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Types of Ecosystems Explained

An ecosystem is defined as a community of living organisms interacting with each other and their non-living environment. There are three main types of ecosystems: natural ecosystems which have very few remaining on Earth like rainforests, artificial ecosystems like cities which are human-made, and freshwater ecosystems which cover a small area but support much life. Terrestrial ecosystems, the largest type, include biomes like tropical rainforests, grasslands, and tundra which are classified based on precipitation and temperature. Oceans cover most of the Earth and can be divided into shallow, deep water, and deep surface ecosystems driven by photosynthetic plankton.

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23 views11 pages

Types of Ecosystems Explained

An ecosystem is defined as a community of living organisms interacting with each other and their non-living environment. There are three main types of ecosystems: natural ecosystems which have very few remaining on Earth like rainforests, artificial ecosystems like cities which are human-made, and freshwater ecosystems which cover a small area but support much life. Terrestrial ecosystems, the largest type, include biomes like tropical rainforests, grasslands, and tundra which are classified based on precipitation and temperature. Oceans cover most of the Earth and can be divided into shallow, deep water, and deep surface ecosystems driven by photosynthetic plankton.

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sriyoga
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ECOSYSTEM

An ecosystem is a community of living organisms in conjunction


with the nonliving components of their environment (things like air,
water and mineral soil), interacting as a system.
These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked
together through nutrient cycles and energy flows.
TYPES OF ECOSYSTEM:
There are very many types of ecosystems out there, but the three major classes
of ecosystems, sometimes referred to as biomes, which are relatively contained,
are the following:

NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS:

There are hardly any on earth. The entire planet Earth can be considered a
natural ecosystem as well as e.g. a pristine rain forest .

Figure 10. Natural


ecosystem planet
earth (Thompson
2010)

Figure 11. Natural


ecosystem rain
forest
(Desktopnature
2010)

Ellenberg (1973) considers the biosphere of the earth the most extensive and
most diverse ecosystem. The biosphere comprises the complete geosphere that is
colonized by biota, including the oceans up to their maximal depth.
ARTIFICIAL ECOSYSTEMS:
Cities, reservoirs and croplands can be looked upon as artificial ecosystems,
because they are built by humans .

Figure 12. City of


Denver, Colorado,
USA (Photo:
Grnwald-Schwark
2009)

Figure 13. Fort


Peck Reservoir,
North Dakota, USA
(Photo: GrnwaldSchwark 2009)

According to Ellenberg (1973), who refers to the artificial ecosystems as "urbanindustrial" ecosystems, they are primarily dependent of energy sources made
accessible by man, e.g. coal, oil, other fossil energy sources and nuclear energy.

FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS:
Relatively small in area ~ 1.8% of earth's surface
Support many species of life including fish, amphibians, insects and plants.
Base of food-web is found in freshwater Plankton (small microscopic
organisms)

TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS:
Many & diverse types of ecosystems. There are seven major types.

Location usually dependent on the latitude of the area, and amount of


precipitation

TYPES
1. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST
Precipitation - 250cm/year
Little temp. variation/abundant moisture
Contains more species than other biomes.

tropical rain forest


Savannas
Precipitation 90-150cm/year
Open, widely spaced trees, seasonal rainfall
Parts of Africa, South America & Australia
Deserts

Precipitation 20cm/year
Dry, sparce vegetation; scattered grasses
Parts of Africa, Asia, Australia, North America

Desert
Temperate Grasslands
Precipitation: 10-60cm/year
Rich soil; tall dense grasses
Central North America; Central Asia
Deciduous forests
75-250cm/year
Warm summers, cool winters

Europe; NE United States;Eastern Canada

Te
mperate/Deciduous forest

Coniferous forest:
20-60cm/year
Short growing season, cold winters.
Northern Asia;Northern North America

Coniferous Forest
Tundra
25cm/year
Open; wind swept; dry; ground always frozen
Far northern Asia; Northern North America

OCEAN ECOSYSTEMS:
Very large amount of Earth is covered by ocean (~75%)
40% of all photosynthesis occurs in oceans.
3 types of oceanic ecosystems
Shallow ocean waters
Deep ocean water
Deep ocean surface.
o Photosynthetic plankton is base of food chain.
o Only occurs in Deep ocean surface & Shallow ocean ecosystems
o No photosynthesis can occur in deep ocean because light cannot
penetrate deeply into water.

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