Chapter 4

Environments
and Life
What is your current classification?

A. Freshman
B. Sophomore
C. Junior
D. Senior
Guiding Questions
What factors determine the ecological
niches of species, and by what means do
species obtain nutrition?
What factors govern the geographic
distribution of species?
What factors govern the distribution of
aquatic life?
Environmental Differences
Tropical vs Polar - Terrestrial and Marine

Low vs High Elevation

Shallow vs Deep

Wet vs Dry
Hypsometric Curve
Curve showing the proportions of the
Earths surface above and below sea level
Hypsometric Curve
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Climate
Climate
Controls distribution of species globally
Has changed through time

Plate tectonics and other changes affect
climate
Ecology
Ecology
Study of the factors that govern the distribution and
abundance of organisms in natural environments
Habitats
Environments on or close to Earths surface inhabited
by life
Terrestrial
Aquatic
Marine
Freshwater

Ecology
Ecologic niche
The way a species relates to its environment, including food,
nutrients, physical and chemical conditions
Life habit
The way a species lives within its niche
Limiting factors
Naturally occurring, restricting condition (physical and chemical)
Competition
Shared drive for limited resources
Predation
Competition
Arises because organisms share space

Predation also comes in here by possibly
limiting or preventing another species
from inhabiting a particular
environment.

Ecosystem
Ecosystem
Organisms of a community and the physical
environment they occupy
Population
Group of individuals that belong to a single
species and live together in a particular area

Ecosystem
Ecologic community
Populations of several species living in a habitat
Producers
Photosynthesizing organisms; foundation of community
Consumers
Herbivores: feed on producers
Carnivores: feed on other consumers
Ecosystem
Biota
Fauna: animals and protozoans of an ecosystem
Flora: plants and plantlike protists
Food chain
Sequence of consumption for producers to consumers
Food Web
Food web
More complex than simple food chain
More common
Several species occupy each level
Ecosystem
Parasites
Feed on living
organisms
Scavengers
Feed on organisms that
are already dead
Ecology
The movement of materials through an ecosystem.
Components within ovals are consumers.
Figure 4-35
(p. 134)
Interdependence
of photosynthesis
and respiration.
Figure 4-38 (p. 136)
Simple pyramid of ocean life.
Biogeography
The distribution and abundance of
organisms on a broad geographic
scale.
Biogeography
Temperature

Moisture

Nutrients
Ecosystem
Diversity
The variety of species that live together within a
community
Lower in more difficult habitats
Predation influences diversity
Heavy can reduce diversity
Moderate can increase diversity by reducing competition
Opportunistic species
Species that specialize in invading newly vacated
habitats
Biogeography
Distribution and
abundance of
organisms on a broad
geographic scale
Limiting factors
Diversity increases
toward equator
Barriers can affect
dispersal
Life Habitats
The mode by which an organism lives, feeds
in an environment

1. Tropical vs. Polar
2. Low vs high altitude
3. Shallow vs deep
4. Benthic vs. Planktonic
Atmosphere
Regulates Earths
temperature (-18C w/o
atmosphere)

Composition
N
2
, O
2
, CO
2


Tilt of the Earth affects
solar insulation,
temperature, and climate
In our present atmosphere,
concentrations of O
2
and CO
2
are:
A. O
2
> CO
2

B. O
2
< CO
2

C. O
2
= CO
2
The Atmosphere
Nitrogen -78%

Oxygen - 21%

Carbon dioxide (CO
2
) - 0.037% or 370 ppm

Methane (CH
4
) - 0.00018% or 1800 ppb
Solar Radiation
Daylight
Which receives more hours of daylight?

Equator vs Poles

The amount of daylight (# of hours) averaged
over a year is the same at the poles as at the
equator
Solar
Radiation
Solar Radiation
Temperature difference is due to the angle
of the sunlight and the albedo

In the high latitudes, the sun hits at a low
angle and therefore the unit energy of
sunlight is spread over a large cross-
sectional area of the earths surface. In the
tropics, the sun hits directly and therefore is
much more concentrated
Solar Radiation
Solar Radiation
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Albedo refers to the
reflectivity of the Earths
surface
1. Snow and ice is very
reflective - much of the solar
radiation is reflected by to
the solar system
2. Water has a low albedo and
absorbs a lot of the solar
radiation
Solar Radiation
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Solar Radiation
Solar Radiation
When do we have summers?

True or False

Summers on Earth occur when it passes
closest to the Sun
Solar Radiation
Obliquity or Tilt (23.5) of the to Earths
rotational axis

This tilt gives us seasons. Summer is when
the northern or southern hemisphere is point
towards the Sun
Atmosphere
Regulates Earths
temperature
Composition
N
2
, O
2
, CO
2

Tilt of the Earth
affects solar
insulation,
temperature, and
climate
Solar Radiation
Heat Capacity
Movement of Air mass
Rises at Eq. and sinks near Poles

The high solar radiation at the equator heats
the air masses, causing them to rise
(buoyant).

As the air rises, the temperature of the air
mass decreases
Atmospheric Circulation
Net transport
Air sinks at the poles,
rises at the equator

Simplified model
No tilt
No Coriolis effect
Rising Air
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As the air rises, the temperature of the air mass
decreases (adiabatic lapse rate 5C/km)

Cold air holds less water vapor. Voila, rain and the
tropical rainforest. Low pressure systems
usually have rain because the rising air drop water
as the air ascends and cools
Rising Air
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Atmospheric Circulation
Coriolis effect
Earths rotation causes
air and water masses
to be defected to the
right (clockwise) in
the northern
hemisphere
Counterclockwise for
southern hemisphere
Atmospheric Circulation
If we reverse the direction
and launch a rocket from
Panama towards
Washington DC, which
way will it curve?

A = Right
B = Left
C = Not at all because
Panama is close to the Eq.
Coriolis force
Deflection of moving objects to the right in
the No. Hemisphere and left in the So.
Hemisphere
Coriolis
Force
Atmospheric Circulation
Actual pattern is more
complex
Three circulation cells
Trade winds, westerlies,
easterlies
Intertropical convergence
zone
Northern, southern trade
winds converge near
equator
Changes seasonally
Temperature Variations
Atmosphere retains
heat
Solar radiation
Absorbed and turned
into heat energy
Reflected
6-10% ocean
5-30% forest
45-95% ice and snow

Trade winds

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As the dry air
descending
around 30
begins to flow
back towards
the Eq. it is
deflected to
the right.
Trade winds
As the dry air descending around 30 begins to flow back
towards the Eq. it is deflected to the right.
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Trade winds
The NE and SE trades converge on the
latitude where the maximum in
convection (rising air) is occurring. This
is the warmest location. Today, this is
between 4 and 10N and is termed the
Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone
(ITCZ)
The Terrestrial Realm
Latitudinal Zones and Vegetation
Rain forests
Deserts
Savannah Grasslands
Temperate Forest
Conifer or Evergreen Forest
Tundra
Terrestrial Realm
Vegetation follows
climatic zone
Tropical rain forest
Desert savannahs
Temperate forests
Polar tundra
Terrestrial Realm
Tropical Climates
1820 C (6468 F)
030 latitude

Tropical Rain Forest
Dense vegetation
Rain forests
develop under the
tropical low pressure
systems. Rising air
dumps lots of rain.
Found within a few
degrees near the
equator
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Terrestrial Realm
Deserts
Dry trade winds
remove moisture
2030 north and south
of the equator
< 25 cm rain/year
Little vegetation
Savannah, grasslands
Too dry to support
forests
Deserts
(<10 inches of
water per year)
develop under
the sinking dry
air masses and
under the dry
Trade Winds.
Usually found
around 30
latitude.
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Savannah Grasslands
found between Rain forest
and Desert and receive
seasonal rain falls. Not
enough rain throughout the
year to support woodland
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Tundra
- Arctic ecosystem where
layer beneath soil remains
frozen throughout the year.

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Terrestrial Realm
Poles
Defined by ice sheets
and glaciers today
Absent or reduced at
times in the past

Terrestrial Realm
Glaciers
Ice in motion
Glide and spread
Present at high
latitudes and high
elevations near equator

Terrestrial Realm
Tundra
Limited water
Grasses, sedges, lichens,
shrubs dominate
Cannot support tall trees
Evergreen coniferous
forests
South of tundra
Spruce, pine, fir
Terrestrial Realm
Temperate forests
Longer summers, slightly warmer
Deciduous trees
Maples, oaks, beeches
Mediterranean climate
Dry summers, wet winters
Common 40 N and S of equator
Californian, Mediterranean region
Climate
Altitude
Similar to latitudinal
gradient
At base
Deciduous forest
On slopes
Evergreen forest
Tundra above tree-line
At top
Glaciers
Climate
Mountains
Rain shadow
Prevailing winds bring
moisture
Precipitation on
windward side
Aridity on leeward side
Rain shadows common
on east side of North
American mountain
chains
Climate
Seasonal Change
High heat capacity of
water
Less change in ocean
temperatures than on
land
Monsoon Circulation
Summer winds flow
onshore; bring rain
Winter winds offshore
Plants as Climate Indicators
Sensitive indicators of
change
Cycads
Tropics and subtropics
today
Fossil distribution
allows reconstruction of
climate patterns

Plants as Climate Indicators
Leaf Margins
Tropics
Smooth, waxy margins
Temperate climates
Jagged margins
Marine Realm
Ocean currents
Wind driven
Follow atmospheric patterns
Trade winds
Push waters west; form
equatorial currents
Equatorial countercurrents
Return flow
Gyres
Clockwise in Northern
Hemisphere
Gulf Stream

Marine Realm
Circumpolar current
Circles Antarctica
Very cold

Marine Realm
Polar circulation
Sea ice leads to more
saline water
Cold, dense waters
sink
Antarctic waters
Flow north at depth
Arctic waters
Flow south at depth
Marine Realm
Ocean circulation
Waves
Surface waves
Wind driven
Break when seafloor interacts at shallow depths
Tides
Cause major movement of water in oceans
Due to rotation of solid Earth beneath bulges of
water produced by gravitational attraction of the
moon
Marine Realm
Continental Shelf
Submarine extension of
continental landmass
Shelf break
Edge of shelf
~200 m w.d.
Continental Slope
Continental Rise
Abyssal Plain

Figure 4-31 (p. 131)
Classification of marine environments.
(After Hedgspeth, UJ. W., ed. 1957. Treatise of Marine Ecology and Paleoecology. Geological Society
of America Memoirs 67(1): 18.)
The Marine Realm
The depth of the Sea
Moving from the beach seaward, one crosses a
consistent pattern of water depth changes. The
continental shelf extends from the shoreline to
the continental shelf break. Water depths over the
shelf vary from 0 to ~200 m. This environment is
very important for benthic communities because
the photic zone in the ocean extends only down to
200m. Consider the implications for primary
production
The Marine Realm
The Shelf break marks the distal edge of
the shelf where seaward of this point, water
depths increase at a greater rate (3 to
5slope) compared with the shelf (1 to
2slope).
The Marine Realm
Continental Slope.
Typically, the slope extends down to 3000
to 3500 m. Near the base of the slope is the
transition from continental to oceanic crust.
The Marine Realm
The Slope gives way to the Continental
Rise. This is a less steep surface that
segways to the Abyssal Plain (the ocean
floor). The Rise is created as sediments are
transported down the slope in turbidity
currents.
The Marine Realm
At the base of the slope and out on the
abyssal plain, the slope decreases
significantly and the sediments are dropped,
forming the Rise
Figure 4-31 (p. 131)
Classification of marine environments.
(After Hedgspeth, UJ. W., ed. 1957. Treatise of Marine Ecology and Paleoecology. Geological Society
of America Memoirs 67(1): 18.)
Marine Realm
Near shore
Barrier islands
Marshes
Epicontinental seas
Marine Realm
Photic Zone
Region of ocean where enough
light penetrates to permit
photosynthesis
Pelagic life
Plankton
Phytoplankton
Zooplankton
Nekton
Benthic life
Suspension feeders
Deposit feeders

Marine Realm
Marine Biogeography
Tropical
Subtropical
Transitional
Subarctic

Figure 4-36 (p. 135)
Major ocean surface currents.
Marine Realm
Corals
Most require warm water
Common in tropics
Reef builders
Coral polyp
Builds coral cup
Connected to other polyps
Symbiotic relationship
with algae
Marine Realm
Salinity
Limiting factor near shore
Oceanic
35 ppt
Brackish
Lower than marine
Bays, lagoons
Hypersaline
Higher than marine
Hot arid climates
The portion of the temperature-depth curve in the
ocean that shows maximum change is the thermocline.
Deep Water Circulation
Atmospheric Circulation
If we reverse the direction
and launch a rocket from
Panama towards
Washington DC, which
way will it curve?

A = Right
B = Left
C = Not at all because
Panama is close to the Eq.