Ecosystems intro - December 2010
Transcript of Ecosystems intro - December 2010
EcosystemsEcosystemsCommunities interact with their environmentCommunities interact with their environment
Living things don’t just interact with each other in a community.
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They also interact with the non-living components of their
environment
Ecosystem - an area in which a community interacts with its non-living
environment
Two components of an ecosystem:
biotic - living (i.e. the community)abiotic - non-living
Matter within an ecosystem is recycled in biogeochemical cycles.
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pathway through which a chemical element or substance moves through both biotic and abiotic components
Evaporation - liquid water absorbs heat to become water vapour
Condensation - water vapour in air condenses into tiny liquid water droplets
Evapotranspiration - water evaporates from the leaves of plants
Sublimation - solid ice/snow turns directly into gaseous water vapour.
Precipitation - water droplets in air fall to surface of earth as liquid rain or solid snow/hail.
Infiltration - liquid water seeps into soil to become groundwater
Discharge - groundwater drains into rivers or lakes
Storage - water can remain for extended periods in underground reservoirs called aquifers.