Copyright © 2013 by Great River Technologies 1 POGIL 2.4.1: Biodiversity – Life on Earth Review _______________________________________ **Read Chapter 2.4.1 of the E-text and then complete this part of the POGIL worksheet. **Please fill out worksheet in a different font or text color (green or blue) so it is easy to distinguish your answer from the questions. READ THIS: Biodiversity is life on earth in all of its forms, including animals, plants, microbes, algae, fungi, and invertebrates. Biodiversity also includes genetic diversity, species diversity and ecosystem diversity. It is the web of life that joins and integrates the carbon cycle, the water cycle and the nitrogen cycle with the mineral fabric of the planet creating the synergisms that we call ecosystems. EQ1. Define biodiversity in your own words. Define resilience in your own words. Biodiversity is 3 things: diversity of species, diversity of ecosystems and diversity of genetics. Resilience can be defined as the ability to recover function after a disturbance. In an ecosystem this means still providing all the same services after a disturbance as before the disturbance. As species are lost, the ecosystem becomes less resilient because there are less species to fill “roles” in that ecosystem so it cannot “bounce back” as easily. IQ2. Describe 2 specific examples that explain the relationship between biodiversity and provisioning services. Biodiversity provides different species that make up our ecosystems that can provide us with a variety of medicines, different types of trees for us to build with (hard woods and soft woods), and provides a diversity of animals and plants for us to eat. We would not just want to eat corn and soy and wheat all the time. IQ3. Describe 2 specific examples that explain the relationship between biodiversity and cultural services. Biodiversity provides a multitude of different types of ecosystems for us to explore (savanna, short and tall grasslands, rainforests (both temperate and tropical) and many more. The biodiversity of a place has helped to shape each and every culture from the food that defines that culture, to the species of importance to a culture and it spiritual connection to the land. For example, salmon in the northwest of the US. IQ4. Describe 2 specific examples that explain the relationship between biodiversity and regulating services. A couple of examples, you will most likely have different ones! Biodiversity provides many species that have different roles. Mangroves provide a flood barrier from increased water flows, as these are lost we lose their flood regulation services. Also, coral reefs provide the regulation service of creating a barrier to large tidal events. As Coral reefs are lost, they do not perform these services as well IQ5. Describe 2 specific examples that explain the relationship between biodiversity and supporting services.Copyright © 2013 by Great River Technologies 2 Biodiversity provides many different species that have different roles in ecosystems. Some of these species are nitrogen fixers. These species are an important part of the nutrient cycle, taking atmospheric nitrogen and making it available to plants! Also Coral reefs provide nutrients cycling and primary production in the ocean, very important role! Watch videos and then answer the following question. - ”Why Biodiversity Matters” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5ssjM2Fjuc - “Earth Focus Episode 41 – Biodiversity and Health” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BO4Rag4bcBU EQ6. How many species are there? In 3 to 5 complete sentences describe why biodiversity is important. From 2.4 in text: there are Approximately 1.7+ million species that have been classified (table 2.4.1). Estimates of total numbers range from 3-100 million that are out there that are not classified. From the video: Biodiversity has its own intrinsic value. Biodiversity is worth 30times as much as the economy in importance to our way of life… READ THIS: An ecosystem by definition is the dynamic grouping of the biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living or physical, including climate) interacting as a functional unit such that it perpetuates more or less indefinitely over time. Ecosystem types include recognizable systems of interaction such as deserts, deciduous forests, tropical rainforests, coniferous forests, grasslands, and tundra. The biotic element within each ecosystem is comprised of a diversity of a diversity of species including plants, microbes, mammals, fish, amphibians etc. that have evolved with the physical elements of that ecosystem. All species require certain physical conditions, including temperature and precipitation regimes, water, nutrients from the soil or from food resources, and in most cases mates that are diverse genetically. Many plants also require pollinators. In addition each individual of any species needs a certain amount of living space that is relative to the needs of that species. Together these requirements are provided to individuals by their habitat. Biodiversity creates resilience that supports ecosystem function in a variety of conditions. Ecologists Walker et al. (2004) describe ecological resilience as “the capacity of a system to absorb disturbance and reorganize while undergoing change so as to still retain essentially the same function, structure, identity, and feedbacks”. Resilience thus is the capacity to absorb change while maintaining long-term behavior. AQ7. Consider an ecosystem with high biodiversity and one with low biodiversity. Develop a reasoning that supports the concept that having multiple species with similar function improves the resilience of an ecosystem and write it down in a grammatically correct sentence(s). More species more duplicate roles filled (nitrogen fixers, erosion control, shade, etc). As species are lost there are less species to fill these necessary niches, which decreases the resilience of the system, in effect decreasing the ability of the ecosystem to bounce back after a disturbance.Copyright © 2013 by Great River Technologies 3 IQ8. Consider the wheat or soybean system (look at an image of a wheat or soybean farm). Humans utilize only a few varieties of wheat or soybeans for mass production. What are two risks associated with low diversity crop systems? Decreased genetic diversity exposes the crop to disease or pests. In order to combat increased pests we add