Ecosystem 1

Ecosystem

Coral reefs are an example of a marineecosystem.

Rainforests often have a great deal of biodiversitywith many plant and animal species. This is the

Gambia River in Senegal's Niokolo-KobaNational Park.

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all theorganisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving,physical components of the environment with which the organismsinteract, such as air, soil, water, and sunlight.[1] It is all the organismsin a given area, along with the nonliving (abiotic) factors with whichthey interact; a biological community and its physical environment.[1]

Overview

The entire array of organisms inhabiting a particular ecosystem iscalled a community.[1] In a typical ecosystem, plants and otherphotosynthetic organisms are the producers that provide the food.[1]

Ecosystems can be permanent or temporary. Ecosystems usually forma number of food webs.[2]

Ecosystems are functional units consisting of living things in a givenarea, non-living chemical and physical factors of their environment,linked together through nutrient cycle and energy flow.1. Natural

1. Terrestrial ecosystem2. Aquatic ecosystem

1. Lentic, the ecosystem of a lake, pond or swamp.2. Lotic, the ecosystem of a river, stream or spring.

2. Artificial, ecosystems created by humans.Central to the ecosystem concept is the idea that living organismsinteract with every other element in their local environment. EugeneOdum, a founder of ecology, stated: "Any unit that includes all of theorganisms (ie: the "community") in a given area interacting with thephysical environment so that a flow of energy leads to clearly definedtrophic structure, biotic diversity, and material cycles (i.e.: exchange ofmaterials between living and nonliving parts) within the system is an ecosystem."[3]

Etymology

The term ecosystem was coined in 1930 by Roy Clapham to mean the combined physical and biological componentsof an environment. British ecologist Arthur Tansley later refined the term, describing it as "The whole system, …including not only the organism-complex, but also the whole complex of physical factors forming what we call theenvironment".[4] Tansley regarded ecosystems not simply as natural units, but as mental isolates.[4] Tansley later[5]

defined the spatial extent of ecosystems using the term ecotope.

Ecosystem 2

Examples of ecosystems• agro-ecosystems• Agroecosystem• Aquatic ecosystem• Chaparral• Coral reef• Desert• Forest• Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem• Human ecosystem• Large marine ecosystem• Littoral zone• Lotic• Marine ecosystem• Pond Ecosystem• Prairie• Rainforest• Riparian zone• Savanna• Steppe• Subsurface Lithoautotrophic Microbial Ecosystem• Taiga• Tundra• Urban ecosystem

A freshwater ecosystem in Gran Canaria, an island of the Canary Islands.

Ecosystem 3

Biomes

Map of Terrestrial biomes classified by vegetation.

Biomes are a classification of globallysimilar areas, including ecosystems,such as ecological communities ofplants and animals, soil organisms andclimatic conditions. Biomes are in partdefined based on factors such as plantstructures (such as trees, shrubs andgrasses), leaf types (such as broadleafand needleleaf), plant spacing (forest,woodland, savanna) and climate.Unlike ecozones, biomes are notdefined by genetic, taxonomic orhistorical similarities. Biomes are oftenidentified with particular patterns of ecological succession and climax vegetation.

A fundamental classification of biomes is:1. Terrestrial (land) biomes.2. Freshwater biomes.3. Marine biomes.

Classification

Summer field in Belgium (Hamois). The blueflower is Centaurea cyanus and the red one a

Papaver rhoeas.

Ecosystems have become particularly important politically, since theConvention on Biological Diversity (CBD) - ratified by 192 countries -defines "the protection of ecosystems, natural habitats and themaintenance of viable populations of species in naturalsurroundings"[6] as a commitment of ratifying countries. This hascreated the political necessity to spatially identify ecosystems andsomehow distinguish among them. The CBD defines an "ecosystem"as a "dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organismcommunities and their non-living environment interacting as afunctional unit".

With the need of protecting ecosystems, the political need arose todescribe and identify them efficiently. Vreugdenhil et al. argued thatthis could be achieved most effectively by using aphysiognomic-ecological classification system, as ecosystems areeasily recognizable in the field as well as on satellite images. Theyargued that the structure and seasonality of the associated vegetation,or flora, complemented with ecological data (such as elevation,humidity, and drainage), are each determining modifiers that separatepartially distinct sets of species. This is true not only for plant species,but also for species of animals, fungi and bacteria. The degree of

ecosystem distinction is subject to the physiognomic modifiers that can be identified on an image and/or in the field.Where necessary, specific

Ecosystem 4

The High Peaks Wilderness Area in the6000000-acre ( ha) Adirondack Park is an

example of a diverse ecosystem.

Flora of Baja California Desert, Cataviña region,Mexico.

fauna elements can be added, such as seasonal concentrations ofanimals and the distribution of coral reefs.

Several physiognomic-ecological classification systems are available:• Physiognomic-Ecological Classification of Plant Formations of the

Earth: a system based on the 1974 work of Mueller-Dombois andHeinz Ellenberg,[7] and developed by UNESCO. This classificatie"describes the above-ground or underwater vegetation structuresand cover as observed in the field, described as plant life forms.This classification is fundamentally a species-independentphysiognomic, hierarchical vegetation classification system whichalso takes into account ecological factors such as climate, elevation,human influences such as grazing, hydric regimes and survivalstrategies such as seasonality. The system was expanded with abasic classification for open water formations".[8]

• Land Cover Classification System (LCCS), developed by the Foodand Agriculture Organization (FAO).[9]

• Forest-Range Environmental Study Ecosystems (FRES) developedby the United States Forest Service for use in the United States.[10]

Several aquatic classification systems are available, and an effort isbeing made by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and theInter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN) to design acomplete ecosystem classification system that will cover bothterrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

From a philosophy of science perspective, ecosystems are not discreteunits of nature that simply can be identified using the most "correct" type of classification approach. In agreementwith the definition by Tansley ("mental isolates"), any attempt to delineate or classify ecosystems should be explicitabout the observer/analyst input in the classification including its normative rationale.

Two Giant Sequoias, Sequoia National Park.Note the large fire scar at the base of the

right-hand tree; fires do not kill the trees but doremove competing thin-barked species, and aid

Giant Sequoia regeneration.

Ecosystem services

Ecosystem services are “fundamental life-support services upon whichhuman civilization depends,”i and can be direct or indirect. Examplesof direct ecosystem services are: pollination, wood and erosionprevention. Indirect services could be considered climate moderation,nutrient cycles and detoxifying natural substances.

The services and goods an ecosystem provides are often undervaluedas many of them are without market value.[11] Broad examples include:

• regulating (climate, floods, nutrient balance, water filtration)• provisioning (food, medicine, fur)• cultural (science, spiritual, ceremonial, recreation, aesthetic)• supporting (nutrient cycling, photosynthesis, soil formation).[12]

Ecosystem 5

Ecosystem legal rightsEcuador's new constitution of 2008 is the first in the world to recognize legally enforceable Rights of Nature, orecosystem rights.[13]

The borough of Tamaqua, Pennsylvania passed a law giving ecosystems legal rights. The ordinance establishes thatthe municipal government or any Tamaqua resident can file a lawsuit on behalf of the local ecosystem.[14] Othertownships, such as Rush, followed suit and passed their own laws.[15]

This is part of a growing body of legal opinion proposing 'wild law'. Wild law, a term coined by Cormac Cullinan (alawyer based in South Africa), would cover birds and animals, rivers and deserts.[16] [17]

Function and biodiversity

Savanna at Ngorongoro Conservation Area,Tanzania.

The side of a tide pool showing sea stars(Dermasterias), sea anemones (Anthopleura) and

sea sponges in Santa Cruz, California.

From an anthropocentric point of view, some people perceiveecosystems as production units that produce goods and services, suchas wood by forest ecosystems and grass for cattle by naturalgrasslands. Meat from wild animals, often referred to as bush meat inAfrica, has proven to be extremely successful under well-controlledmanagement schemes in South Africa and Kenya. Much lesssuccessful has been the discovery and commercialization of substancesof wild organism for pharmaceutical purposes. Services derived fromecosystems are referred to as ecosystem services. They may include

1. facilitating the enjoyment of nature, which may generate manyforms of income and employment in the tourism sector, oftenreferred to as eco-tourisms,

2. water retention, thus facilitating a more evenly distributed releaseof water,

3. soil protection, open-air laboratory for scientific research, etc.A greater degree of species or biological diversity - commonly referredto as Biodiversity - of an ecosystem may contribute to greaterresilience of an ecosystem, because there are more species present at alocation to respond to change and thus "absorb" or reduce its effects.This reduces the effect before the ecosystem's structure is

fundamentally changed to a different state. This is not universally the case and there is no proven relationshipbetween the species diversity of an ecosystem and its ability to provide goods and services on a sustainable level:Humid tropical forests produce very few goods and direct services and are extremely vulnerable to change, whilemany temperate forests readily grow back to their previous state of development within a lifetime after felling or aforest fire. Some grasslands have been sustainably exploited for thousands of years (Mongolia, Africa, Europeanpeat and mooreland communities).

Ecosystem 6

The study of ecosystems

Forest on San Juan Island

Ecosystem dynamics

Loch Lomond in Scotland forms a relativelyisolated ecosystem. The fish community of thislake has remained unchanged over a very long

period of time.[18]

Introduction of new elements, whether biotic or abiotic, into anecosystem tend to have a disruptive effect. In some cases, this can leadto ecological collapse or "trophic cascading" and the death of manyspecies within the ecosystem. Under this deterministic vision, theabstract notion of ecological health attempts to measure the robustnessand recovery capacity for an ecosystem; i.e. how far the ecosystem isaway from its steady state.

Often, however, ecosystems have the ability to rebound from adisruptive agent. The difference between collapse or a gentle reboundis determined by two factors—the toxicity of the introduced elementand the resiliency of the original ecosystem.

Ecosystems are primarily governed by stochastic (chance) events, thereactions these events provoke on non-living materials and theresponses by organisms to the conditions surrounding them. Thus, an ecosystem results from the sum of individualresponses of organisms to stimuli from elements in the environment.The presence or absence of populations merelydepends on reproductive and dispersal success, and population levels fluctuate in response to stochastic events. Asthe number of species in an ecosystem is higher, the number of stimuli is also higher. Since the beginning of lifeorganisms have survived continuous change through natural selection of successful feeding, reproductive anddispersal behavior. Through natural selection the planet's species have continuously adapted to change throughvariation in their biological composition and distribution. Mathematically it can be demonstrated that greaternumbers of different interacting factors tend to dampen fluctuations in each of the individual factors.

Ecosystem 7

Spiny forest at Ifaty, Madagascar, featuringvarious Adansonia (baobab) species, Alluaudia

procera (Madagascar ocotillo) and othervegetation.

Given the great diversity among organisms on earth, most ecosystemsonly changed very gradually, as some species would disappear whileothers would move in. Locally, sub-populations continuously goextinct, to be replaced later through dispersal of other sub-populations.Stochastists do recognize that certain intrinsic regulating mechanismsoccur in nature. Feedback and response mechanisms at the specieslevel regulate population levels, most notably through territorialbehaviour. Andrewatha and Birch[19] suggest that territorial behaviourtends to keep populations at levels where food supply is not a limitingfactor. Hence, stochastists see territorial behaviour as a regulatorymechanism at the species level but not at the ecosystem level. Thus, intheir vision, ecosystems are not regulated by feedback and response

mechanisms from the ecosystem itself and there is no such thing as a balance of nature.

If ecosystems are governed primarily by stochastic processes, through which its subsequent state would bedetermined by both predictable and random actions, they may be more resilient to sudden change than each speciesindividually. In the absence of a balance of nature, the species composition of ecosystems would undergo shifts thatwould depend on the nature of the change, but entire ecological collapse would probably be infrequent events.

Arctic tundra on Wrangel Island, Russia.

The theoretical ecologist Robert Ulanowicz has used informationtheory tools to describe the structure of ecosystems, emphasizingmutual information (correlations) in studied systems. Drawing on thismethodology and prior observations of complex ecosystems,Ulanowicz depicts approaches to determining the stress levels onecosystems and predicting system reactions to defined types ofalteration in their settings (such as increased or reduced energy flow, and eutrophication.[20]

In addition, Eric Sanderson has developed the Muir web, based on experience on the Mannahatta project. Thisgraphical schematic shows how different species are connected to each other, not only regarding their position in thefood chain, but also regarding other services, i.e. provisioning of shelter, ...[21] [22]

See also: Relational order theories, as to fundamentals of life organization

Ecosystem ecologyEcosystem ecology is the integrated study of biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems and their interactionswithin an ecosystem framework. This science examines how ecosystems work and relates this to their componentssuch as chemicals, bedrock, soil, plants, and animals. Ecosystem ecology examines physical and biological structureand examines how these ecosystem characteristics interact.

See also• Biodiversity• Biodiversity Action Plan• Biogeochemical cycle• Biome• Biocoenosis• Biosphere• Biosphere 2• Business ecosystem• Carbon sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems

Ecosystem 8

• Complex system• Earth Science• Ecological economics• Ecological yield• Ecology• Ecoregion• Ecosystem diversity• Ecosystem ecology• Ecosystem engineer• Ecosystem management• Ecosystem model• Ecosystem services• Ecosystem valuation• Ecotope• Edge effect• Eugene Odum• Food chain• Global warming• Invasive species• Landscape ecology• Leopold Report• Natural environment• Natural landscape• Natural resource• Nature• Push–pull technology• Software ecosystem• Sustainability• Sustainable development

References

Sea urchins like this purple sea urchin candamage kelp forest ecosystems by chewing

through kelp holdfasts

[1] ”Biology Concepts & Connections Sixth Edition”, Campbell, Neil A. (2009), page 2,3 and G-9. Retrieved 2010-06-14.

[2] (1996) Geosystems: An Introduction to Physical Geography. Prentice Hall Inc.[3] Odum, EP (1971) Fundamentals of ecology, third edition, Saunders New York[4] Tansley, AG (1935). "The use and abuse of vegetational terms and concepts" (http:/

/ jstor. org/ stable/ 1930070). Ecology 16 (3): 284–307. doi:10.2307/1930070. .[5] Tansley, AG (1939) The British islands and their vegetation. Volume 1 of 2.

Cambridge University Press, United. Kingdom. 484 pg.[6] United Nations Environment Programme. Convention on Biological Diversity. June

1992. UNEP Document no. Na.92-78. Reprint (http:/ / www. ciesin. org/ docs/008-589/ 008-589. html)

[7] Möller-Dombois & Ellenberg: "A Tentative Physiognomic-Ecological Classificationof Plant Formations of the Earth".

[8] Map of the ecosystems of Central America (http:/ / www. birdlist. org/ cam/ themes/ecosystems_map. htm), WICE 2005. Retrieved 30 August 2008.

[9] Antonio Di Gregorio & Louisa J.M. Jansen (2007). Land Cover Classification System (LCCS): Classification Concepts and User Manual(http:/ / www. fao. org/ DOCREP/ 003/ X0596E/ X0596e00. htm). Retrieved 30 August 2008.

Ecosystem 9

Tundra in Greenland

[10] Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, A. J.; Duck, D. A.; Lewis, M. E.; and Smith, D. R.(1977) Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range ecosystems (http:/ /www. fs. fed. us/ psw/ publications/ documents/ misc/ ah475. pdf) (Forest ServiceHandbook Number 465) United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C.,OCLC 3359594 (http:/ / www. worldcat. org/ oclc/ 3359594)

[11] Costanza, R.; d'Arge, R.; de Groot, R.; Farber, S.; Grasso, M.; Hannon, B.; et al.,Karin; Naeem, Shahid et al. (1997). "The value of the world’s ecosystem services andnatural capital" (http:/ / www. uvm. edu/ giee/ publications/ Nature_Paper. pdf).Nature 387: 253–260. doi:10.1038/387253a0. .

[12] Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-being:Biodiversity Synthesis. World Resources Institute, Washington, DC. (http:/ / www.millenniumassessment. org/ documents/ document. 354. aspx. pdf)

[13] The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund: about the New Constitution2008 The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (http:/ / www. celdf. org/ Default. aspx?tabid=548), Retrieved 2009-09-07

[14] Tamaqua Law Recognizes Rights of Nature (http:/ / www. celdf. org/ PressReleases/ TamaquaLawRecognizesRightsofNature/ tabid/ 367/Default. aspx)

[15] Rush Township Strips Sludge Corporation "Rights" (http:/ / www. celdf. org/ PressReleases/ RushTownshipStripsSludgeCorporationRights/tabid/ 369/ Default. aspx)

[16] On Thin Ice (http:/ / www. celdf. org/ News/ WildLawTheGuardianUnlimited/ tabid/ 398/ Default. aspx)[17] Earthly rights (http:/ / www. guardian. co. uk/ environment/ 2007/ apr/ 03/ conservationandendangeredspecies)[18] Adams, C.E. (1994). "The fish community of Loch Lomond, Scotland : its history and rapidly changing status" (http:/ / cat. inist. fr/

?aModele=afficheN& cpsidt=3302548). Hydrobiologia 290 (1-3): 91–102. doi:10.1007/BF00008956. .[19] Andrewatha, HG and LC Birch (1954) The distribution and abundance of animals. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL[20] Robert Ulanowicz (1997). Ecology, the Ascendant Perspective. Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN 0-23-110828-1.[21] Muir web (http:/ / themannahattaproject. org/ science/ recreating-mannahatta/ )[22] Muir web definition (http:/ / themannahattaproject. org/ wp-content/ . . . / background2. pdf)

Further reading• Boer, P.J. den, and J. Reddingius. 1996. Regulation and stabilization paradigms in population ecology. Population

and Community Biology Series 16. Chapman and Hall, New York. 397 pg.• Dame R., Olenin S. 2005. The Comparative Roles of Suspension-Feeders in Ecosystems. Springer. Dordrecht.

360 p.• Ecological Society of America, Ecosystem Services (http:/ / www. esa. org/ teaching_learning/ pdfDocs/

ecosystemservices. pdf), 25 May 2007• Ehrlich, Paul; Walker, Brian “Rivets and Redundancy”.BioScience.vol.48.no.5. May 1998. pp. 387. American

Institute of Biological Sciences.• Grime, J.P. "Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function: The Debate Deepens." Science Vol. 277. no. 533029 August

1997 pp. 1260–1261. 25 May 2007• Groom, Martha J., and Gary K. Meffe. Principles of Conservation Biology. 3. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer

Associates, Inc, 2006.• Lawton, John H., What Do Species Do in Ecosystems?, Oikos, December, 1994. vol.71, no.3.• Lindeman, R.L. 1942. The trophic-dynamic aspect of ecology. Ecology '23': 399-418.• Patten, B.C. 1959. An Introduction to the Cybernetics of the Ecosystem: The Trophic-Dynamic Aspect. Ecology

40, no. 2.: 221-231.• Ranganathan, J and Irwin, F. (2007, May 7). Restoring Nature's Capital: An Action Agenda to Sustain Ecosystem

Services (http:/ / www. wri. org/ publication/ restoring-natures-capital)• Vreugdenhil, D., Terborgh, J., Cleef, A.M., Sinitsyn, M., Boere, G.C., Archaga, V.L., Prins, H.H.T., 2003,

Comprehensive Protected Areas System Composition and Monitoring, IUCN, Gland, Switzerland. 106 pg.

Ecosystem 10

External links• The Economics of Natural and Manmade hazards to Ecosystems (http:/ / www. economics. noaa. gov/

?goal=ecosystems& file=events/ ) (NOAA)• The Ecosystem (http:/ / www. barrameda. com. ar/ ecology/ the-ecosystem. htm) (Spanish language)• Bering Sea Climate and Ecosystem (Current status) (http:/ / www. beringclimate. noaa. gov)• Arctic Climate and Ecosystem (Current status) (http:/ / www. arctic. noaa. gov/ detect/ )• Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (http:/ / www. millenniumassessment. org/ en/ index. aspx) (2005)• Teaching about Ecosystems (http:/ / www. ericdigests. org/ 2004-1/ ecosystems. htm)• The State of the Nation's Ecosystems (U.S.) (http:/ / www. heinzctr. org/ ecosystems)• Ecological Society of America (http:/ / www. esa. org/ )• Ecotron - An Ecological research project studying ecosystems and organisms in the context of environmental

changes (http:/ / www. ecotron. cnrs. fr/ )• Texas A&M University - Dept. of Ecosystem Science and Management (http:/ / essm. tamu. edu)• Texas AgriLife Extension - Dept. of Ecosystem Science and Management (http:/ / essmextension. tamu. edu)• BBC article on Charles Darwin's and Joseph Hooker's artificial ecosystem on Ascension Island (http:/ / www.

bbc. co. uk/ news/ science-environment-11137903)

Article Sources and Contributors 11

Article Sources and ContributorsEcosystem  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=408986047  Contributors: 2D, 5 albert square, APLAdam, ATD, AUG, Abeg92, Accurizer, Adambro, Addihockey10, Addshore,Adriaan, AgentPeppermint, Ahoerstemeier, Aitias, Ajvajvajvajv, Alan Liefting, Alansohn, Aldaron, Alex mond, Alex685, AlexiusHoratius, Alison, Allstarecho, Amcbride, Ancheta Wis,Andonic, Andre Engels, Andreathinks, AndrewHowse, Andy M. Wang, Angela, Angrysockhop, Anlace, Anna Lincoln, Anonymous101, Antandrus, Antarticstargate, Ante Aikio, Anthere, AntoniBarau, Aozeba, Apparition11, Arose23, Arthur Rubin, Ashleys Site, Astrochemist, Astudent, Ataulkarim, Athkalani, Atif.t2, Atlanticstation, Atomicwombat, Aua, AuburnPilot, Aude, Az1568,BSATwinTowers, BTLizard, Backslash Forwardslash, Ballista, BarretBonden, Bart133, Bassbonerocks, Bcasterline, Beano, Beetstra, Bejnar, Ben Hateva, Bencherlite, Bendzh, Bennetto,Benzo1992, Berliner10, Biasoli, Big papa11, Bilby, Binary TSO, Bingobangobongoboo, Blaxthos, BlueDevil, BlueLint, Bobet, Bobo Bonnie, Bobo192, Bogey97, Bonadea, Bongwarrior, Bradka,Breaker4, Brian Crawford, BrianGV, BrokenSegue, Bryan Derksen, Bryan Fedner, Bsimmons666, BuickCenturyDriver, Bunny-chan, Buttmonster, CALR, Caiaffa, Caltas, Calton, Can't sleep,clown will eat me, CanadianLinuxUser, Capricorn42, Catgut, CattleGirl, Chanakal, Charles Matthews, Chico 939, Chris 73, Chris G, Chuanenlin123, Closedmouth, 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