Life on Planet Earth Notes March 4 Tuesday Announcements exam Thursday Writing assignment due on March 9 Transition Biomes Wetland Land that is saturated with water is the dominant factor determining Soil development and the amount of water it retains changes the Types of plant and animal communities that live in the soil and on its surface The combination of terrestrial and aquatic conditions provides the most characteristics of the soil Wetlands are unique habitats diverse habitat mixtures on Earth Terrestrial habitat Aquatic habitat Anaerobic habitat Water and soil saturation Soil naturally contains air spaces pores Water gradually fills the pores Soil organisms use up any available pockets of air Soil becomes anaerobic without oxygen Anaerobic soils Peat organic soil organic means containing carbon Water saturation prevents decomposition since it has carbon that is why is can burn so well Gley mineral soils Water saturation compacts the soil and prevents oxidation The most important component of wetlands Hydrology The Study of the movement and location of water Marsh and swamps are permanently flooded if you stepped in your foot would be in water Riparian are periodically flooded Fen are permanently saturated very squishy Bog periodically saturated Upland Characteristics of a Marsh Shallow runoff water soil saturation Constant water movement aerobic Excellent wildlife habitat Herbaceous emergent plants Reeds sedges rushes Swamp characteristics Shallow runoff water soil saturation Water often becomes stagnant anaerobic Excellent wildlife habitat Completely or partially wooded with trees Riparian Wetlands Periodic flooding Rarely saturated aerobic Pulse of nutrients movement of water means nutrients flowing Play an important role in soil conservation Traps soil particles with the vegetation Water quality removes pollution fertilizers from water Wildlife corridors fosters wildlife movement from one habitat to another Vernal pools Water from rain snow or runoff Often found in forests Seasonally saturated Seasonal pulses of life Pulses of aerobic anaerobic microbial activity Salamander and frog breeding grounds salamanders travel 100 meters across to their breeding grounds and it only happens if there are vernal pools around Groundwater Wetland Fen Develop where the groundwater encounters the surface Constant saturation of rapidly moving groundwater Nutrient limitation Buildup of organic matter peat Very diverse plant community Micro topography creates different plants and animals Rarest of all wetlands which is why coal is not available everywhere on the planet This is one of the most difficult wetlands to create artificially Home to many endangered species Bog Rain and snow is the only water input Form in depressions Northern hemisphere Carved out by glaciers Gradually fill in Constantly saturated Peatlands very acidic 1st stage of coal formation Home to many endangered species Bog vegetation adaptations Some plants have developed adaptations to deal with bog nitrogen limitation These plants acquire nitrogen from captured insects which they digest Many wetland plants have a special tissue arenchyma that contain large spaces in their stems for air to move to roots Oxygen supports root respiration Oxygen leaking into soil forms a zone which Oxidizes harmful compounds Provides O to nitrifying bacteria that provide the roots with a nitrogen source Mircobial adaptation anaerobic respiration Microbes have developed the ability to use other compounds when oxygen These important transformations help to cycle elements Most important is nitrogen isn t present Amphibians The first vertebrates to adapt to terrestrial environments Live in water with gills then on land with lungs Life cycle of frog eggs tadpole tadpole tadpole froglet adult frog Eyes are positioned on top of their head so they can submerge underwater while hunting Have clear eyelids so they can see underwater with their eyes closed Tongues flick out rapidly to catch food can tell where their prey is based on how the water is moving Masses of eggs have gelatinous cover to protect against infection Bird Adaptation Physical adaptation Webbed feet increase swimming ability Avocet has long bills that allow it to sweep through water for food Behavioral adaptations Snowy egret stands still in the water with wings stretched out because it knows fish are attracted to shade Valuable wetland functions Excellent habitat for plants and animals Removes pollutants Offer flood control one of the main things that we are discovering now An average acre of wetland can store 1 1 5 million gallons of floodwater Soil conservation Natural wetland functionally Is affected greatly by humans The vast majority have been altered or destroyed by drainage for agriculture and expanding population Wetland restoration and management is very important 95 of all wetlands of Ohio are gone Monitoring and protecting wetlands Clean water act 1972 created law that requires no net loss of wetland acreage wetland mitigation Regulatory agency is responsible for the protection of wetlands US army corps of Engineers Effective protection requires effective monitoring techniques Wetland conservation issues Preservations preserving existing wetland areas Restoration restoring degraded wetlands Creation Preservation of existing wetlands Many existing wetlands are threatened primarily by suburban sprawl Most critical conservation aspect Existing wetlands have most dynamics intact Current research and management buffer zones and ecological indicators Restore degraded wetland Primary method is to restore hydrology Often plants and seed are added as well Has moderate success rate Restoration efforts often fall short of optimal Current research and management Long term field studies Create new Wetlands Most difficult of all preservation projects Is virtually impossible with fens and bogs Hydrology is very difficult to restore Current research and management Often studied using experimental manipulation