Ecosystems

a healthy and stable ecosystem, although a keystone species is not present. This disproves the hypothesis formed earlier in this lab that stated, “The pond is not ecologically stable and there is no keystone species. The pond does not seem to be biodiverse, and the relative population sizes of the organisms appears to be low, based on visual observations. A keystone species also does not appear to be present, or else it’s population is low, and dying out, meaning the ecosystem is collapsing.”…

1. Partridge means that humans have moral responsibilities towards people that they do not know individually and who may not even exist at the present. He uses a metaphor about a campsite to explain his argument: when they have finished camping at a campsite, a person has a moral obligation to clean it for the next person who will use it. While they do not know this person, they still have good reason to believe that someone will eventually come to use the campsite in the future and that by not…

interacting organisms and their physical environment is a part of ecology called an ecosystem. If one thing changed in the ecosystem it will change the whole thing, because in an ecosystem you have to way in things like transfer of energy or whether it is too hot or too cold for the living organism. Ecology is basically a study that handles relationships of organisms and how they relate to their environment or ecosystem. What is a mealworm? A mealworm is a dark beetle larva. Mealworms have a…

Invasive species are classified as a species that inhabits an unknown ecosystem that isn’t unique to its personal features. Several invasive species have inhabited the Americas especially through bodies of water. One specific organism, the snakehead, is harming the ecosystem in large lakes and waterways. The scientific name for this species is Channa argus since it pertains to the Channidae family. Although, this species is most commonly referred to as ‘snakeheads.’ This organism was quite…

infiltrated a different ecosystem than their own. The animals can accidentally or intentionally enter a dissimilar ecosystem. 2. In this Virtual Lab, one of the introduced species did not become a problem to the area. Identify that species and explain why it did not pose a threat to the ecosystem. The experiment with the Tulips and the Vole is the situation that resulted in a non-threating influence on the ecosystem. The reason why the tulip didn’t affect the ecosystem in a negative way was…

Ecosystem energies flow through many trophic levels. A trophic level is the level organism's occupy within the food chain. There are generally five trophic levels: primary producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers, and apex consumers. These five levels all interact with each other to ensure bio-viability. The first trophic level contains the primary producers. They are called the primary producers because they produce their own food and energy. Primary producers…

anticipate it to continue to expand without restoration efforts. A foundational question to be asked about Mystic Vale is if it is a natural area in an urban ecosystem. There are a few popular options for urban ecosystem restoration such as conservation and restoration at fringes, restoration of remnant patches, the management of novel ecosystems and gardening with significant local species (Standish, Hobbs, & Miller, 2013). Barriers with restoration in urban areas include development and…

Our natural environment serves as an essential part of our world. Some have suggested that, “Everything humans have needed to survive, and thrive, was provided by the natural world” (Hance, 2011, para.1). There is a significant amount of studies that correlates the interaction with nature to measurable benefits to people (Keniger, Gaston, Irvine & Fuller, 2013, para.1). Specifically, benefits to cognitive performance, physical health, psychological well-being have been linked closely to nature…

common this day and age. An Invasive species is a species of animal living in an ecosystem it does not live in naturally (NISC, 2006). Usually, when a new species is introduced into the ecosystem through humans, it does not have any natural predator. This means the species invading the ecosystem can reproduce all it can, taking the ecosystem over. However, animals aren’t the only organism that can invade ecosystems. Plants do it often, and have bad consequences. They choke crops out, and kill…

Water quality dynamics in an urbanizing subtropical estuary (Oso Bay, Texas) Estuarine environments like that of Oso Bay in Corpus Christi, Texas are subject to fluctuations in geochemistry and relative water quality based on factors related to extreme weather events, changing water flow and human impacts. A 2011-2015 study on the water quality dynamics of Oso Bay found fluctuations in the estuarine geochemistry were related to some of these factors, particularly human influences. A wastewater…