A&O SCI 1 Lecture 12: Lec 12 - “Ecosystem Impacts”
2 Aug 2018
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Stressors on ecosystems (due to human activity): (1) pollution of air, water, and soil. (2) deforestation and land use change (largely driven by agriculture) causes: Runoff from industrial agriculture (animal waste & excess fertilizer) Creates an overabundance of nutrients in coastal waters leading to: Illegal wildlife trade encourages poaching: about ecosystems. Ecosystem : a community of living organisms that interact with one another and with abiotic components in their environment (ex. sunlight, air, water, soil minerals) Can be thought of as a system by which energy & nutrients flow, and are recycled among the living & non-living components. Each species in an ecosystem fulfills one of 3 roles in this flow: Can be visualized with a pyramid representing the food chain: Food web : shows the interrelationships among species (more detailed way to visualize ecosystem) Clearly, species are highly dependent on one another for survival.
