EARTHSC 2EI3 Lecture 3: Ecosystems and Biodiversity

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Earth Sciences
• Course: EARTHSC 2EI3
• Professor: Luc Bernier

Document Summary

Lecture 3: ecosystems and biodiversity sept 14, 2016. Invasive species in canada: energy flow in ecosystems. Primary source of energy for most ecosystems on earth is solar energy: captured in plants (producers) during photosynthesis; energy is then transferred to/consumed by herbivores; then transferred to/consumed by carnivores and further, tertiary consumers (top carnivores) Increases the amount of nutrients available for producers: disrupts energy flow to higher trophic levels. Increases energy flow to higher trophic levels: decreases the amount of nutrients available for producers. Species that are found nowhere else on earth. I(cid:374) australia, 68% of spe(cid:272)ies are e(cid:374)de(cid:373)i(cid:272) ((cid:272)a(cid:374)"t reall(cid:455) gai(cid:374) (cid:373)a(cid:374)(cid:455) species through migration since they are an island) Federal, provinces, and territories put in place an outcome-based plan (2006) Problem: tracking and assessing are easier said than done: e. g. insect, species in remote areas, etc. Canada has about ~140,000 species in canada: lots of insects.