Ecosystems Around Us
A pine forest in the Cordillera Central, a coral reef off Punta Cana, and the Yaque del Norte River look nothing alike at first glance, but all three are ecosystems. Classifying them helps us understand what conditions the living things that inhabit them share, and why the changes people make affect them so much.
Terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems
If you climb up to Valle Nuevo, you see pines and palmchats on firm ground. If you dive with goggles off the coast of Samaná, you see fish and seagrass floating in the water. What physical environment determines how living things support themselves, breathe, and move around in each place?
Classify these ecosystems as terrestrial or aquatic: a lagoon, a beech wood, a salt marsh, a grassland, a reef, and a scrubland.
Classify these ecosystems as terrestrial or aquatic: a lagoon, a beech wood, a salt marsh, a grassland, a reef, and a scrubland.
State whether these ecosystems are freshwater or marine: the River Tagus, the Cantabrian Sea, a mountain lagoon, a pond, and the Atlantic Ocean.
State whether these ecosystems are freshwater or marine: the River Tagus, the Cantabrian Sea, a mountain lagoon, a pond, and the Atlantic Ocean.
Point out two differences between a freshwater ecosystem and a marine ecosystem and explain why most fish cannot move from one environment to the other.
Point out two differences between a freshwater ecosystem and a marine ecosystem and explain why most fish cannot move from one environment to the other.
Ecosystems of the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a small island, but it has an enormous variety of ecosystems. In just a few hours on a guagua (local bus), you can go from a cold pine forest to a dry desert or a beach.
Name two terrestrial ecosystems characteristic of the Dominican Republic and one specific to its coastal or island areas, mentioning a typical species from each.
Name two terrestrial ecosystems characteristic of the Dominican Republic and one specific to its coastal or island areas, mentioning a typical species from each.
Describe the ecosystem closest to your local area: state whether it is terrestrial or aquatic, name three living things that inhabit it, and mention an important abiotic…
Describe the ecosystem closest to your local area: state whether it is terrestrial or aquatic, name three living things that inhabit it, and mention an important abiotic factor in it.
On the island of Hispaniola, there are species, such as the solenodon, that live nowhere else in the world (endemic species). Explain the role island isolation plays in…
On the island of Hispaniola, there are species, such as the solenodon, that live nowhere else in the world (endemic species). Explain the role island isolation plays in the occurrence of endemic species.
Marine and freshwater ecosystems
Look at the ecosystem classification diagram. State in which box (1, 2, or 3) you would place each of these ecosystems: a holm oak wood, a coral reef, a mountain lagoon,…
Look at the ecosystem classification diagram. State in which box (1, 2, or 3) you would place each of these ecosystems: a holm oak wood, a coral reef, a mountain lagoon, a dehesa (wooded pastureland), a posidonia meadow, and a river.
A marine aquarium and a freshwater aquarium need very different care. Relate these differences to the conditions of the natural environment of each type of fish.
A marine aquarium and a freshwater aquarium need very different care. Relate these differences to the conditions of the natural environment of each type of fish.
During the expansion of a marina over a Posidonia oceanica meadow, the construction work drastically increases water turbidity and deposits fine sediments onto the…
During the expansion of a marina over a Posidonia oceanica meadow, the construction work drastically increases water turbidity and deposits fine sediments onto the seabed. The project developer claims: 'The meadow will not suffer any damage because the breakwater is being built 50 meters away and we are not directly uprooting any plants.' Refute this claim by explaining the physiological effects that turbidity and sedimentation cause on these marine plants. Furthermore, predict two cascading ecological consequences on the coastal ecosystem and local fisheries.
Ecosystems transformed by humans
Explain in your own words the difference between a natural ecosystem and one transformed by humans, and give an example of each.
Explain in your own words the difference between a natural ecosystem and one transformed by humans, and give an example of each.
What is an urban ecosystem? Name three living things that live in your local area and one abiotic factor characteristic of that environment.
What is an urban ecosystem? Name three living things that live in your local area and one abiotic factor characteristic of that environment.
The plant biodiversity of three 500 m² plots in a Mediterranean ecosystem is analysed: a mature holm oak forest (24 species), a reforested pine forest (9 species), and a…
The plant biodiversity of three 500 m² plots in a Mediterranean ecosystem is analysed: a mature holm oak forest (24 species), a reforested pine forest (9 species), and a commercial eucalyptus plantation (5 species). After a period of extreme drought and a defoliating insect outbreak, the eucalyptus plantation lost 65% of its leaf mass, whereas the holm oak forest was barely affected (less than 8% damage). Interpret these results by relating species diversity, vertical vegetation stratification (herbs, shrubs, trees), and ecological niches to the resilience and self-regulation capacity of each ecosystem.
Back to the beginning: the pine forest, the reef, and the river are different ecosystems because the environment (land, salt water, or fresh water) and its abiotic factors (temperature, light, salinity, current) change who can live there.