1. ECOSYSTEMS AND THE BIOSPHERE
CHAPTERS 18.3/18.4/21 NOTES

2. VOCABULARY WORDS- words
Producers biogeochemical cycle
Chemosynthesis groundwater permafrost
Gross primary productivity tropical forest
Biomass water cycle tundra
Net primary productivity transpiration canopy
Consumer carbon cycle epiphyte
Herbivore nitrogen cycle coniferous tree
Carnivore nitrogen fixation deciduous tree
Omnivore nitrogen-fixing bacteria
Detritivore ammonification taiga
Decomposer nitrification savanna
Trophic level denitrification chaparral
Food chain phosphorus cycle desert
Food web biome temperate grassland
Temperate deciduous forest

3. Autotrophs produce their own food
I. Producers
Autotrophs produce their own food
Photosynthesis: Plants, Protists, Bacteria
Chemosynthesis: Bacteria, Archaea
Carbohydrates (sugars and starches) are produced as food
Gross Primary Productivity: the rate at which producers in an ecosystem capture energy

4. D. Biomass is the organic material found in an ecosystem
Net Primary Productivity is the rate at which biomass accumulates.
Ecosystem vary in productivity
Light, temperature, and precipitation affect terrestrial ecosystems
Light, available nutrients, & water temperature affect aquatic ecosystems

5. II. Consumers
Heterotrophs obtain energy by feeding on other organisms or their waste products.
Herbivores eat producers.
Carnivores eat other consumers.
Omnivores eat producers and consumers.
Detritivores eat rotting carcasses, fallen leaves and branches (detritus).
Decomposers obtain energy by breaking down complex molecules into simpler ones.

6. III. Energy Flow
A. Trophic levels indicates organisms’ positions in sequences of energy transfers.

7. B. A food chain is a single pathway of feeding relationships.
C. A food web is composed of interrelated food chains.

8. D. 10% of energy from one trophic level is available for the next trophic level.
E. There are more organisms in lower trophic levels than in higher ones.

9. IV. The water cycle
Evaporation adds water to the atmosphere.
Transpiration is when plants release water vapor.
Precipitation is the release of water from the atmosphere.

10. V. The carbon cycle
Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are the basis of this cycle.
Humans add much carbon dioxide to the air.

11. Proteins and nucleic acids use nitrogen.
VI. The nitrogen cycle
Proteins and nucleic acids use nitrogen.
Nitrogen fixation is the conversion of nitrogen gas to ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates.
This is nitrification and is accomplished by aerobic nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
Ammonification is the release of ammonia from dead organisms and waste products.
1. This provides nitrogen for living organisms.

12. D. Denitrification is the release of nitrogen gas back into the air by anaerobic bacteria.

13. VII. Phosphorus Cycle
Phosphate (PO4-3) erodes from rocks into the soil. Plants absorb phosphorus atoms from the soil.
Animals get phosphorus atoms by eating plants and other animals.
DNA and RNA use phosphorus atoms in part of their make-up, so do teeth and bones.

14. VII. The seven major biomes
Biomes: very large terrestrial ecosystems that contain a number of smaller but related ecosystems within them.
Temperature and precipitation distinguish the biome.
Plants and animals are unique to each biome.

17. D. Tundra

18. E. Taiga

19. F. Temperate Deciduous Forests

20. G. Temperate Grasslands

21. H. Deserts

22. I. Savannas

23. J. Tropical Rain Forests

24. VIII. Aquatic Ecosystems
A. Ocean Zones

25. 1. Intertidal zone

26. 2. Neritic zone

27. 3. The Oceanic zone

28. 4. Estuaries

29. B. Freshwater Zones