McDougal Littel Biology Nowicki California Ed.: Unit 6 Chapter 15 Notes

UNIT 6: ECOLOGY

Chapter 15: The Biosphere

Text Book: 1

DIRECTIONS: Complete these notes while viewing Chapter 15 PowerPoint Lecture

You can also use your textbook to help answer (Each section in the notes references a chapter and

section inside of your textbooks. E.g. 15.1 would be section 1 of chapter 15). Click inside the yellow

highlighted areas to type in answers. Use these notes to help you complete homework assignments

and preparing for, and using while taking tests and quizzes. Make sure to enter your name above.

I. Life in the Earth System (15.1)

A. The biosphere is the portion of the Earth that is inhabited by life

1. Biosphere- part of Earth where   life       . exists

a. Includes all   living      . and    non      . -living parts

b. Biota- collection of just living things in biosphere

2. Earth has   four     . major connected systems

a. Biosphere

b.  Hydrosphere      . -all of Earth’s water, ice, water vapor

c.  Atmosphere      . -the air blanketing Earth’s solid and liquid surface

            d.  Lithosphere      . -features of Earth’s surface (continents, rocks, sea floor,  and everything below Earth’s surface

B. Biotic and Abiotic factors    interact     . in the biosphere

1. All four of Earth’s systems are   connected      . to another

2.  Gaia      . hypothesis- Earth itself is kind of a “living organism”

II. Climate (15.2)

A. Climate is the prevailing weather of a    region     .

1.    day    . -day to day conditions

2. Climate-   long      .term pattern of weather conditions

B. Key factors that shape an area’s climate

1.  temperature      . -key factor

2.  sunlight      .

3.    water    .  (moisture)- key factor

4.  wind      .

C.  microclimate      . -climate of a small specific place within larger area.

1. Can be very    important     . to living things

2. Can be very    small     . or  large       . area

D. Earth has three main  three       . zones

1. Use average    temperature     . and    precipitation     . to categorize

a. Polar zone -in far northern and southern regions

b. Tropical zone- surrounds the    equator     .

c. Temperate zone- wide area between    polar     . and    tropical     . zones

2. Influence of sunlight

a. Earth’s surface     heated    . unevenly

1). Hottest portion where   sun      . strikes directly

2). Curved shape causes   uneven      . heating

3). Earth   tilts      . on its axis and this also plays a role in seasonal  changes

 3. Air and Water Movemen

a. Sun also warms   water      . and   air      .

b. Uneven heating causes     wind    . and water     currents    .

c. Warm air (and water)   rised     . and 

cold air (and water)  sinks      .

 d. Also affects amount of     precipitation     (warm air holds more water than cold air)

 4. Landmasses- also    shape     . climate

a. Coastal areas tend to have smaller changes in   temperature      . moderated by    oceans     . 

b. Mountains have large effect on climate- causes  precipitation       .

5. Adaptation to Climate- Many organisms adapted to   survive      . in specific climate

III. Biomes (15.3)

A. Earth has 6 major biomes- Each biome characterized by certain set of     abiotic    . 

factors,   ecosystems     .

1. Tropical Rain Forest Biome-   warm      . temperatures, abundant   precipitation      .all year, lush forests

2. Grassland Biome- primary plant life is   grass      .  Occurs in variety of   climates      .

3. Desert Biome-  arid       . environment,   little     . precipitation, four types: hot, semi-arid, coastal, and cold

4. Temperate Forests- Include deciduous forests and rain forests.  Temperate deciduous forests have    deciduous     . summers and  cold       . winters.  Deciduous trees are the dominant plant species

5. Taiga- Found in cool northern climates.  northern      . winters, short summers. Small amount of   precipitation  

6. Tundra- Far northern latitudes with long winters (10 months) limited   precipitation,  permafrost        .

7. Minor biomes- example:   chaparral     . -hot, dry summers and cool, moist   winters

B. Polar ice caps and mountains are     not    . considered biomes

1. Polar ice caps- have no   soil      . and do not have specific   plant      . community

a. Found at   poles      .  (north and south)

b. Most animals depend on  sea       . for food

IV. Marine Ecosystems (15.4)

A. The ocean can be divided into zones

1. Ocean Zones

a. Divided into open sea (   pelagic     .) and ocean floor (  benthic      . zone)

b. Divided between areas that receive light (  photic      . zone) and those that do     not ( apothic       .zone)

c. Ocean also separated into zones using   distance      . from shore line and         water depth

1).  intertidal      . zone- between high and low tide lines

2).  neritic      . zone-extends from intertidal out to edge of   continental shelf

3). bathyal       . zone- extends from edge of neritic zone to base of  continental shelf

4).  nerritic      . zone- lies below 2000 meters and is in complete  darkness

d. Life in Neritic Zone- only 1/10th of ocean but contains majority of        biomass     . (Most biomass consists of    plankton     .)

B. Coastal waters contain unique habitats

1. coral       . Reefs- found within tropical zone and contains large diversity 

2. Kelp Forests- found in    cold     ., nutrient rich waters

V. Estuaries and Freshwater Ecosystems (15.5)

A. Estuaries are   dynamic      . environments where rivers flow into the     ocean    .

1. Estuary- partially enclosed body of water formed where a   river      . flows into the             ocean.

a. Mix of    fresh     . and   salt      . water

b. River carries lots of   nutrient      . 

c. Large numbers of species thrive and are highly    productive     . ecosystems

d. Provide refuge for many species and      spawning       . grounds

e. Over   80      . % of estuaries have been lost to land development

B. Freshwater ecosystems include moving and standing water

1. Freshwater ecosystems- rivers, streams, wetlands

2. among most   productive      . ecosystems on Earth

C. Ponds and lakes share common features

1. Smaller in size than oceans, but also divided into zones

a.   littoral     . zone- between low and high water marks

b. limnetic       . zone- open water farther out from shore

c.   benthic     . zone- bottom of lake or pond where less   sunlight      . reaches