Ecosystem Diversity

Today in class, we watched a video about tropical rainforests. It was quite intriguing; we learned about their importance. The rainforest is the Earth’s most diverse ecosystem and is home to over five million species (over half the world’s species). This really caught my attention, so I did some further digging. The rainforest is a rather stable environment; its climate remains warm and humid all year round. The rainforest is also located on or near the equator, so it receives the most rainfall out of all the other ecosystems on the planet. These two factors contribute to its surplus of biodiversity. Organisms don’t only live in the rainforest, they thrive. If you want to dig even deeper than I did, you can read the information here.  

Not only are rainforests rich in biodiversity, they’re also essential climate stabilizers. Due to their size and insanely large number of trees and tree species, rainforests take in lots and lots of carbon. While humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, trees do the opposite. The rainforests require carbon to survive and store a significant amount, thus helping to lower the levels of carbon in the atmosphere. This function is becoming increasingly more important as the Earth experiences climate change. Too much carbon in the atmosphere is causing the Earth to heat up and any help alleviating these high carbon levels helps to stabilize the atmosphere. With this being said, deforestation is a huge problem. If we keep cutting down the rainforests of the world, we’ll be releasing all of the carbon rainforests help to reduce back into the atmosphere. In order to ensure the health of our planet, we must preserve and protect the rainforest. 

Given the fact that the tropical rainforest is the most biologically diverse ecosystem on the planet, lots of research is conducted and data collected there. Regardless of where an ecosystem exists, they all have similarities in one way or another. Therefore, the data collected in a tropical rainforest in regards to biodiversity can hold true in other ecosystems as well, such as Yellowstone National Park. Conservationists, researchers, or park rangers can use data gathered in the rainforest to guide the work they do in their ecosystem. For example, in the video we watched, park rangers worked to repopulate wolves back into the Yellowstone ecosystem. They noticed a change after they were eradicated from the region and knew that, in order to preserve the health of Yellowstone, they needed to reintroduce wolves, the top predators, back into the ecosystem. If needed, the park rangers could’ve reviewed data from rainforest to back up their decision and further support their cause. Overall, I really enjoyed this video and it helped me open up my eyes to the world around me.

Image 1: 

http://www.onemeteratatime.org/wp-content/uploads/rainforest1.jpg

Image 2:

http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/images/where/whemap.gif

Image 3: http://cf067b.medialib.glogster.com/media/d6/d6ac6cc6f34531b93db1a14f48867d9049f5c4dd50d6141bde7b392cd86c33b3/rainforest-carbon-cycle-jpg.jpg

Image 4:

http://www.nathab.com/uploaded-files/carousels/TRIPS/Yellowstone-Wolf-Quest/US-National-Parks-Yellowstone-Wolf-Quest-1-wolves.jpg

Carbon Cycle Simulation - Part 2

1.) An increase in fossil fuel consumption would result in an increase in carbon in terrestrial plants. The flora population would grow or expand since flora depends on carbon to survive and there would be an excess of carbon in the Earth's atmosphere. If this were to continue for another twenty years, then the number of plants on the planet would increase significantly.

2.) An increase in total carbon concentration from smokestacks would also increase the amount of carbon in the ocean’s surface. Some marine life may be harmed by this increase since some species are not used to handling such a drastic change in their environments. Other species may thrive, such as plants, since they depend on carbon to survive.

3.) Carbon may also be found at the bottom of the ocean or high up in the Earth’s atmosphere. In fifty years, we could find excess carbon in both of those spaces, especially the bottom of the ocean.

4.) The areas most affected by the burning of fossil fuels are the Earth’s atmosphere, the planet’s supply of oil and gasoline, and terrestrial plants. An increase in carbon in the atmosphere is harmful to the planet because it accelerates the greenhouse effect, thus further warming the planet - causing extensive damage across the globe. A decrease of the oil and gasoline supply is also detrimental at the moment. Fossil fuels play a very large role in the way humans live their lives. If we run out and we do not replace our primary fuel source, serious consequences will occur. An increase in carbon in terrestrial plants is beneficial to the plants because plants require carbon to survive.

Carbon Cycle Simulation - Part 1

1.) If only half the flora in the world existed in 2110, then the amount of carbon in the Earth’s atmosphere would double. If there is less plant matter to absorb carbon dioxide and convert it into oxygen, then there will be more carbon in the atmosphere. I would change the online simulation to reflect this new information by decreasing the amount of flora within the simulator.

2.) Carbon in the ocean is carbon that fell directly into the ocean water. Carbon in the soil in carbon that fell directly onto the Earth’s surface. Carbon could also be transferred into the soil if an organism dies and then decomposes into the soil.

3.) There is most certainly a linear correlation between the amount of fossil fuels we burn and the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. The more fuel we burn, then the more carbon there will be.