Principles of Ecology (BIOL 330)

Week 6 Assignment: Ecosystem Ecology

20 points – 4 questions
Instructions
Please fill in the answers with red font. Use your notes and chapter materials to answer the following
questions. Save this document as a Word (.doc) or PDF file (.pdf) and upload to Canvas by the due date.

Name:

1. Chapter 20: In the online textbook’s “Study Area”, navigate to Chapter 20. Complete the
GraphIt Activity “Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption”. Answer the following questions:
a. Describe how greenhouse gasses are linked to our food production. (2 points)
The greenhouses gases are directly or indirectly linked to our food production.
Agriculture and cattle farming contribute only the one-third of greenhouse gases come
from the agriculture. In addition to this, when the product of agriculture and cattle
(meat) are processed, stored and transported to different parts of the world by means
of various transport, it causes the emission of greenhouse gases because the food
processing, storage, and transport produce greenhouses gases which are indirectly
linked to our food habits.

b. Put the following foods in order from smallest to largest carbon footprint: beef, chicken,
eggs, fish, rice, wheat. (1 point)

i. Wheat
ii. Rice
iii. Eggs
iv. Fish
v. Chicken
vi. Beef
c. What kind of diet should you eat if you wanted to reduce your carbon footprint? Why?
(2 points)
i. Answer: If we want to reduce the carbon footprint of our diet, we must eat less
meat and dairy products as we know that they are the largest emitters of
greenhouse gases. One can limit having meat dishes and go for more vegetarian
or vegan cuisines as their emission of greenhouse gases are far more less
compared to meat, poultry and sea foods. Also buying locally sourced, organic,
plant based, unprocessed foods from local farmers can help as they avoid
transportation from other regions which leads to less carbon emissions due to
transport and packaging.

2. Chapter 21: Read through this chapter’s Field Studies.

a. Summarize Dr. Schuur’s findings. (2 points)
i. The warm, wet environment of the tropical rain forest supports the highest rates
of net primary productivity (NPP) and decomposition of any terrestrial
Principles of Ecology (BIOL 330)

ecosystem on Earth. However, Dr. Schuur found a different pattern in the

montane forest of Maui. Schuur found a pattern of decreasing NPP with
increasing annual precipitation. Schuur measured the chemical composition of
leaves from trees along the mountainside. Two characteristics varied
systematically as rainfall increased and limit nutrient availability for NPP. Leaf
nitrogen concentration decreased, and the concentration of lignin increased. He
also examined how both plant and physical characteristic influenced the process
of nutrient cycling. Litterbag experiment were used to examine carbon and
nitrogen cycling during decomposition. A decline was observed in decomposition
rate and nitrogen cycling across the gradient of mean annual rainfall. Differences
in the rate of nitrogen release affected the availability of soil nitrogen. Oxygen
availability decreased with increasing annual precipitation. In the montane
forests of Maui, the litter decomposition rates and nutrient release slow with
increasing rainfall due to decreased soil oxygen availability and low-quality litter.

b. If climate change increases mean annual precipitation in tropical forests, how will this
impact NPP? Use Figure 3 to help you answer this question (the colors of the circles in
Fig. 3 are different locations sampled, but they show the same trend). (1 point)
NPP would increase with an increase in mean annual precipitation and
temperature.
This is because regions with high mean annual temperature will have high rate of
photosynthesis. High rate of photosynthesis increases potential for transpiration.
For transpiration to occur, stomata must be open to take in carbon dioxide.
When stomata are open, water is lost from the leaf to the surrounding, making
high water demand. For stomata to remain open, roots must replace the lost
water. Higher the precipitation, more water is available for transpiration.
Therefore, the amount of water available will reflect the photosynthesis and
transpiration, and in general NPP but NPP will reach a saturation point at very
high level of precipitation.
c. Why would reduced oxygen concentrations in the soil function to reduce rates of
decomposition? (2 points)
i. Answer: Decomposition of plant litters is dependent on the oxygen content of
the water. In the mud and sediments of the aquatic habitats, where oxygen
levels can be extremely low, anaerobic bacteria carry out most of the
decomposition. The absence of fungi, which require oxygen for respiration,
hinders the decomposition of lignin compounds, therefore slowing down the
overall rate of decomposition.

3. Chapter 21: Ecology & CSI. Watch the following videos on how flies can help solve murders by
estimating decomposition times. An additional optional video from NatGeo describes forensic
entomology.
a. Define forensic entomology. (1 point)
Principles of Ecology (BIOL 330)

i. Answer: The field of forensic entomology is broadly defined as the application of

the scientific study of the insects and their arthropod relatives to legal matters.
b. Describe how we can estimate time of death of a corpse by analyzing the insect
community on a decomposing body. (2 points)
i. Answer: When a body has been a corpse for more than 72 hours, investigators
cannot rely upon their usual methods of finding time of death but instead they
rely upon all the insects that feed on a dead body. Insects are drawn to the gases
and fluids released by the decomposing body and they lay their eggs.
Blowflies are the first one to reach the corpse usually within 2 days of death and
then different species such as fleshflies, hide beetles, pyralid moths and various
others are attracted by decomposition.
Investigators then study the different stages of development of blowfly along
with the environmental factors helping the process to determine the exact time
of death of a corpse. They can then collect and allow the developing insect to
grow to confirm the species or the much accepted and less time consuming
method of using real time mass spectrometry to get the chemical fingerprint of
the species. Further studying of the graph given by the mass spectrometer
confirms the type of insect and thus the forensic investigator can estimate the
time of death of the corpse by analyzing the insect community.
c. Describe 2-3 factors that influence the rate of decomposition of animal material (see
Chapter 21.4). (2 points)
i. Answer: 1. Temperature: Temperature regulates the growth and activity of
microbes. Low temperatures reduce or inhibit microbial activity. Decomposition
rates are highest in warm and moist regions because those are the optimum
environment for microbes. Diversity of species and the microorganism count is
affected by environmental changes specially temperature.
ii. Quality of litter: The rate of decomposition depends on the structural and
chemical properties of the litter.
iii. Aeration: The oxygen present in the pores of the soil helps in the growth of
microorganisms. In the water logged soils, the aerobic microbes are absent. Here
only anaerobic microorganisms can grow and initiate decomposition.
iv. Inorganic chemicals: After decomposition, elements like potassium, sodium,
calcium, magnesium are released into the soil. Some of these are used by the
microbes for their growth thus affecting decomposition.

4. Chapter 22
a. Go outside and take a picture. Copy and paste that photograph here. (1 point)
Principles of Ecology (BIOL 330)

5.

a. Describe the following nutrient cycles that are only present in the photograph. For
example, if you take a photograph somewhere in Kansas, you should not discuss how
nitrogen is recycled in the ocean, because your photograph will not have the ocean! For
each, describe the nutrient pools and how the nutrient is cycled between those pools. (4
points)
i. Carbon (Use Figures 22.2 and 22.5 to help you describe carbon pools and cycles)
The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the
biomass of the Earth. The figure above shows the carbon cycle through a terrestrial
ecosystem.
As per the photo, carbon is entering all food webs, through autotrophs. Autotrophs
capture carbon dioxide from the air or bicarbonate ions from the water and use them to
make organic compounds such as glucose. To release the energy stored in carbon-
containing molecules, such as sugars, autotrophs and break these molecules down in a
process called cellular respiration. In this process, the carbons of the molecule are
released as carbon dioxide. When the litters of plants and dead flowers accumulate in
the soil, decomposers release organic compounds and carbon dioxide after they break
down dead leaf, flowers, and organisms and waste products. The figure here also shows
the presence of automobiles which would emit carbon gases, and in turn again entering
into the atmospheric CO2. When the remains of plants are decomposed under anaerobic
condition, fossil fuels are formed, and we use this fossil fuel in domestic usage (oil and
gas). When fossil fuels are burned, carbon is again released back into the atmosphere as
carbon dioxide. This is how carbon is cycled from land to atmosphere and back to land;
this cycle goes on and on.

ii. Nitrogen (Use Figures 22.6 and 22.8 to help you describe nitrogen pools and
cycles)
Principles of Ecology (BIOL 330)

Nitrogen enters the ecosystem via two pathways. First is the atmospheric deposition
and the second is through nitrogen fixation. As per the photo, nitrogen cycling is
occurring via both pathways.

Atmospheric deposition (first pathway): This can be in wet fall such as rain, fog droplets,
or snow. Nitrogen in this pathway is supplied in a form that is readily available for
uptake by plants.

Nitrogen Fixation (second pathway): This pathway comes in two ways. One is high-
energy fixation such as lighting, and cosmic radiation, and the other is symbiotic bacteria
living in mutualistic association with plants, by free-living aerobic bacteria. As per my
photo, Nitrogen cycle in terrestrial ecosystem occurs via ammonification, nitrification,
and denitrification.
Ammonification:
When plants and animals die, or when animals emit wastes, the nitrogen in the organic
matter reenters the soil where it is broken down by other microorganisms, known as
decomposers. This decomposition produces ammonia which is then available for other
biological processes.
Nitrification:
While ammonia can be used by some plants, most of the nitrogen taken up by plants is
converted by bacteria from ammonia – which is highly toxic to many organisms – into
nitrite (NO2-), and then into nitrate (NO3-). This process is called nitrification, and these
bacteria are known as nitrifying bacteria.
Denitrification:
Nitrogen makes its way back into the atmosphere through a process called
denitrification, in which nitrate (NO3-) is converted back to gaseous nitrogen (N2).
Denitrification occurs primarily in wet soils where the water makes it difficult for
microorganisms to get oxygen. Under these conditions, certain organisms – known as
denitrifying bacteria – will process nitrate to gain oxygen, leaving free nitrogen gas as a
byproduct.
Assimilation:
Nitrogen compounds in various forms, such as nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, and ammonium
are taken up from soils by plants which are then used in the formation of plant and
animal proteins.