ice, liquid, vapour. Elements include rivers, lakes, streams, oceans, groundwater and frozen water. 97 % of water on earth is saline. Only 3 % of the water on earth is fresh and almost 70 % of that is frozen. Humans rely on groundwater and surface water for drinking, washing and manufacturing. We can’t survive without it! Water on Earth Atmosphere - Air Thin layer of gas that envelops the earth. We breathe it. Protects from radiation, keeps the planet warm, drives ocean currents. Geosphere - Land Earth, and its many matrices itself. Comprises rocks, minerals, landforms of the surface and the interior. These matrices are the structural, and nutrient support for life on earth. Biosphere - Life Comprises all life on earth, from bacteria to Blue Whales and includes us. Made up of biomes, which house diverse ecosystems. Species diversity to occupy environmental niches. Biodiversity faces huge threats from humans.  Functional Scale Universe Galaxy Solar System An ecosystem is a Earth geographic area Ecosystem where biotic and Community abiotic Population Organism components work Organs together to form a Cells bubble of life. Molecules Atoms  Ecosystem An ecosystem is a geographic area where biotic and abiotic components work together to form a bubble of life. Bedrock Soils Water Plants Animals Climate Geology Weathering Mineral Surface water Temperature Rate Particles Soil Humidity Rock Type Organic Hydrology Solar Energy Material Ground Wind Permeability/ Water Porosity  Abiotic and Biotic Components of Ecosystems Abiotic: non living components 1. Bedrock Geology 2. Soil particles 3. Water 4. Air 5. Nutrients 6. Solar Energy (Climate) Biotic: living components (all species) of the biosphere 1. plants, 2. animals, 3. microbes  Ecosystem Components Geosphere Hydrosphere Biosphere Atmosphere Bedrock Soils Water Plants Animals Climate Geology Weathering Mineral Surface water Temperature Rate Particles Soil Humidity Rock Type Organic Hydrology Solar Energy Material Ground Wind Permeability/ Water Porosity  What drives Ecosystems? 1. Energy Cycling solar > chemical > mechanical > infared 2. Nutrient Cycling (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus…). 3. Time! 2. Nutrient Cycling  3. Time Time is Relative! Too fast! Nano-, milli-, seconds Within our human context: Minutes, Hours, Days, Years, Decades Too Slow! Thousands, Millions, Eons Roach, T.N., Salamon, P., Nulton, J., Andresen, B., Felts, B., Haas, A.F., Calhoun, S., Robinett, N., & Rohwer, F.L. (2018). Application of Finite-Time and Control Thermodynamics to Biological Processes at Multiple Scales. Journal of Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics, 43, 193 - 210. 3. Earth’s Time Earth (Geological) Time Scale  Some Perspective 155 million years ago 66 million years ago Present  3. Time Scale Scale? Scale? Scale? Scale? Scale? Scale?  Ecosystems Ecosystems can be very large or very small. Tide pools, the ponds left by the ocean as the tide goes out, are complete, tiny ecosystems. Tide pools contain seaweed, a kind of algae, which uses photosynthesis to create food. Herbivores such as abalone eat the seaweed. Carnivores such as sea stars eat other animals in the tide pool, such as clams or mussels. Tide pools depend on the changing level of ocean water. Ecosystem and Continual Change Every factor in an ecosystem depends on every other factor, either directly or indirectly. A change in the temperature of an ecosystem will often affect what plants will grow there, for instance. Animals that depend on plants for food and shelter will have to adapt to the changes, move to another ecosystem, or perish. There is balance, but this balance is based on continuous change.  Where does our course fit? What is Ecology? Study of how living organisms interact with their ecosystem (with other organisms and their non-living environment).  What is an Organism? An organism is any form of life. Realm of Ecology Universe Galaxy Solar System Realm of Ecology Earth Ecosystem Community Population Organism Organs Cells Molecules Atoms Range of Study Universe Galaxy Solar System Realm of Ecology Earth Ecosystem Community Population Organism Organs Cells Molecules Atoms  Ecosystem Components Geosphere Hydrosphere Biosphere Atmosphere Bedrock Soils Water Plants Animals Climate Geology Weathering Mineral Surface water Temperature Rate Particles Soil Humidity Rock Type Organic Hydrology Solar Energy Material Ground Wind Permeability/ Water Porosity The Rock Cycle  Igneous Magma Igneous Eruption Intrusive Igneous (Plutonic) Extrusive (Volcanic)  Sedimentary Weathering Lithification Sedimentary Existing Rocks Rocks  Metamorphic Heat Pressure Metamorphic Existing Rocks Rocks a. burial, compaction, and cementation d) cooling and solidification (crystallization) (lithification) e) transformation by heat and pressure b. melting (metamorphism) c. weathering, erosion, transportation, and f) eruption deposition  Ontario’s Geological History 4 billion years ago Precambrian Shield (Canadian Shield) forms. This vast structure is made up of Precambrian (pre-life!) aged rocks primarily of granite (igneous intrusive) and gneiss (metamorphic) rock The Shield is one of the oldest features on the planet!  Ontario’s Geological History 400 million years ago Sea levels rose and most of central Ontario was covered with a semi-tropical ocean teeming with life. This ocean was specifically enriched with calcium carbonate. Gradual deposition of ocean detritus of sediments formed a fossiliferous layer and non fossiliferous layer of limestones (sedimentary rock) covering the granitic shield.  Ontario’s Geological History 2 million years ago- 12,000 years ago Global cooling led to extended periods of continental glaciation across most of Canada and all of Ontario As the ice sheet advanced, it eroded away the limestone sedimentary layers which overlay the Precambrian Shield and carried the material southward. Ecologically, why is everything in Ontario ONLY around 7,000 years old? Great Lakes Atlas  Present! Our Physiographic Regions Physiographic region: An area which has broad-scale consistent bedrock geology, soils, slope and morphology.  Physiographic Regions Precambrian (Canadian) Shield Region: An ancient mineral-rich geological feature dominated by granite and gneiss, with thin poor acidic soils. This is the largest physiographic region in both Ontario and in Canada and the oldest in the world.  Physiographic Regions St. Lawrence Lowlands: Flat- lying interior platform dominated by limestone and shales and sediments deposited by glacial activity. These easily weathered rocks form deep, rich alkaline soils in southern Ontario.  Physiographic Regions Hudson Bay Lowlands: Lowland plain underlain by flat- lying sedimentary rocks which slope gently towards the Hudson and James bays. The surface is composed of extensive wetland areas (mostly bogs and fens).  What we have learned so far… Ontario is mostly underlain by Precambrian shield (Canadian Shield) granites and gneiss. Limestone layers deposited from a tropical sea have been stripped by glaciation (Geological Survey of Canada, 2004) and deposited in southern Ontario  Bedrock, Glacial Drift…Soils? In Ontario, the geology is complex. Precambrian Shield is either the bedrock, or covered in layers of sedimentary limestones/shales (St. Lawrence Lowlands) These rocks weather into the parent material of soils. HOWEVER, there are transitional areas, where there are BOTH types of rock, making soil delightfully complex!