Ecosystem diversity- is the variation between different ecosystems, including their effects on the rest of the

environment and on humans.

Example of Ecosystem Diversity

The Sahara desert The Amazon rainforest

The Niagara falls

At the same time, ecosystems are connected within larger biomes.

Biomes- are major life zones, classified according to their vegetation type or physical environment.
A few major biomes are summarised below.
 Tropical forests: vertically layered forests compete for sunlight. Temperature, rainfall and humidity are
high. These forests support incredibly high levels of animal biodiversity.
 Tundra: high winds and low temperatures restrict plant growth to herbs and grasses. Many animals
migrate elsewhere for winter.
 Desert: low precipitation limits plant growth. Temperature can vary considerably, exceeding 50℃ in
the day and reaching -30℃ at night. Animal biodiversity is low, as few species are adapted to these
harsh conditions.
 Open ocean: constant mixing by currents promotes high oxygen levels and low nutrient conditions.
Phytoplankton and zooplankton dominate, providing an important food source for fish.
 Grassland: precipitation and temperature vary seasonally. Grasses dominate, fed on by large grazers.
 Coral reefs: corals thrive in waters with high temperatures and oxygen availability. These animals
provide a carbonate structure, supporting an incredibly high diversity of fish and invertebrates. Coral
reefs are considered to be on par with tropical rainforests regarding animal biodiversity.

Biomes have unique features shared by all ecosystems within them. However, ecosystems can vary even
within biomes. Take deserts for example. The hot, arid Sahara we mentioned above might spring to mind.
However, deserts can be diverse places:
Desert Abiotic Conditions Landscape Animals & Plants
Palm trees, cacti,
Sahara Desert, Africa Hot, dry, strong winds Sand dunes
snakes, scorpions
Grasses, gazelles,
Gobi Desert, Asia Cold temperatures, snowfall Bare rock
takhi
Ice sheet covering bare
Antarctica Freezing temperatures Mosses, birds
rock

Table 1. Different types of desserts and their characteristics.

Sahara Desert, Africa Gobi Desert, Asia

Antarctica

Factors Affecting Ecosystem Diversity

1.Climate and Geography
a) Climate patterns are mostly determined by the availability of solar energy and the movement of the
Earth. The climate varies depending on the latitude and the time of year.
b) Ocean currents can influence the climate of coastlines by heating and cooling.
c) Mountains can affect the climate of an area. When air flowing in from the sea meets mountains it
travels upwards, cools, and releases water as precipitation. Less moisture remains in the air after
reaching the leeward side. This rain shadow can create desert-like conditions on the other side of the
mountain range.
d) Zonation
Aquatic ecosystems are characterised by the stratification of light and temperature. Shallower water has
higher temperatures and light availability than deeper water.
Zone What is it?
The top layer of water, closest to the surface. There is sufficient light for photosynthesis,
The Photic Zone
so biodiversity is at its highest.
The Aphotic Zone The zone beneath the photic zone, which lacks sufficient light for photosynthesis.
A zone found in deep oceans, below 2000 m. Only specialised organisms adapted to low
The Abyssal Zone
temperatures and light levels can inhabit this niche.
The zone found at the bottom of all aquatic ecosystems. It is made up of sand and
The Benthic Zone
sediments, and is inhabited by organisms that feed on detritus.
Table 2. The different zones of aquatic ecosystems.

2. Interactions Between Organisms and their Environment

Biotic Factors Affecting Species Distribution in an Ecosystem

 Dispersal: movement of individuals away from their area of origin or an area of high population
density.
 Other species: parasitism, predation, disease, competition (niche is already occupied).
a) Parasitism: an interaction where a parasite exploits resources from a host, harming it in the
process.
b) Predation: an interaction where a predatory species kills and eats a prey species.
c) Disease: an abnormal condition affecting an individual's structure or function.
d) Competition: an interaction where individuals of different species compete for a limiting resource.

Abiotic Factors affecting Species Distribution in an Ecosystem

 Chemical: water, oxygen, nutrients, salinity, pH, etc.
 Physical: temperature, light, moisture, soil structure, etc.

3. Disturbances
Disturbance is a change in a change in the environmental conditions. They are temporary, but can cause
significant changes in the ecosystem.

It can be:
 Natural (storms, fires, cyclones, volcanic eruptions, etc.) or 
 Human-made (deforestation, mining, land use change, climate change).
Types of Ecosystem Diversity
1. Genetic diversity measures the individual variations of genes within and between populations. A
species or population with low genetic diversity faces an increased risk of extinction.
2. Species diversity is a measure of the number of species that are present within an ecosystem. Biomes
that support a high species diversity include coral reefs and tropical rainforests. Ecosystems with a high
species diversity tend to be more resilient because they have a high response diversity.

Ecosystem Diversity

The species and environmental factors vary between different ecosystems. Overall functioning should also be
considered when analysing ecosystem diversity. The loss or extinction of one species can have knock-on
effects on other species present. For example, flying foxes (a species of bat) are important pollinators in the
Pacific Islands. Loss of flying foxes could have major effects on other species of that region: flowering plants
would have lower reproductive success. Animals that feed on flowers will decline; the whole food web would
be affected. Humans would also struggle to pollinate their crops.

Importance of Ecosystem Diversity

Ecosystem diversity is essential for the survival of all species, including humans. Without that diversity,
ecosystems become more vulnerable to severe change or extinction, which can have a butterfly effect on
other regions. Without healthy environments, neither plants nor animals (including humans) can survive.

Ecosystem Resistance and Resilience

1. Ecosystem resilience is the amount of disturbance that a system can tolerate while undergoing change to
sustain the same functions. A high biodiversity results in a high response diversity, which is critical to
resilience.
Response diversity is the reactions to environmental change among species which contribute to
ecosystem function.

2. Ecosystem resistance is the ability of an ecosystem to remain unchanged after disturbance. Like resilience,
resistance is highest in diverse ecosystems. For example, ecosystems with a higher diversity are typically less
affected by invasive species.

Humans and Ecosystem Diversity

Diversity provides valuable ecosystem services to humans. These can be split into four subtypes.
 Provisioning services provide physical resources, such as food, medicine or natural resources.
 Cultural services provide recreation, fulfilment and aesthetics.
 Regulating services provide amelioration of negative effects, such as tsunamis or pollution.
 Supporting services underpin all the others, such as nutrient cycling and photosynthesis.
ECOSYSTEM

 A place where the combination of weather, landscape, and living things creates a bubble of life.

 Contain both biotic and abiotic components, or living and nonliving elements. Plants, animals, and other
organisms are biotic factors. Along with rocks, temperature and humidity are abiotic factors.
 In an

ecosystem, every component is dependent on every other component, either directly or indirectly. For example,
a change in ecosystem temperature frequently affects the types of plants that can grow there. Animals who rely
on plants for food and shelter will need to adapt to the changes, relocate to another ecosystem, or go extinct.

The abiotic factors that affect the biotic factors are:

 Temperature
 Water
 Light
 Soil
Types of Ecology

Global Ecology
It deals with interactions among earth’s ecosystems, land, atmosphere and oceans.

Landscape Ecology
It deals with the exchange of energy, materials, organisms and other products of ecosystems.

Ecosystem Ecology
It deals with the entire ecosystem, including the study of living and non-living components and their
relationship with the environment.

Community Ecology
It focuses on how interactions between living things alter community structure. An ecology community
is made up of two or more populations of various species that are localized in one place.

Population Ecology
It deals with variables that affect and change the genetic make-up and number of organisms in a
population. Ecologists are curious about changes in population size, population growth, and any other
interactions with the population.

Organismal Ecology
It examines the interactions between particular organisms and biotic and abiotic elements. Ecologists
study how organisms adjust to these living and non-living elements of their environment.
Biological Control
- Biological control is the use of living organisms to suppress pest populations, making them less damaging
than they would otherwise be. Natural enemies of insects play an important role in limiting the densities of
potential pests.

These natural enemies include:

- Predators - Examples are birds, snakes, spiders
- Parasitoids - Examples are wasps, flies, beetles, and worms
- Pathogens - Includes bacteria, parasites, and viruses which invades the body causing health issues.

Pests - are those species that attack some resource we human beings want to protect, and do it successfully
enough to become either economically important or just a major annoyance. They are only a tiny fraction of
the insect species around us. Even many of the species we would recognize as important pests only
occasionally do significant damage to us or our resources.

Geochemical Environment
- The Geochemical Environment is defined by the surrounding conditions of pressure, temperature, and
abundance of chemical components. The geochemical environment influences the ore body formation and
dispersion. Therefore a clear understanding of the geochemical environment is essential in mineral
exploration.

The geochemical environment can be classified into two types based on the conditions of temperature,
pressure and chemistry.
1. Endogenic Environment
2. Exogenic Environment

The Endogenic Environment

- Is the deep-seated environment in which forces driven by earth's internal heat predominate. Since rock
formation often takes place in this environment, it is also called the "Primary Environment". Metamorphic
conditions, magmatic, igneous conditions, activities in the vicinity of plate boundaries and sometimes deep
seated sedimentary conditions are geological activities that are prominent in the endogenic environment. The
endogenic environment can be characterized by high temperature, high pressure, lack og free oxygen, lack of
free water, restricted movements of fluids.

The Exogenic Environment

- Is the surficial environment in which forces are mainly driven by solar energy. It is also termed the
"Secondary Environment". Geological activities present in the exogenic environment are, weathering, erosion,
transportation and sedimentation. The exogenic environment can be characterized by low temperature, low
pressure, abundant free oxygen, abundant water, free movement of solutions.

These two environments are connected to each other and material gets transported from one to another
creating a closed system.