Lesson 8

z
ECOSYSTEM
z
Intended Learning Outcome:

1. Define ecosystem

2. Describe tropical rainforest

3. Discuss the impact of humans on the tropical rainforest, taiga,

savanna, desert, and tundra

4. Evaluate the contributory factors that affect deforestation

5. Appreciate the importance of tree planting

z
Definition of Terms:

 Ecosystem – is a community of living organisms sharing an environment.

 Tropical rainforest - is a forest occurring in tropical areas with heavy

rainfall.

 Taiga – is a belt of coniferous forest found in the northern hemisphere,

close to Arctic tundra

 Savanna – is similar to grassland but with scattered trees.

 Desert – are areas of the earth’s surface which receive less than 25 cm
to 10 inches of rainfall every year.

 Tundra – is the coldest and driest of all biomes.

z
THE ECOSYSTEM

What is an ecosystem?

 It is a community of living organisms sharing an environment.

 An ecosystem has inorganic constituents, organisms, and

energy as its functional components

 The largest ecosystems are called biome.

 A biome is a naturally occurring habitat for flora and fauna.

 A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical

environment.
 z
TROPICAL RAINFOREST
 It is a rainforest with a high rainfall
that grows in a tropical region.

 It is a hot, moist biome where it rains

all year long.

 It is known for its dense canopies of

vegetation that form three different
layers. The top layer or canopy
contains giant trees that grow to
heights of 75 m (about 250 ft) or more.
 z
Structure and Vegetation of Tropical Rainforest

 The tropical rainforest is located

around the equator where
temperatures stay near 80 degrees
year round

 Rainforest receive 160 to 400

inches of rain each year.

 The largest rainforests are Brazil,

Congo (Zaire), Indonesia.

 Other tropical rainforests are in

Hawaii and the islands of the
Pacific and Caribbean
 z
Cross section of a rainforest

 Emergents are the tallest trees and are usually

50 meters tall. Kapok tree is an example.

 Canopy is the lower layer which blocks the sun

because of the leaves.

 The under canopy mainly contains bare tree

trunks and lianas (vines).

 The shrub layer is characterized by woody

vegetation that grows relatively close to the ground.

 The forest floor is usually dark and damp.

z

Impact of Humans
z
on the Tropical
Rainforest
 z
1. Deforestation
z

It is the removal or conversion of

forested land to non-forest land
use123. It can be caused by natural
or human activities, but it is mostly
driven by human actions such as
urbanization, mining, and farming4.
It has negative impacts on wildlife,
biodiversity, habitats, water cycle,
soil, and climate135.
 z
2. Slash and burn
z

 It is also called fire-fallow

cultivation, is a farming
method that involves the
cutting and burning of plants
in a forest or woodland to
create a field called a
swidden. The method
begins by cutting down the
trees and woody plants in
an area.
 z 3. Road building

Road building in the rainforest

opens up large areas to
deforestation. In Brazil, the Trans-
Amazonian highway resulted in the
destruction of huge areas
of forest by colonists, loggers, and
land speculators.
 z

z
4. Cattle
Ranching
A cattle ranch, which can
be managed on anything
from a few acres up to
several hundred acres, is a
farm that breeds and
raises cattle. The livestock
can be bred for a multitude
of purposes, including
consumption, trade,
hide, cattle shows/fairs, and
the production of milk
products.
 z

z
5. Hydroelectric
powerplant

An unlimited supply of

water and ideal river
conditions have led to
the development of
hydro electric power
stations.
 z

z
6. Farming

Nutrients in the soil

are quickly
exhausted as there
is no longer a humus
layer to provide
nutrients.
z

The mining of iron ore, bauxite,

gold, oil and other minerals have
7. Mining devastated large areas of
rainforest like the Amazon.
 z

When vegetation is removed, soil is left

exposed to the heavy equatorial rainfall. It is
8. Soil Erosion rapidly eroded. The removal of top soil means
little vegetation will grow. Thus it leads to
flooding as soil is deposited on river beds.
 z

It is the long-term warming of the planet’s

9. Global warming overall temperature. Though this warming trend
has been going on for a long time, its pace has
significantly increased in the last hundred years
due to the burning of fossil fuels.
 z
Sustainable Development for the
Rainforest

 Afforestation - trees should be replanted in areas of deforestation

 Shifting Cultivation – Farmers should move on after 2-3 years to allow the
rainforest to recover.

 Rubber tapping – more sustainable methods of exploiting rainforest

should be pursued.

 Measuring trees – trees should only be cut down when they reach a
certain size. This will ensure younger trees to survive longer and will
encourage careful management of the rainforest.
 z
Check Point:

1. Why is deforestation happening?

2. Which impact of deforestation could

be viewed as positive?

3. How can tropical rainforest be

managed?
 z
TAIGA

 Also known as boreal forest, the taiga is characterized by coniferous trees*

such as spruce, larches and pines. Other characteristics of the taiga include a
short growing season and a long, cold winter.

 A forest located in the Earth's far northern regions, consisting mainly of

cone-bearing evergreens, such as firs, pines, and spruces, and some
deciduous trees, such as larches, birches, and aspens. The taiga is found just
south of the tundra.
z
What is the impact of humans on Taiga?

 1. Deforestation – current extensive logging in boreal forests may

soon cause their disappearance.

 2. Acid Rain – the rain is more acidic than normal. The smoke from
burning fossil fuels will go to the atmosphere and combine with the
moisture in the air thus forming an acid rain.

 3. Global Warming – Extreme changes in temperature and

precipitation could cause climatic zones shift several hundred
kilometers toward the poles over the next 50 years.
z
Taiga and its Sustainable Development

 Afforestation – Deforestation should be managed carefully.

Trees should be replanted.

 Acid rain - scrubbers should be used to reduce pollution from

factories releasing pollution into the atmosphere.
 z
SAVANNA

 Savannas cover half the surface of Africa and are close to the equator in
India, South America and Australia. Sometimes humans create savannas
when they burn grasslands and cut down trees to plant crops

 A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland ecosystem

characterized by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy
does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground
to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of grasses.

 Savannas maintain an open canopy despite a high tree density. It is often

believed that savannas feature widely spaced, scattered trees.
 z
What is the human impact on Savanna?

 Indigenous people – Savanna areas are popular with nomads they move
from place to place thus they graze their animals from place to place.
However, in times of serious drought animals can remove scarce
vegetation cover.

 Tourism - the rich variety of wildlife in savanna areas attracts many

tourists on safari. The transportation used by the tourist often damages
the vegetation and scares the wildlife.
 Tourist guides should use well defined tracks when taking the tourists on
safari.
 z
DESERT

 One thing all deserts have in common is that they are arid, or dry. Most
experts agree that a desert is an area of land that receives no more than 25
centimeters (10 inches) of precipitation a year. The amount of evaporation in
a desert often greatly exceeds the annual rainfall.

 Desert soils are thin, sandy, rocky and generally grey in color. · Desert soils
are very dry. When it does rain they soak up the water very quickly.

 Characteristics:
 Rare clouds
 Little rain
 Very hot days
 Very cold nights
 z
Human impact on Desert

 Deserts are increasing in sized daily. This is due to human actions.

 Poor farming techniques such as overgrazing and over cultivation in areas

of savanna grassland, are causing soil erosion and desertification.
z
TUNDRA

 Tundra is the coldest of all the biomes.

 Tundra comes from the Finnish word tunturi, meaning treeless plain.
It is noted for its frost-molded landscapes, extremely low
temperatures, little precipitation, poor nutrients, and short growing
seasons. Dead organic material functions as a nutrient pool.

• The tundra is a very fragile biome that is shrinking as the permafrost

melts.

• Lemmings are small mammals that burrow under the snow to eat
grasses and moss during the winter.
z
Human impact on Tundra

 Climate Change - Warming creates potential feedback loops that

encourage further destabilization of tundra ecosystems.

 Pollution - Black carbon from diesel engines, fires, and other combustion
can settle on snow, decreasing its ability to reflect sunlight and causing
faster melting.

 Industrial Activity - The oil, gas, and mining industries can disrupt fragile
tundra habitats. Drilling wells can thaw permafrost, while heavy vehicles
and pipeline construction can damage soil and prevent vegetation from
returning.

 Invasive and Migrating Species - Arctic tundra natives, such as caribou

(also known as reindeer), by fostering an increase in parasites and
disease while damaging food sources.