Unit 3Ecosystems & Ecology

3.0 – Classification of the Environment

Label the following vocabulary words into the 4-tier circle diagram below.

Biosphere: part of the earth where all living things exist (ex. Ocean, land, air)Biome: a large aquatic or terrestrial area of the biosphere that has unique climate (long-term weather) and biotic and abiotic featuresEcosystem: a community of organisms interacting with their physical environmentHabitat: a natural home of an organism

3.1 – The Terrestrial Biomes

Colour in the terrestrial biomes below and fill out the legend.

Permanent Ice

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Biome and Its Climate What is it like there? What kind of plants live there? What kind of animals live there?

Permanent Ice/ Polar IceArctic winter -30°C

Arctic summer 3-14°CAntarctic summer up to -9°C

Snow < 50 cm

- Strong winds- Little soil- Little fresh water

- Lichens- Moss- Arctic has a short growing season

for some flowers

- Arctico marine animals, polar bearo some insects

- Antarcticao with fur and fat layerso marine animals

Tundra

Boreal Forest

Temperate Rainforest

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Biome and Its Climate What is it like there? What kind of plants live there? What kind of animals live there?

Temperate Deciduous Forest

Grasslands

Desert

Tropical Rainforest

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3.2 – Climate in the Biomes

What is the difference between “weather” and “climate”?

Temperature & Precipitation Graph

Analyze the graph below to answer the questions.

1. Which 4 biomes have the lowest precipitation?

2. Which biome has an average temperature between ~5oC – 20oC? ___________________________

3. What is the average precipitation of a tropical rainforest? _________________

4. What is the lowest average annual precipitation in a temperate rainforest biome? ______________

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Weather

Climate

3.3 – Climatographs

Climatograph: A graph showing the average monthly precipitation and average monthly temperature of a region or biome.

What do the bars represent? What does the curve represent?

bars = average ______________________

lines = average ______________________

Practice: Examine the differences between the climatographs for Tofino and Osoyoos.

1. What is the average temperature of Tofino in October? ________________

2. What is the average temperature of Osoyoos in July? ________________

3. In which month does Tofino have the lowest average temperature? ________________

4. What is the average precipitation in Tofino in August? ________________

5. How much precipitation is received in Osoyoos during its driest month? ________________

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6. How do the average temperatures compare for the two locations in October? ________________

3.4 – Factors Affecting Temperature and Precipitation: Latitude

Label the two special latitude and longitude lines indicated by the arrows.

latitudes longitudes

Label the special lattitude at 30°N and 30°S. Label the three regions indiated on the right.

Research: How does latitude affect temperature?

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Research: How does latitude affect precipitation?

3.5 – Factors Affecting Temperature and Precipitation: Elevation

Elevation: Height above sea level.

Research: How does elevation affect temperature?

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Research: How does elevation affect precipitation?

3.6 – actors Affecting Temperature and Precipitation: Ocean Currents

Think About This: Are places along the coast always warmer and wetter?

Ocean currents are the movement of ocean water around the globe. The process is driven by many factors, but mainly the different ________________ of ocean water, which in turn is driven by ____________________ and _________________. Other factors include _____________ and the ___________________________________.

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Warm Current at the Coast Cold Current at the Coast

Temperature:

Precipitation:

Temperature:

Precipitation:

3.7 – Life in the Biomes

Think about it: Why would it be difficult to live at the following biomes?a) Permanent Ice b) Desert

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___________________________________________________________________________________________

Think about it: What difficulties would a polar bear have living in the tropical rainforest?

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Adaptation: a characteristic that allows an organism to better survive and ________________ in their biome

Adaptation Examples

Structural Adaptation

Physiological Adaptation

Behavioural Adaptation

A behavior (action) that helps an organism to survive thatincludes how the organism

________, __________, and ________________________

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3.8 – What’s Ecology?

Ecology: the study of the relationship between organisms and organisms with the environment.

Put the following terms in the circle diagram below: organism, population, ecosystem, community, species.

Ecology can be studied using ecological pyramids. There are three types.

Consider a maple tree and sketch the ecological pyramids.Pyramid of Numbers Pyramid of Biomass Pyramid of Energy

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3.10 – Nutrient Cycling

Three important nutrients are carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus. The three nutrients are constantly recycled and move from one nutrient store (a place where a nutrients settle for some time) to another.

Importance of C, N, and PC N P

it is the building block of life (it makes up all kinds of biological molecules)

building block of sugars it is in CO2, a major contributor

to global warming

building block of amino acids, which build protein

building block of DNA is of concern in sewage a nutrient in fertilizer

building block of ATP, a molecule that carries energy around the body

nutrient in plants to grow roots, stems, and seeds

used for developing bone tissue

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