Ecology and Energy: Understanding Ecosystems and the Flow of Energy, Slides of Environmental Science

Download Ecology and Energy: Understanding Ecosystems and the Flow of Energy and more Slides Environmental Science in PDF only on Docsity! Chapter #3 “Ecosystems and Energy” (Pg. 46 – 55) Docsity.com Readings this week and previous weeks: Chapter #1 – “Hooknose” Chapter #2 – “The Five Houses of Salmon” Chapter #3 – “New Values for the Land and Water” Chapter #4 – “The Industrial Economy Enters the Northwest” Docsity.com Ecology • Biology is very organized. • Ecologists are interested in the levels of life above that of organism. Docsity.com Ecological Definitions • Species – A group of similar organisms whose members freely interbreed. • Population – A group of organisms of the same species that occupy that live in the same area at the same time. • Community – Al the populations of different species that live and interact in the same area at the same time. • Ecosystem – A community and its physical (abiotic) environment. • Landscape – Several interacting ecosystems. Docsity.com Ecology • The biosphere contains earth’s communities, ecosystems and landscapes, and includes: • Atmosphere- gaseous envelope surrounding earth • Hydrosphere- earth’s supply of water • Lithosphere- soil and rock of the earth’s crust Docsity.com Laws of Thermodynamics • First Law of Thermodynamics – Energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can change from one form to another • Ex: organisms cannot create energy they need to survive- they must capture it from another source – Focus is on quantity • Second Law of Thermodynamics – When energy is converted form one form to another, some of it is degraded to heat • Heat is highly entropic (disorganized) – Focus is on quality Docsity.com Photosynthesis • Biological process by which energy from the sun (radiant energy) is transformed into chemical energy of sugar molecules • Energy captured by plants via photosynthesis is transferred to the organisms that eat the plants 6 CO2 + 12 H2O + radiant energy C6H12O6 + 6 H2O + 6 O2 Docsity.com Cellular Respiration • The process where the chemical energy captured in photosynthesis is released within cells of plants and animals • This energy is then used for biological work – Creating new cells, reproduction, movement, etc. C6H12O6 + 6 O2 + 6 H2O 6 CO2 + 12 H2O + energy Docsity.com Food webs represent interlocking food chains that connect all organisms in an ecosystem Docsity.com In-class Discussion Readers: Chapter #1 - Me Chapter #2 – David Dudley Chapter #3 – Elizabeth Goodrich Chapter #4 – James McLeod Chapter #5 – Labecca Hampton and Jessica Vidal Chapter #6 – Patrick Grennan and Scott Arnold Chapter #7 – William Arnold Chapter #8 – Crissy Overgard Chapter #9 – Juan Rodriguez Docsity.com Readings last Week and this Week: Chapter #5 – “Free Wealth” Facilitators: Labecca Hampton and Jessica Vidal Quizzes will be returned on Wednesday Docsity.com Pyramid of Biomass • Illustrates the total biomass at each successive trophic level – Biomass: measure of the total amt of living material • Biomass indicates the amount of fixed energy at a given time o Illustrates a progressive reduction in biomass through trophic levels Docsity.com Pyramid of Energy • Illustrates how much energy is present at each trophic level and how much is transferred to the next level – Most energy dissipates between trophic levels o Explains why there are so few trophic levels • Energy levels get too low to support life Docsity.com Ecosystem Productivity • Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) – Total amount of energy that plants capture and assimilate in a given period of time • Net Primary Productivity (NPP) – Plant growth per unit area per time – Represents the rate at which organic material is actually incorporated into the plant tissue for growth • GPP – cellular respiration = NPP – Only NPP is available as food to organisms Docsity.com