Biology 100/101
Study/discussion questions for Lecture 4:
Ecosystems in Space
These questions and links are provided as suggestions for you, the student, to consider as you try to come to grips with the material in these lectures.
Biome Productivity
Net primary productivity (amount of energy produced in a given area per year minus the energy used in respiration) is influenced by temperature, rainfall, and other factors (availability of sunlight, nutrients, and length of growing season). The more productive a community, the more life it can support per unit area.
What would you expect to be the biome(s) with highest net primary productivity?
...with the lowest net primary productivity?
Adaptations of Organisms
Working perhaps with another student or several, and consulting your textbook or using the links in the lecture outline, list some adaptations (in structure, function, behaviour, etc.) found in the various plants and animals that might increase their likelihood of being able to live in these biomes:
Deserts:
Tropical Rain Forests:
Prairies:
Tundra:
Links to Illinois Ecosystems and Various Environmental Issues
Take me home.