Botkin & Keller: Environmental Science: Earth as a Living Planet- 8th Ed.

Chapter #5- Ecosystems: Concepts and Fundamentals Guided Reading Assignment Name:_______Bezawit Belew___________________________________________ Case Study: Sea Otters, Sea Urchins, and Kelp: Indirect Effects of Species on One Another 1: Define: Community Effect Community effect is the natural way of controlling the amount of species in a certain environment. 2: Explain WHY the Sea Otter is considered the Keystone Species in this ecosystem. (Hint: Explain the food chain) We call it keystone species Because it help keep balance by feeding on sea urchins which indirectly help destroy less kelp. 3: Why were Sea Otters endangered and how did their numbers rebound? Sea otters feed on abalone which is humans favorite so they got in conflict with humans, and the other reason is they have one of the finest furs in the world and they were used by commercial hunting and that led to their extinction at some point however due to legal protection they have their numbers recovered now. 5.1- The Ecosystem: Sustaining Life on Earth 1: Define Ecosystem Structure 2: What two main processes must occur to maintain an ecosystem? Cycling of chemical elements and a flow of energy 5.2- Ecological Communities and Food Chains 1: What is the difference between a food chain and a food web? Food chain is the energy transferred up during the linkage of who feeds on whom while food web is the more complex linkages and energy flow. 2: Define: Trophic Level Consists of all organisms in a food web that are the same number of feeding levels away from the original energy source. 3: Define: Autotroph: Make their own food Heterotrophs: dont make their own food Carnivores: feed on other animals/meat Herbivores: organisms that feed on plants Decomposers: feed on dead organic material 4: Explain the food web of Yellowstone Hot Springs. Explain each trophic level (include a photo).

First level is photosynthetic bacteria and algae, second is the herbivores and third is decomposers 5: Explain a pelagic ecosystem. Explain each trophic level (include photos). Pelagic ecosystem is an ecosystem that takes place in an open ocean. First trophic level: Phytoplankton, photosynthetic algae in the ocean Second trophic level: zooplankton, small invertebrates that feed on phytoplankton Third Trophic level: Filterers, feeds on zooplankton Fourth Trophic level: Predators, feed on filterers Fifth Trophic level: Top predators, feed on other predators A Closer Look- Land and Marine Food Webs 1: Look at the terrestrial food web. Should we include people within this ecosystems food web? That would place us within nature. OR should we place people outside of the ecosystem, thus separate from nature? People should be included with in terrestrial ecosystem 5.3- Ecosystems as Systems 1: Why are ecosystems considered to be OPEN systems? Because energy and matter flow into and out of them 2: Define: Watershed Practical delineation of the boundary of an ecosystem on land 5.4- Biological Production and Ecosystem Energy Flow 1: Define: Energy Energy is the ability to do work, to move matter 2: Explain: Ecosystem Energy Flow- Is the movement of energy through an ecosystem from the external environment What two ways does energy enter an ecosystem? Energy fixed by organisms and moving through food webs within an ecosystem Heat energy that is transferred by air or water currents by convection through sils and sediments The Laws of Thermodynamics and the Ultimate Limit on the Abundance of Life 1: The First Law of Thermodynamics is also known as what? Define it. Law of conservation of energy: any physical or chemical change, enetgy is neither created nor destroyed 2: What is the Second Law of Thermodynamics say? No use of energy in the real world can ever be 100% 3: Define Entropy (give an example). The disorganization of energy

4: What is an intermediate system? When ecosystem lies between a source of usable energy and a sink for degraded energy. 5.5- Biological Production and Biomass 1: What is biomass? Total amount of organic matter in any ecosystem 2: Define the following: * Biological Production: the capture of usable energy from the environment to produce organic matter * Gross Production: the increase in stored energy before any is used * Net Production: the amount of newly acquired energy 3: What are the 3 measures that are used for biomass and biological production? Quantity of organic material, energy stored and carbon stored 4: What is primary production- who carries this out? Production carried by autotrophs 5: What is secondary production- who is involved? Production carried out by heterotrophs 6: Who are chemoautotrophs? Explain- where are they usually found? Theyre bacteria that are found in deep ocean vents and muds of marshes 5.6- Energy Efficiency and Transfer Efficiency 1: What is energy efficiency? Ratio of output to input, amount of useful work obtained from some amount available energy. 2: How would energy efficiency look with a wolf and moose population? Explain. Wolf needs energy to hunt its prey while moose needs energy to survive 3: What is food-chain or trophic level efficiency? Ratio of production of one trophic level to the next lower level 4: Generally, how much energy is lost to heat when being transferred between trophic levels? 90% 5.7- Ecological Stability and Succession 1: What is ecological succession? When an ecosystem is able to recover after being disturbed

2: Compare and contrast primary and secondary succession- give an example of each. Primary is the establishment of ecosystem where it didnt exist previously, secondary succession is the reestablishment of an ecosystem after disturbances. 3: Explain how succession would look in a Dune. After dune is formed, dune grass invades. It will carry out photosynthesis and the grasses will grow and species will begin to develop. 4: Explain how succession would look in a Bog. Begins when a sedge puts out floating, carry out photosynthesis. Wind blows particles into soil and other plants will land and be able to germinate. 5: Explain how succession would look in an old-field. Small Plants adapt to the harsh conditions of the clearing. Larger plants will show up eventually which will create a dense forest 6: Explain how succession would look in a coral reef. Corals settle on a solid surface and produce a hard polyp of calcium carbonate, as old individuals die, the material becomes the surface on which new individuals establish themselves. 5.9- How Species Change Succession 1: Explain facilitation in succession and where is it most common? Species change the local environment in ways that make it suitable for another species. 2: Explain interference in succession and what it can lead to. Situation where an earlier successional species changes the local environment so its unsuitable to another species character of a later successional stage. 3: What is chronic patchiness? When does this occur? A characteristics of highly disturbed environments and highly stressful in terms of temperature. Critical Thinking Issue: Should People Eat Lower on the Food Chain? 1: Why does the energy content decrease at each higher level of a food chain? What happens to the energy lost at each level? Energy decrease because each time its transferred from one to other level and some of the energy is transferred to heat energy. 2: Why it is appropriate to use mass to represent energy content? Because the amount of energy an organism needs is determined by mass

3: Using the average of 21 kilojoules of energy to equal 1g of completely dried vegetation and assuming that wheat is 80% water, what is the energy content of the 333,000 kg of wheat shown in the pyramid? (show your work). 333,000kg/21= 15857gx .80=12686 joules 4: Make a list of environmental arguments for and against an entirely vegetarian diet for people. What might be the consequences for the United States agriculture if everyone in the country began to eat lower on the food chain? Positive: Less foot print, more energy Negative: Limited nutrients, imbalance in ecosystem 5: How low do you eat on the food chain? Would you be willing to eat lower? Explain. I eat as low as the third level consumers and I would be willing to eat lower Study Questions: 1: Farming has been described as managing land to keep it in an early stage of succession. What does this mean, and how is it achieved? It means that its a starting a new ecosystem and is achieved by planting small plants and that will lead to bigger plants. 2: Keep track of the food you eat during one day and make a food chain linking yourself with the sources of those foods. Determine the biomass (grams) and energy (kilocalories) you have eaten. Using an average of 5Kcal/g, then using the information on food packaging or assuming that your net production is 10% efficient in terms of energy intake, how much additional energy might you have stored during the day? (What is your weight gain from the food you have eaten?)