9.1 - Environments & Ecosystems [Tutorial]
star
star
star
star
star
Last updated 9 months ago
11 questions
Due by 8 AM on Wed/Thur (3/12 - 3/13)
Important: This is the tutorial part of this assignment. After this, you must complete the mastery check formative assignment, in order to receive full credit!
Similar to previous self-paced assignments, this tutorial assignment will introduce new material and provide some practice questions that you can check your answers to! You can check your answers as many times as you need to before submitting this assignment. That way, you can make sure you understand each one before moving on to the mastery check assignment! :)
You should have obtained a 9.1 Graphic Organizer before beginning this assignment. Printed copies will be available in class, and a digital copy can be found on BLEND later if you ever need to print your own copy.
As you work through these assignments, please make sure that you:
- answer all questions
- take notes on your graphic organizer & in your notebook (for anything that doesn't fit in the organizer)
Section 1/3 - Weather & Climate
Weather or Climate ... What's the Difference?
An excerpt from "Weather or Climate ... What's the Difference?" in National Geographic.
The overwhelming majority (97 percent) of scientists agree that climate change is real, and that it is caused by human activity. At the same time, however, we have had some record-breaking cold winters. In January 2019, a polar vortex plunged parts of North America into Arctic conditions. It might seem counterintuitive, but cold weather events like these do not disprove global warming. That's because weather and climate are two different things.
Weather Refers to Short-term Conditions
Weather refers to the short-term conditions of the lower atmosphere, an area that begins at Earth's surface and extends up to 19.3 kilometers (12 miles) high. Weather conditions include precipitation, temperature, humidity, wind direction, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure. It could be sunny, cloudy, rainy, foggy, cold, hot, windy, stormy, or snowing.
The sun drives different types of weather by heating air in the lower atmosphere at varying rates. Warm air rises and cold air rushes in to fill its place, causing wind. These winds, along with water vapor in the air, influence the formation and movement of clouds, precipitation, and storms.
The atmospheric conditions that influence weather are always changing, which is why the weather is always changing. Meteorologists analyze data from satellites, weather stations, and buoys, which are instruments that float in the ocean. The data help them predict weather conditions over the upcoming days or weeks. Weather forecasts are very important. They warn people of dangerous weather conditions, like big storms, which can cause flash flooding, or dry winds, which can whip up forest fires.
Climate Refers to Atmospheric Conditions
While weather refers to short-term changes in the lower atmosphere, climate refers to atmospheric conditions over longer periods of time, usually 30 years or more. This is why it is possible to have an especially cold spell even though, on average, global temperatures are rising. The cold winter is a relatively small atmospheric change within a much larger, long-term trend of warming.
Despite their differences, weather and climate are linked. As with weather, climate depends on precipitation, wind speed and direction, humidity, and temperature. Climate can be thought of as an average of weather conditions over time. More importantly, a change in climate can lead to changes in weather patterns.
Climate conditions vary in regions of the world and influence the types of plants and animals that live there.
Required
0.5
Which of the following represents an example(s) of weather, not climate?
Which of the following represents an example(s) of weather, not climate?
Required
0.4
On average, over the past ~50 years, global average temperatures are __________
Required
0.4
If the climate of an area changes, this can cause the weather patterns to change.
If the climate of an area changes, this can cause the weather patterns to change.
What affects our climate?
Adapted from "Climate" from Khan Academy and "The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change" from General Biology by OpenStax.
In general, temperatures on Earth’s surface drop as we move from the equator to the poles. The equator gets more insolation, or solar energy per area per time, than the poles do. Rays of sunlight hit the Earth directly near the equator, but at an angle near the poles, so the same amount of energy is spread over more area in the polar regions, as you can see in the diagram shown to the right. Also, at the poles, sunlight travels a longer path through the atmosphere before reaching the surface. That means more light is deflected into space by particles in the atmosphere (and thus never reaches the surface) at the poles than at the equator.
The strong sunlight at the equator (and weak sunlight at the poles) makes the tropics warmer than the Arctic. Not only that, but this difference in solar input also generates major global patterns of air circulation. Because air is heated by the sun most strongly at the equator, it has the greatest tendency to rise there. This rising of air at the equator drives large-scale patterns of air flow and rainfall. What do these large-scale patterns look like? Earth's atmosphere contains six rotating cells of air are found (three north of the equator, three south of the equator). Each of these cells encircles the Earth like a giant "air donut," as shown in the figure to the right.
In this six-celled pattern of air flow, air rises in low-pressure zones - one at the equator and two more at 60° N and S. As it rises, the air cools and drops much of its moisture as rain or snow. This leads to regions of high precipitation (rain or snowfall) at the equator and at 60° N and S.
Having already dropped its moisture, the air that rose in the low-pressure zones is dry as it flows towards the poles (traveling high up in the atmosphere). When it comes down again in high-pressure zones (which are found at 30° N and S and at the poles), the dry air sucks up moisture from the surface, resulting in bands of desert at 30° N and S and in dry regions at the north and south poles.
Earth is also surrounded by an atmosphere that contains greenhouse gases (GHGs). These gases allow visible light from the sun to pass through, but block some of the heat energy radiating off Earth towards space. In this way, they help trap heat energy that subsequently raises air temperature. Being a greenhouse gas is a physical property of certain types of gases; their molecular structure allows them to absorb wavelengths of infrared radiation, but remain transparent to visible light. Some notable greenhouse gases are water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and methane (CH4). GHGs act like a blanket, making Earth significantly warmer than it would otherwise be. Scientists estimate that average temperature on Earth would be -18º C without naturally-occurring GHGs.
Elevation above sea level is another key factor that shapes an area's climate. Places at high elevations tend to have a colder climate than nearby low-lying areas. Because temperature changes with altitude (along with things like moisture and soil type), a mountain can have different biomes at different altitudes. For instance, a tall mountain may have grassland on its lower slopes, but a zone of alpine tundra, like the arctic tundra biome found near the north pole, at higher elevations.
Mountains also affect patterns of rainfall, both on their own slopes and in surrounding areas. Imagine the case where a mountain tends to get hit by winds coming from a certain direction—say, off the ocean. Especially if those winds are damp, the windward (wind-facing) slopes and surrounding areas will tend to get lots of rain.
Why is that the case? The air loses its capacity to hold water as it rises and cools while moving up the slopes, and it drops the extra moisture as rain. The air that makes it over the mountain is dry, so the other side (the leeward side) tends to have a desert-like climate. This dry region on the leeward side is known as a rain shadow.
Another important factor that affects an area's climate are bodies of water, especially larger ones like oceans or lakes. At a basic level, lakes, oceans, and streams play a vital role in climate processes by serving as reservoirs for water, which can evaporate from the surface to fall later as rain or snow. Bodies of water also minimize changes in temperature of nearby landmasses. That is, they keep high temperatures from getting as high and low temperatures from getting as low as they otherwise would.
Finally, ocean currents (which carry water from one place to another) can strongly affect the climate of nearby land. The map on the right shows some of Earth's major currents. (Red = warm currents, blue = cold currents, black = neutral currents)
Take a look at the Gulf Stream, for example. The Gulf Stream is a current that carries water at the equator up past the eastern coast of the United States, feeding into another current called the North Atlantic Drift. As a result, two cities at the exact same latitude, one in England and one in Canada, may have very different climates. The city in England might only barely reach freezing temperatures during winter, while the city in Canada may spend most of winter at below zero temperatures - ocean currents can have a very significant effect!
Required
0.6
Below is a very simplified drawing of Earth. The horizontal lines represent the equator (0°) and other latitudes (30° & 60°). The North & South poles are marked at the top and bottom.
Click to select each latitude/pole that you would expect to be particularly dry as a result of air circulation patterns around the globe.
Below is a very simplified drawing of Earth. The horizontal lines represent the equator (0°) and other latitudes (30° & 60°). The North & South poles are marked at the top and bottom.
Click to select each latitude/pole that you would expect to be particularly dry as a result of air circulation patterns around the globe.
Required
0.5
Match each city to the climate that it most likely experiences, based only on the description provided. Some climates may work for multiple cities, but when all are matched correctly each one should only fit with one particular city!
Match each city to the climate that it most likely experiences, based only on the description provided. Some climates may work for multiple cities, but when all are matched correctly each one should only fit with one particular city!
| Draggable item | arrow_right_alt | Corresponding Item |
|---|---|---|
City located on the windward side of a mountain. | arrow_right_alt | Very dry and somewhat desert-like. |
A city located at a high elevation above sea level, and also at a high altitude on a mountain. | arrow_right_alt | Very temperate (not overly hot and not overly cold) and an average amount of precipitation |
City located on the leeward side of a mountain. | arrow_right_alt | Relatively high levels of precipitation. |
City located directly next to a large lake. | arrow_right_alt | Very cold and tundra-like. |
Section 2/3 - Biomes
Instructions:
You'll need to do a little research to learn more about some of the different biomes!
A biome is a large area that is classified based the species that live there, along with its climate, vegetation, soil, etc. For example, the Desert biome can be found on multiple different continents, and is typically characterized by very low level of precipitation.
Research each of the biomes listed on your graphic organizer in order to find and fill in all of the required information. One helpful place to start is the link below, but you may need to research elsewhere to find all of the required information!
Important: You only need a few words per box on this part of the graphic organizer! Just the main idea/main concepts.
Biomes - The Wild Classroom
Make sure you've researched all of the biomes before continuing on!
Required
0.4
In which of the following biomes would you expect to find the highest number of different species of animals and plants?
In which of the following biomes would you expect to find the highest number of different species of animals and plants?
Required
0.4
Which choice below best describes a tundra but NOT a taiga?
Which choice below best describes a tundra but NOT a taiga?
Required
0.4
Temperate rain forests are typically found closer to the equator than tropical rain forests.
Temperate rain forests are typically found closer to the equator than tropical rain forests.
Section 3/3 - Ecosystems
Ecosystem Basics
An ecosystem is a group of living things and their environment. This includes all parts of the environment, both biotic (living) and abiotic (nonliving).
When we talk about a particular living organism, we use the term individual. A group of individuals of the same species living together would be a population. In an ecosystem, you have multiple populations (because many different species would live there together!), so this is called a community. We then finally use the term ecosystem when we talk about that community along with all of the abiotic factors! If we continue to move outward, we use the term biome to refer to a group of ecosystems that share similar climates and communities, and use the term biosphere to mean all of the living things on Earth, along with the related abiotic factors!
Each individual in an ecosystem has a particular place it lives (its habitat) and a functional role and position it plays in that ecosystem (its niche). You can sort of think of an individual's habitat like it's location, or "address", within the ecosystem, while its niche is it's role, or "job/occupation".
Energy in an Ecosystem
In ecology, we are often interested in tracing the movement of matter and energy within an ecosystem. In an ecosystem, matter is recycled (reused) while energy flows through (in one direction, not reused!!!). We will talk a lot more about matter being recycled in an upcoming subunit, so we'll skip over that one for now and focus on the energy part!
Energy usually enters the ecosystem as sunlight, being captured by autotrophs that conduct photosynthesis. Eventually another organism eats those autotrophs, gaining some of that energy they had stored. However, every time energy is passed down from one organism to the next, some is always lost as heat. The 10% Rule states that only around 10% of the energy (stored as biomass) in a trophic level passes from one level to the next.
Look over the two energy pyramids on the right, and make sure they made sense to you! The top one gives a GREAT example of how much energy would actually get passed up to the next level, if you started with a certain initial amount. The bottom one clearly labels the different trophic levels (producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, etc) in a helpful way!
Required
0.5
As you move up an energy pyramid, biomass __________and amount of energy stored __________.
Required
0.5
In a specific ecosystem, the producer level has 3,800,000 kcal (kilocalories) of energy.
The primary consumer level would then have _______ kcal, and the secondary consumer level would have _______ kcal.
Just type the number in the blank!
Required
0.4
If a grasshopper eats grass, a mouse eats the grasshopper, and then a hawk eats the mouse, what trophic level would the hawk be a part of?
If a grasshopper eats grass, a mouse eats the grasshopper, and then a hawk eats the mouse, what trophic level would the hawk be a part of?