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Lijin Lakshmanan

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READINGS ON LIFE AND NATURE

Ecosystems

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS:

1. Define ecosystem?
A. Ecosystem is a biological community of interacting organisms and their
physical environment such as forests, grasslands etc. The term,
‘ecosystem’ was first used by Arthur Tansley in 1935.
2. What are the components on which an ecosystem is dependent?
A. An ecosystem is dependent on two basic components: biotic (living
components) and abiotic (non-living components). Biotic components
include plants and animals and the abiotic components include the
geographical, climatic and soil characteristics.
3. How are ecosystems divided? Name the two types.
A. Ecosystems are divided mainly into two: terrestrial (land-based) and
aquatic (water-based). These form the two major habitat conditions for
the Earth’s living organisms.
4. What is a biosphere?
A. The regions of the surface and atmosphere of the earth occupied by living
organisms can be called the biosphere. The biosphere includes the land,
the sea and the air.
5. What are the different biogeographical realms of the world?
A. A biogeographic realm or ecozone is the Earth's land surface, based on
distributional patterns of terrestrial organisms. This includes Palaearctic
realm, oriental realm, Nearctic realm, Neotropical realm, Ethiopian realm
and Australian realm.
6. Name the biogeographic regions of India.
A. Biogeographic regions are the sub-divisions of the biogeographical realm
at the national or state level. India’s biogeographic regions include: the
Himalayas, the Gangetic Plains, the Highlands of Central-India, the
Western and Eastern Ghats, the Deccan Plateau, Andaman and Nicobar
Islands etc.
7. Give examples of natural and man-made ecosystems.
A. Natural ecosystems include: forests, grasslands, desert, ponds, rivers,
lakes and the sea. Man-made ecosystems include: agricultural land,
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orchards, zoo, botanical gardens, aquarium, park, urban or industrial land

use patterns etc.
8. What are keystone species?
A. A keystone species is a species which has a disproportionately large
effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance. The
destruction of that species may even lead to the destruction of that whole
ecosystem.
9. What are biotic components?
A. Biotic components are the living things that shape an ecosystem.
Examples of biotic components include animals, plants, fungi, and
bacteria.
10.What are the reasons for the degradation of ecosystems?
A. One of the central reasons for the degradation of ecosystems includes
human actions which lead to the extinction of species of plants and
animals. Pollution, climate change, land clearing, resource exploitation
etc lead to the degradation of an ecosystem.

ESSAY QUESTIONS

1. Comment on the structure and composition of an ecosystem.

2. Write an essay on the degradation of an ecosystem.

[NOTE: The second paragraph of the essay is the answer of paragraph question
numbers 1 and 2 from the textbook. The third paragraph of the essay is the
answer of paragraph question number 4 from the textbook. The fourth
paragraph of the essay is the answer of paragraph question number 3 from the
textbook.]

A.

The famous American naturalist E. O. Wilson once said:

“If enough species are extinguished, will the

ecosystems collapse? The only answer anyone

can give is: possibly. By the time we find out

the answer, however, it might be too late.

One planet, one experiment.”

The destruction of the natural beauty, the ecosystems and the majesty of
mountains affect us in ways we are not even aware of. Every time a mountain is
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beheaded, we chop off a little part of our own souls. An ecosystem is a system
formed by the interactions of a variety of individual organisms with each other
and with their physical environment. The economy itself will die if our
ecosystems collapse. But humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and
extensively than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to
meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fibre and fuel. This
has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity of life
on Earth.

An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and

other organisms, as well as weather and landscape, work together to form a
bubble of life. It is a biological community of interacting organisms and their
physical environment such as forests, grasslands etc. The term ‘ecosystem’ was
first used by Arthur Tansley in 1935. An ecosystem is dependent on two basic
components: biotic (living components) and abiotic (non-living components).
Biotic components include plants and animals and the abiotic components
include the geographical, climatic and soil characteristics. Biotic components
are the living things that have a direct or indirect influence on other organisms
in an environment. Abiotic components of an ecosystem include all chemical
and physical elements i.e. non-living components. Abiotic components can vary
from region to region, from one ecosystem to another. They mainly take up the
role of life supporter. They determine and restrict the population growth,
number, and diversity of biotic factors in an ecosystem. Hence they are called
limiting factors. Biotic components can be classified into three categories:
producers, consumers, decomposers. The nature of the ecosystem is based on its
geographical features such as hills, mountains, plains, rivers, lakes, coastal areas
or islands. It is also controlled by climatic conditions such as the amount of
sunlight, the temperature and the rainfall in the region. Ecosystems are divided
mainly into two: terrestrial (land-based) and aquatic (water-based). These form
the two major habitat conditions for the Earth’s living organisms. Every factor
in an ecosystem depends on every other factor, either directly or indirectly. A
change in the temperature of an ecosystem will often affect what plants will
grow there, for instance. Animals that depend on plants for food and shelter will
have to adapt to the changes, move to another ecosystem, or perish. The
relevance of biotic and abiotic components in an environment appears when
they start interacting with each other. For example, biotic elements like plants
provide food for other organisms. The soil is the abiotic element which supports
the growth of the plants by providing nutrients and other essential elements.
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Biotic components depend on abiotic components for their survival and help in
the formation of abiotic factors like soil, nutrients, etc.

The cost of our success is at the exhaustion of natural

resources, leading to energy crises, climate change, pollution, and the
destruction of our habitat and the earth. One of the central reasons for the
degradation of ecosystems includes human actions which lead to the extinction
of species of plants and animals. Pollution, climate change, land clearing,
resource exploitation etc lead to the degradation of an ecosystem. In every
ecosystem, there will be a keystone species. A keystone species is a species
which has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to
its abundance. The destruction of that species may even lead to the destruction
of that whole ecosystem. Depletion of natural resources will eventually lead to a
world with lesser elements to survive and makes human life a hardship. Natural
resources are the ones that maintain equilibrium in the environment and life.
Natural resources like air, water, solar energy, soil, minerals, coal, etc., are
those basic elements that we, living beings, use to lead a normal life. Depletion
of natural resources will completely stun the day to day life of a human being as
well as fellow living things. The depletion of natural resources occurs when we
vigorously use the available ones at a rapid speed. Some of these non-renewable
resources like coal, minerals, etc., take millions of years to form and thus their
rapid use will result in depletion of these natural resources. Unsustainable use of
these natural resources due to the demand and increase in population has also
resulted in depletion of natural resources. Switching to the renewable sources is
one of the many ways to save natural resources from depletion. In order to save
this depletion of natural resources, we humans should find out and execute more
sustainable and non-polluting ways to use these natural resources. Humans are
using natural resources endlessly day by day. The population explosion is
causing overexploitation of natural resources with little or no care to conserving
them. To meet this massive population, depletion of natural resources is
happening. However, we need to understand that natural resources are finite.
Even renewable resources are not being given enough time to replenish. Thus,
one can even wonder what the condition of non-renewable resources might be.
Therefore, this depletion of natural resources is quite harmful to the earth and its
inhabitants.
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The ecosystem functions through several biogeochemical

cycles and energy transfer mechanisms. Both the biotic and abiotic components
of the ecosystem interact with each-other. All the chains are joined together to
form a web of life on which man depends. Each of these uses energy that comes
from the sun and powers the ecosystem. An ecosystem regulates the essential
ecological processes, supports life systems and renders the stability. It is also
responsible for the cycling of nutrients between biotic and abiotic components.
It maintains a balance among the various trophic levels in the ecosystem. It also
cycles the minerals through the biosphere. The abiotic components help in the
synthesis of organic components that involves the exchange of energy. The
functional attributes of the ecosystem keep the components running together.
Ecosystem functions are natural processes or exchange of energy that take place
in various plant and animal communities of different biomes of the world. For
instance, green leaves prepare food and roots absorb nutrients from the soil,
herbivores feed on the leaves and the roots and in turn serve as food for the
carnivores. Decomposers execute the functions of breaking down complex
organic materials into simple inorganic products, which are used by the
producers. Fundamentally, ecosystem functions are exchange of energy and
nutrients in the food chain. These exchanges sustain plant and animal life on the
planet as well as the decomposition of organic matter and the production of
biomass. All these functions of the ecosystem take place through delicately
balanced and controlled processes. Ecosystems are what sustain both humans
and animals, providing them with energy, nutrients, oxygen, water and shelter,
among other things. Ecosystems don’t have strict boundaries or sizes; they can
range from something as small as a dead tree stump to something as large as the
ocean. In conclusion, ecosystems have a complex set of interactions that happen
between the biotic and abiotic components. The components of an ecosystem
are linked to each other through the energy flows and nutrient cycles. Even
though ecosystems do not have clear boundaries, these interactions get affected,
even if one factor is changed or removed. This ultimately has the capacity to
affect the entire ecosystem.

All our efforts to defeat poverty and pursue sustainable

development will be in vain if environmental degradation and natural resource
depletion continue unabated. There is a need for us to learn how to find a
balance between resources preservation and economic development. If we fail
to do this and exhaust all of our natural resources, there would not be any more
natural resources for us to exploit and use to meet all of our needs. We should
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remember that the earth is a fine place and worth fighting for. When we heal the
earth, we heal ourselves.

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