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13module in Environmental Science

Freshwater ecosystems provide critical habitat for many species and play an important role in mitigating climate change. They include lakes, rivers, ponds, wetlands, streams, and springs. There are two main types - lentic ecosystems with still water like ponds and marshes, and lotic ecosystems with flowing water like rivers and streams. Humans can negatively impact freshwater systems through overuse of water, destructive land use practices, runoff pollution, and draining of wetlands.

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elise tan
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86 views

13module in Environmental Science

Freshwater ecosystems provide critical habitat for many species and play an important role in mitigating climate change. They include lakes, rivers, ponds, wetlands, streams, and springs. There are two main types - lentic ecosystems with still water like ponds and marshes, and lotic ecosystems with flowing water like rivers and streams. Humans can negatively impact freshwater systems through overuse of water, destructive land use practices, runoff pollution, and draining of wetlands.

Uploaded by

elise tan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Module 13

Freshwater Ecosystem

Introduction

Every living thing on earth


needs to survive. The habitats that
freshwater ecosystems provide consist
of lakes, rivers, ponds, wetlands,
streams, and springs. It plays a
fundamental ecological role and
provide economically important
products and services. They provide
critical habitats for a large number of
aquatic plants, fishes, reptiles, birds,
and mammals. They host many
migratory and threatened species like
birds and fishes. Freshwater
ecosystems, especially vegetated https://master.k8s.p4.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/tag/freshwater/
wetlands, play an important role in
mitigation against climate variability. They do so through a number of ecosystem functions including flood
control, water purification, shoreline stabilization, and sequestration of carbon dioxide.

Freshwater accounts for only 3% of the world’s water, the rest is saltwater. Although freshwater
manifests a variety of ways, there are two main types of freshwater. Static (lentic) water such as lakes and
ponds and flowing (lotic) water such as rivers and streams. A typical lake has three distinct zones: littoral,
limnetic, and profundal zones. The littoral is the near shore area where sunlight penetrates all the way to
the sediments. Next to the littoral is the limnetic and the deepest part is the profundal zone.

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Humans can have a major impact on freshwater systems through water overuse. Reducing the
amount of water in lakes and other reservoirs puts pressure on aquatic populations, reducing the amount
of living space available, and in some cases, it dries up streams and ponds. Destructive land use practices
that result in vegetation loss anywhere within the drainage brain of a river can have negative impact on
freshwater ecosystems. Runoff from agricultural and urban areas hurts water quality. Draining of
wetlands for development depletes habitats. Overexploitation and pollution threaten groundwater
supplies.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. Describe a freshwater ecosystem.


2. Compare the two types of freshwater ecosystem.
3. Illustrate the movement of water in the ecosystem.

Pre-Assessment

Choose the letter of the best answer.

1. Which of the following is not a part of the freshwater biome?


a. Ponds
b. Lakes
c. Rivers
d. Oceans

2. Ana goes mountain climbing. On her way to the summit, she crossed a body of water which flow
fast. That body of water is _________
a. Lentic
b. Lotic
c. Benthic
d. Limnetic

3. The zone near the shoreline in a lake is known as ________.


a. Photosynthesis
b. Limnetic
c. Profundal
d. Littoral

4. What human activity harm the wetlands?


a. Building homes
b. Draining them for farmland
c. Making it a trash depot
d. Man is not harming the wetlands

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5. Which of the following is a danger to river systems?
a. Dams
b. Wind
c. Pollution from runoff
d. All the choices

6. Why do water sources need to be conserved?


a. We have limited amount of freshwater
b. We need to save to whales
c. Pollution reduces the amount of usable water
d. a and b

Lesson Presentation

Every living thing on earth needs water to survive, but more than 100,000 species need a special
kind of water that can only be found in certain places and is very rare supply. The plants, animals,
microbes, rocks, soil, sunlight, and water found in and around this valuable resource are all part of the
freshwater ecosystem. Less than 3% of the earth is freshwater and less than half that is available as liquid.
The rest is locked away as ice in polar ice caps and glaciers thus, freshwater is precious resource.

IMPORTANCE OF FREHSWATER

Freshwater is vital for life supporting ecosystems and human civilizations. It is used in many
aspects of daily life including food production, power generation, manufacturing, and sanitation. Healthy
freshwater environments supply water for drinking and growing crops. They also help prevent soil erosion,
dispose waste, and provide natural protection from flooding.

TYPES OF FRESHWATER:

Essentially there are two main types:

1. Lentic ecosystems are those whose water is still and are made up of ponds, marshes, ditches,
lakes, and swamps. These ecosystems range in size from very small ponds that may be temporary
to large lakes. The consumer species found in lentic habitats include worms, snails, amphibians,
crustaceans, insects, reptiles, and birds.
2. Lotic ecosystems can be any kinds of moving water such as creek, brook, rivers, spring, or stream.
The water in a lotic ecosystem from source to mouth must have atmospheric gases, turbidity,
longitudinal temperature gradation, and materials dissolved in it.

The organisms in these waters have suckers and hooks that help them stick to the waterbed, rocks,
or plants. Some of them have a streamlined body that help them swim against water currents. Some
species attach to the substratum.

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Reference:

Freshwater Ecosystem

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uocWdk30eU0

Activity

Natural freshwater ecosystem represents the terrestrial phases of the global hydrological cycle
and include rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, as well as groundwater.

Draw the hydrologic cycle and label the pathways.

Reinforcement

Freshwater ecosystems are a subset of the earth’s aquatic ecosystem. They include lakes, ponds,
rivers, streams, springs, bogs, and wetlands. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different factors
including temperature, light penetration, nutrients, and vegetation.

The next module will discuss marine ecosystem, considered as the largest of all the ecosystems.

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