Lesson 22 — Activity 1: More About Ecosystems
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Lesson 22 — Activity 1: More About Ecosystems
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You learned previously that an ecosystem is a community of living things and the environment in which they live and that in ecosystems, living and non-living things are interrelated and if one part is changed, it affects the whole system. In this activity, you will learn more about ecosystems.
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Ecosystems can be large or small. A forest is an ecosystem and so is the underside of a leaf on a plant. Something can be an ecosystem as long as all of the following things occur:
- Living things interact with each other.
- Living things interact with other species.
- Living things interact with the abiotic factors that make up their environment. (Abiotic factors are factors in the physical environment such as temperature, soil, sunlight, and rain.)
Digging Deeper
Click here to go to the Study Jams! website to watch a
video that further explains ecosystems.
When
you have finished watching the video, click on the "close" button in the upper
right-hand corner to exit the video. Then, click on the "Test
Yourself" button to see how much you know about ecosystems.
Digging Deeper
Click here to go to the Study Jams! website to watch a video that further explains ecosystems.
When you have finished watching the video, click on the "close" button in the upper right-hand corner to exit the video. Then, click on the "Test Yourself" button to see how much you know about ecosystems.
How does climate affect ecosystems?
The climate of an area is the average weather conditions based on long-term records. These records will show that the temperature and precipitation is within a certain range in each season of the year. Climate is important because it affects living things in many different ways. For example, climate influences when animals give birth. Many give birth in the spring, when there is ample food. If they had their babies during the winter months, many would starve.
There are three factors that help determine what the climate is like where you live. These are latitude, altitude, and topography.
Latitude refers to how far north or south you are from the equator. The amount of energy received from the sun changes with latitude. In Alberta, the climate is colder in the north because it is father from the equator than are areas in southern Alberta.
Altitude (or elevation) refers to the height of an area above sea level. This affects the types of plants and animals found in an area. If you are travelling up a mountain, you will see a range of vegetation. When you begin on the valley floor, you will see deciduous trees, shrubs, and grasses. It certainly is warmer on the valley floor. As you climb, you will see the side of the mountain is covered with coniferous trees, such as fur and pine, and you may feel colder as you move upwards.
When you reach the top of the mountain, you will notice that the vegetation becomes sparse and the climate becomes colder and dryer.
Topography refers to an area's physical features. Living near water, such as a large lake, will affect the climate of a region. Large bodies of water cool a hot climate and warm a cool one.
In Alberta, mountain ranges certainly affect climate. Moist air from the Pacific Ocean rises up and travels over the mountain ranges in British Columbia. There, most of the moisture is dropped, and the grasslands of southern Alberta receive little precipitation.
Orographic cloud formation, diagram. [Photograph]. Retrieved from Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest.https://quest.eb.com/search/132_1428050/1/132_1428050/cite
However, the area of northeastern Alberta is father away from the mountains and does not get this influence. This area receives enough precipitation to allow large forests to grow. (You will look more closely at both of these areas of Alberta in the next activity.)
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