Chapter 15: The Biosphere and Chapter 16: Human Impact on Ecosystems Freshman Honors Biology

Chapter 15: Biomes in the Biosphere A biome is a complex system of land communities that cover a large area For example: Tropical rain forests, desert, tundra Biomes have unique climate ranges Climate is the specific weather pattern of an area over a period of time For example: Climate of Indiana is that we have four seasons; climate of Antarctica is that they have frozen water with very little snow.

Climate Zones The world is divided into three climatic zones: Polar Cold, non-humid temperatures Geographic range: Canada to the North Pole Tropical Hot, humid temperature range Geographic range: Florida to the Equator Temperate Mild climate; seasonal changes Geographic range: Florida to Canada

Climate & Biomes So what influences climate? Latitude Location on landmass (on the coast or inland?) Proximity to land features, like mountain ranges Biomes have specific climate patterns Because each species is adapted to live in a specific set of environmental conditions, animals and plants usually die if a climate changes too much For example, if Indiana were to become like it was in the Ice Age, most plants and animals would die because they couldn’t adapt to the colder weather.

Biomes, Continued Organisms that live in a specific biome have unique adaptations Gives them a better ability to live successfully in that environment Examples: Cactus living in the desert that has a waxy coating to prevent water loss Mountain goats living on top of mountains have very thick fur coats to prevent internal body temperature drop

RA Activity Each lab group will read and learn about ONE of the the 6 major biomes Text: Pages 462-467 (Alligator) Other resources: Biomes Overview Video (26 min) Your task: Summarize the most important distinguishing features that set your assigned Biome apart from the others. Write your final draft of your group summary on a large Post-It Note Create a tree map with each of the different Biomes 1: Tropical, 2: Grasslands, 3: Desert, 4: Temperate, 5: Taiga, 6: Tundra, 7: Polar Ice Caps and Mountains (p. 467)

Biome Examples Tundra Boreal Forest Temperate Forest Temperate Woodland/Shrubland Temperate Grassland Desert Tropical Savanna Tropical Seasonal Forest Tropical Rain Forest

Commensalism

Biomes in Detail Deserts (hot & cold) Tropical Rainforest/Jungle VERY little rain Plants and animals have adaptations to prevent water loss Tropical Rainforest/Jungle Rain amount is very high Temperatures are stable around 75°F Grassland (temperate/savannah) Savannah – think Safari! Temperate – like Indiana

More Biomes Arctic/Tundra Deciduous Forest Mountainous (taiga) Also have very little rain Contain permafrost (topsoil is frozen year-round) Deciduous Forest Leaves change colors, die, and fall to the ground Mountainous (taiga) Animals include moose, eagles, mountain lions and goats Swamp/Marsh Very moist soil, often with standing water Plants include mangroves and lily pads

More Biomes Pond/Lake River/Stream Estuary Ocean Sitting bodies of water Animals include turtles, fish (carp, trout, bass, etc.), egret birds River/Stream Flowing bodies of water Animals include salmon, eagles, brown bears Estuary Where rivers/streams meet the saltwater of the ocean For example: New Orleans Ocean Several depths create many animal adaptations Read “Open Ocean Ecosystems” on page 80 in the Zebra book with your partner – do a Think Aloud.

RA Activity – Marine Ecosystems Pages 468-470 (15.4 Alligator book) 1’s read “Intertidal Zone” 2’s read “Open Ocean Ecosystems” 3’s read “Coastal ocean and coral reefs” We will then rotate and discuss! Take GOOD notes!

Chapter 16: Human Impact on Ecosystems

16.1: Human Population Growth Demography is the study of the size of human populations Growth rates are controlled by the same factors as animal populations Birth Rate Death Rate Immigration and Emigration Age Structure

Historical Demography Human population used to be low and relatively stable Limited by resources and disease Past 500 years Exponential growth as limits have been removed

Age Structures Histogram depicting the number of people in each age category within a population (Figure 14, page 104, Zebra book) Can be used to predict future growth

Ecological Footprint

What effect does Human Population Growth have on Pollution? Water Chemicals, Trash, Temperatures, Noise, Eutrophication (causes algae overgrowth) Land Chemicals, Trash Air Chemicals and Noise

Acid Precipitation Effects

Effects of Pollution: Ozone Depletion; Ozone; Greenhouse Effect While watching the BrainPop clips, answer the following: 1. What is ozone? Include chemical formula! 2. Why is it important to the atmosphere?

Water Quality & Pollution: Biological Magnification Chemical pollutant becomes more concentrated as it moves up the trophic levels within a food chain or web Very dangerous for top level predators Fig. 16.11, page 495

Threats to Biodiversity Habitat Loss Deforestation Overexploitation (overuse) Habitat Fragmentation Pollution Biomagnification, Acid Precipitation Introduction of Invasive Species Threats to Biodiversity

Overexploitation (overuse) The excessive use of species that have economic value Bison hunted for meat, hides, and just for sport Population went from 50 million to 1000 Passenger pigeons Now extinct Ocelot and white rhinoceros Overexploitation used to be the number one reason for extinction; now it’s habitat destruction

Habitat Loss

Habitat Fragmentation – page 499

Invasive (Introduced) Species Also called non-native species Introduced to new habitat Often grows without check because of lack of natural predators or disease in the area Pages 500-501

Losing Biodiversity Species experiences a decline in growth Threatened Canadian lynx Prairie dog Endangered Bald Eagle Many Marine Mammals Extinct Dodo Passenger Pigeon

Section 3: Conserving Biodiversity Pages 502-505 Class Activity: reading “16.5 Conservation” 1’s Read “Sustainable Development…” 2’s Read “Conservation practices…” 3’s Read “Protecting Earth’s resources…” Take good notes to share ideas about how we can conserve biodiversity…do you have ideas that are not in the text?