Biology 100/101
Lecture 2: Ecosystems in Space
Text readings in Life by
Ricki Lewis:
| Review questions:
| "To think about":
Chapter 42 (Communities and Ecosystems)
Chapter 43 (Biomes)
| page 870, Questions 1 and 5
Page 887, Questions 2a, e, h,
and 6
| Page 870, Question 2
Page 887, Questions 1, 4, and 5, | |
Answers to many of these questions can be found on the "Answers to
End-of-Chapter Questions" page at the text website.
General Biome
Web Resources
Objectives:
After studying this material you should be
able to:
- Define and explain the relationships among thse concepts:
populations, biological communities, ecosystems, biomes, and
biosphere.
- Explain why many species can coexist in an ecosystem when they are competing for limited resources.
- The location on earth of particular biomes (biogeography) is largely
determined by the climate of an area, especially the annual rainfall and
temperature. Describe and explain the effect the following have on the
climate of an area:
- latitude altitude
- tilt of the axis
of the earth
- global air circulation patterns
- global ocean
currents
- proximity to bodies of water
- mountain ranges
- Describe the characteristics of the following major terrestrial
biomes: tundra, desert, prairie (grassland), temperate deciduous forest,
temperate rain forest, tropical rain forest.
- Describe some
adaptations found in various plants and animals that allow them to
survive in the biomes listed in o bjective 4.
Key Terms:
| population |
| biological community | | ecosystem |
| biosphere | | biome |
| habitat |
| abiotic factors | | biotic
factors | | ecological niche
|
What is your biological community
like?
Biological Population: "A group of interbreeding organisms
living in the same area." (Lewis, Life - glossary) (The organisms
that make up a population are, by definition, members of the same
species.)
Biological Community: "...a community includes all the
organisms, sometimes hundreds of species, in a given area." (Lewis, Life
- pg. 854)
What is an ecosystem? How would you describe your ecosystem?
- "A unit of interaction among organisms and their surroundings,
including all life in a defined area", (Lewis, Life - glossary)
- Biotic and abiotic
- Boundaries may be distinct or
indistinct.
- Large or small
- Nested
Habitat: "the physical and biotic conditions of the places where
individuals live" (Lewis, Life pg. 836)
(WHERE individuals live)
Ecological Niche:"the way that a species exploits resources for
survival, growth, and reproduction"(Lewis, Life pg. 838)
(HOW individuals "MAKE A LIVING")
What is a biome?
A group of interacting ecosystems
characterized by a particular type of vegetation (or animal life*) and
largely determined by temperature and rainfall or salinity*
- Spread over large areas
- Not sharply separated
-
*Aquatic: freshwater (e.g., lakes, ponds, rivers) and marine (e.g.,
coastal and oceans).
What is the biosphere?
- Global ecosystem; living shell around the planet
What biome does Champaign-Urbana exist in?
Things To Know About Biomes
- Where do the biomes
noted in this lecture exist and WHY are they where they are ? (Lewis, Life Fig.
43.2, page 874-875)
How would you characterize the environment of the
biome?
What type of adaptations have organisms evolved in the
biome?
Why are biomes located where they are?
Similar types of biomes
appear at corresponding latitudes because they have similar climates,
MAINLY TEMPERATURE and PRECIPITATION.
- Global air circulation and precipitation
- Global Ocean Currents and Climate
- Mountains
and the rain shadow effect
- Local climate patterns affected by
proximity to bodies of water (Great Lakes) and topography (canyons)
Tundra
Desert
Grasslands
Temperate Deciduous Forest
Temperate Rain
Forests
Tropical Rain Forests
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