Biochemical Cycles
The Water Cycle
DRAW AND LABEL EVERY PART OF THE WATER CYCLE IN THE BOX BELOW
Term:
Definition:
Term:
Evaporation:
Condensation:
Precipitation:
Infiltration
(percolation):
Transpiration:
Sublimation:
Definition:
Carbon is found in the atmosphere as what molecule?
By what process do autotrophs obtain carbon from the atmosphere?
How do heterotrophs obtain carbon? What do they use this carbon for?
What TWO ways do heterotrophs return carbon to an ecosystem?
What can dead organisms turn into when they enter the earth’s surface?
How does carbon return to the ocean and atmosphere by abiotic factors?
How does human activity return carbon into the atmosphere?
Too little water and too much carbon
The graph below shows the water level of Anvil Lake in Northern Wisconsin from 1936-2010.
Lake Anvil has a variety of bird, fish, amphibian, and mammal populations that depend on a study
source of water from the lake.
1. What effects will lower water levels in Anvil Lake have on the water cycle of this ecosystem?
DESCRIBE SPECIFIC COMPONENTS OF THE WATER CYCLE.
2. How will changes in the water cycle impact the wildlife of Anvil Lake?
3. If this pattern of decreasing water levels in Anvil lake continues, what type of species do you
anticipate would immigrate into this ecosystem?
4. How would the immigration of these new species impact the stability of Anvil lakes ecosystems?
Too much water and too much carbon
Much of the carbon dioxide that
enters the atmosphere dissolves
into the ocean. In fact, the oceans
have absorbed about 1/3 of the
carbon dioxide produced from
human activities since 1800 and
about 1/2 of the carbon dioxide
produced by burning fossil fuels
(Sabine et al. 2004). As carbon
dioxide in the ocean increases,
ocean pH decreases or becomes
more acidic. This is called ocean
acidification.
With ocean acidification, corals cannot
absorb the calcium carbonate they need
to maintain their skeletons and the stony
skeletons that support corals and reefs
will dissolve. Already, ocean acidification
has lowered the pH of the ocean by about
0.11 units (SCOR 2009). Moving the
ocean's pH from 8.179 to a current pH of
8.069, which means the ocean is about
30% more acidic now than it was in 1751
(SCOR 2009). If nothing is done to reduce
carbon dioxide emissions into the
atmosphere, ocean acidification will
increase and more and more corals will
be damaged or destroyed.
1. What is the cause of ocean acidification? What effect does it have?
2. How does ocean acidification change the stability of ecosystems and the carbon cycle?
3. Many human cities depend on shellfish for their livelihood. What will people who live in these
cities do to survive as shellfish numbers decline?
The Nitrogen and Phosphorus Cycle
Nitrogen Cycle
Why do living things need nitrogen?
What is nitrogen fixation?
What nitrogen-containing molecule
is produced by nitrogen fixation?
How do plants benefit from nitrogen fixation?
How is nitrogen returned to the atmosphere?
Phosphorus Cycle
Why do living organisms need phosphorus?
How do organisms obtain phosphorus?
How is phosphorus transferred from biotic
factors to abiotic factors?
Why is the Yellow Sea green?
1. Write an explanation for what is causing the Yellow Sea to be green.
Hint: Changes in which biochemical(s) cycle could cause algae to grow in such high levels?
2. Draw and label a model of what is occurring to the Yellow Sea.
3. What impact do you think algal blooms like the Yellow Sea will have on the immigration and/or
emigration of people living near the Yellow Sea?