Lecture 2

ENGG 413 Environmental

Science and Engineering

MAJOR ECOSYSTEM OF
THE WORLD
{

Engr. Nelmar P. Porlaje

Sea as an Ecosystem
About 70% of the earth is covered by the major
oceans namely Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic and
Antarctic

The food chain of the sea comprises of small

autotrophs to large creature like whale. The
seas are the largest and thickest of
ecosystems since every square meter of sea
has so many type of life forms and even the
deep sea contains life.

Phytoplanktons like the diatoms, dino

flagellates and algae are the primary
producers. Some macroscopic seaweeds
such as brown and red algae also
contribute in the production of food.
Herbivores like crustaceans, mollusks fishes
and other aquatic animals are the primary
consumers

Various species of fish such as Herring etc.

are the carnivores. Fishes like cod, shark
and whale survive on the smaller
carnivores.

Bacteria and some fungi are the usual

decomposers.
 Estuaries The portion between the seas
and continents is known as
the estuary. So the estuary is
an area at the mouth of a river
where it meets the sea. It has
an advantage of both
conditions so it has such
species that are neither there
in the sea nor in fresh water

The estuaries are rich in nutrients

and generally have three major type
of life forms. First is phytoplankton,
second is benthic microflora like
algae and third is the macroflora like
the seaweeds, emergent marsh
grasses etc. Generally it is the
estuary that has to bear with the
manmade pollution.
 Streams and Rivers
They are the flowing fresh water
bodies. Though a very small
amount of the total water (0.0001%)
flows in the rivers, they are the
lifelines for the human civilization.
All the early civilizations started on
the banks of rivers
The rivers are used for water supply, waste
disposal, fish production, navigation,
electricity production etc. However they
have to borrow organic matter from
adjacent terrestrial ecosystems, or
sometimes from adjacent lakes. The sewage
and solid waste discharged into the rivers
has polluted almost all the rivers of the
world
Lakes and Ponds
These are the
stagnant bodies
of fresh water.

The abiotic
factors of a pond
or lake depends
upon location
and the
surrounding
ecosystem

Distinct stratification and zoning are characteristic features of lakes. Typically

a littoral zone containing rooted vegetation, a limnetic zone of open water
dominated by plankton, and a deep water profundal zone containing
heterotrophs. Also the lakes become thermally stratified in winters and
summers.
The Terrestrial Formations
Big terrestrial community units are known as biomes. In a given biome the
life form is uniform, thus the dominant climax vegetation in the grassland
biome is grass.
 Depending upon the mean annual temperature range the
terrestrial ecosystems has been classified as:

• Arctic and Alpine Tundra

• Coniferous Forest
• Deciduous Forest
• Tropical Forest
• Grassland
• Desert
 Deserts
These are the biomes
with less than 250 mm
of annual rainfall.
Deserts have about
17% of the total land
area on the earth.

The rain fall in

deserts is low
and the
evaporation rate
is high. Even the
small rainfall is
also useless as Some of the main deserts of the earth are in south western
the water quickly united states, Mexico, coastal areas of Chile, central western
penetrates the Australia, Asia (Thar, Gobi etc.) The desert may be a cool one
soil and goes like that in Washington and a hot one like that in Arizona
deep inside it
Generally, there are four
distinctive life forms in the
deserts:
 The annuals like cheat grass

that avoids drought by

growing only when there is
sufficient moisture.
 The desert shrub with

numerous branches and small

thick leaves. Sometimes with
deep roots to absorb moisture
and store it before wilting.
 The succulents, such as cacti

that store water in their

tissues.
 Microflora such as mosses,

lichens and blue green algae

that remain action less in the
soil in want of favourable
conditions.
Tundras
Tundras are barren
grounds with very less
biological productivity
because of the cold
conditions.
They lie near the Arctic Ocean
and the polar icecaps
Rainfall is also low but not limiting
factor for the less production as the
evaporation is also low because of the
low temperature.

The mammals are musk ox, reindeer, polar

bears, and marine mammals. Generally,
the large land herbivores are migratory as
there is not enough production.
Grasslands  The major grasslands include
For rainfalls in between the the Prairies of Canada and the
desert and forest i.e. 250 USA, the Pampas of south
mm to 750 mm the natural America, the Steppes of Europe
grassland occurs.
and Asia and the Veldts of
Africa.
Tropical grassland may
have 1500 mm rainfall in a
wet season
followed by a long dry
spell.

In the grassland the

dominant plant life are the
grasses that range from tall
species (1.5 m to 2.4 m) to
short ones like 20 cm only.
 The main animal species
are wild horses, asses, and
antelope of Eurasia: herds
of bison of America: and
the antelope of Africa. The
other animal species are
larks, the burrowing owl,
jackrabbit, badgers, etc.

The role of fire is typical in the

grasslands. Man misuses the
grassland by overgrazing and over
ploughing and thus has converted
them into deserts.
Forest
 A forest is an ecosystem
Some of the major type of forests
characterized by large
are as follows:
numbers of tall plants
• Taiga Forest
 Forests are extremely • Temperate forests
complex ecosystems • Tropical Rain Forest
due to a huge number • Temperate Shrub Forest
of variables, including • Tropical Savannah
both living things and
environmental factors,
interacting with each
other to complete the
overall design and
function of a forest as an
ecosystem.
Taiga Forest
 The taiga or boreal forests
include the northern
coniferous forests the
cold climates with high
altitude at high latitude.
 The rainfall is 100 mm to
350 mm and the average
temperature varies from
6o C to 20o C throughout
the year.
 Taiga forests have dense
vegetation and very close
trees like pines, spruces,
firs, larches, cedars etc.
that obstruct the sunlight.
Temperate forests

 They are found in slightly warmer climates. They occur in the regions of
north-central Europe, eastern Asia and eastern United States.
 The annual rainfall is between 750 mm to1500 mm.
 The main vegetation is tall deciduous trees like maples, hickories, oaks,
beeches, chestnuts etc. These forests are important as the wood produced in
them is hardwood suitable as timber for civil works. The animals found are
dears, beers, squirrels, snakes, rabbits etc. with plenty of birds and insects.
Tropical Rain
Forest
 This ecosystem is located
in the equatorial regions
where the average annual
temperature is more than
18° C and annual rainfall
exceeds 1400 mm.
 They occur in south and
central America, north
eastern Australia, Congo
river basin of Africa,
Philippines, Hawaii and
some parts of Malaysia.
They cover about 8% of
the earth’s surface and
more than 50% of earth’s
flora and fauna.
Temperate Shrub Forest
 These Mediterranean
shrub forest are with
drier climates and lower
(winter) rainfall
followed by drought for
rest of the year.
 The most important
biome of this category is
chaparral. It is a
miniature woodland
dominated by dense
stands of shrubs that
seldom exceed a few
meter of height.
Tropical Savannah
 These tropical seasonal
forests occur where rainfall is
high (1000 mm to 1500 mm)
but seasonal. They are warm
climate plains with coarse
grass and scattered trees.
They are located in South and
Central America, Africa,
Australia, south-east Asia and
India. There is not much
diversity. This ecosystem has
giraffe, elephants, antelopes
and kangaroos (Australia).
Questions:
1. What are the types and Sub types of Ecosystem in the Philippines. Describe the
features of each type of ecosystem.
2. Describe the following Ecosystem:
a) Forest Ecosystem
b) Mangrove Ecosystem
c) Marginal Ecosystem
d) Urban Ecosystem
e) Coral Reef Ecosystem
f) Freshwater Ecosystem
g) Sea grass and Soft-Bottom Ecosystem

3. List related Laws on the protection of the Environment / Ecosystem in the Philippines.
(at least 10 laws)

 Reference: Ecosystem Diversity in the Philippines: Foundation for the Philippine

Environment

 https://fpe.ph/biodiversity.html/view/the-lay-of-the-land-ecosystem-diversity-in-t
he-philippines