Module 8: Environment
• Abiotic factors: non-living: air, water, sand
• Abundance: plenty
• Adapt: become suitable to a
situation
• Adaptation: way in which
organism has
become suitable to a
situation
• Arid: dry
• Biotic factors: living organisms: plants and animals
• Bush encroachment: taking over of grassland
by fast growing bush
• Conserve: to keep from loss
• Cull: kill surplus animals to control
population
• Community: all the plants and animals in the
ecosystem
• Deplete: use up
• Eco-friendly: not harmful to
environment
• Guano: dung sea birds
• Habitat: natural environment
• Microscopic: cannot be seen without
microscope
• Pant: breathe quickly
• Phytoplankton: microscopic sea plants
• Scavenger: animal that does not hunt
and kill for itself
• Soil erosion: gradual wearing away of
soil
• Sparse: widely spread
• Species: kind or group: animal /
plant
• Zooplankton: microscopic sea animals
Ecosystems
• An area where living things interact with one
another
• Organisms depends on each other for survival
• Organisms can be divided in three main
groups:
• Producers
• Consumers
• decomposers
Producers
• All plants
• Make their own food from sunlight
• Photosynthesis
• Plants need water, carbon dioxide and energy
from the sun to produce their own food
Consumers
• All animals
• Cannot make own food
• Have to feed on plants
• Primary Consumers – feed on plants, called herbivores
• Secondary consumers – may be omnivores or
carnivores
• Omnivores feed on plants and animals
• Carnivores – feed only on animals
• Scavengers – carnivores that do not hunt from
themselves
Decomposers
• All living things die.
• Dead organisms decomposed by bacteria
• These bacteria = decomposers
• Decomposers break down remains of dead
organisms into nutrients
• Released into soil
Cycle of Life
• Plants take nutrients from soil
• Nutrients passed on to animals when eating
plants (producers)
• And then to carnivores eating producers.
• When animals or plants die – nutrients are
released back to the soil.
Food Chains
• Flow of energy from one organism to another
• Arrows in food chain show direction of energy
• In a food chain each organism is connected to
one other organism
• Who eats who?
• Arrow points to eater.
Food webs
• Food web connects food chains
• In a food web – organisms can be eaten by
different organisms
• Connects all organisms to each other
Namibia Ecosystems
• Sea ecosystem
• Desert ecosystem
• Savanah ecosystem
Factors defining ecosystems
1. Rainfall:
• Namibia (arid) dry,
• low rainfall
• Interpret rainfall
• map page 143.
2. Temperature
• Dry country
• Difference between day and night
temperature large
• Most noticeable in desert – least at coast
• Average temperatures vary month to month
• Measured in degrees Celsius
• Thermometer must be outside – shady place –
1 metre above ground
The Sea Ecosystem
• Abiotic Factors:
• Part of the Atlantic Ocean
• Namibia Coastline = 1570 km
• Sole right to use coastal waters
• Average temperature = 14°C
• Cold Benguela Current from Antartica
• Upwelling = Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon
that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and
usually nutrient-rich water towards the ocean surface,
replacing the warmer, usually nutrient-depleted surface
water. The nutrient-rich upwelled water stimulates the
growth and reproduction of primary producers such
as phytoplankton.
• Regular rise and fall of water surface is called tides.
• Caused by gravitational pulls of Moon and Sun / rotation
• Every 6 hours
Biotic Factors:
• Plants of the sea:
• marine plants – produce own food sunlight
• Do not need roots
• Obtain water & minerals from seawater
• Most sea plants = algae
• Upper layer of sea = microscopic floating plants – phytoplankton,
producers
• So abundant – provide 50% of all oxygen in our atmosphere
• Seaweeds also algae – much bigger
• Largest – Kelp
• Grow in shallow water – rocky shores
• No roots, stems or leaves
• Have blades and holdfasts
• Blade absorb water and carbon dioxide from seawater – uses sunlight to
convert them in food
• Holdfast cling to rocks –
• Important food for marine animals – provide shelter and habitat for
smaller marine animals
• People use seaweed: health and beauty products, food, fertilizer, paints,
toothpaste and gels
Decomposer. A few decomposers of the
ocean would be bacteria, fungus, marine
worms, sea slugs, sea worms, and brittle
stars.
Animals of the Sea Ecosytem
• Smallest – zooplankton
• Feed on phytoplankton
• Zooplankton eaten by pilchards, anchovies, sardines and whales.
• Dolphins, seals and whales – marine mammals
• Have lungs
• Whales and dolphins have blowholes – nostrils
• Breathe without whole heads out of water
• Adapted to live in water
• Streamlined , flippers instead of legs
• Dolphins never on land, seals mate and give birth on land
• Seals two layers of fur and one layer of fat – keep warm in cold
water
• Seals killed for fur and feed on fish
• Jackal and brown hyena – land mammals – along coast
• Main scavengers of the coast
• Fish different body shapes – streamlined
• Have gills and breathe water
• Water in mouths – close – water being forced over gills
• Oxygen absorbed and carbon dioxide released
• Fins for swimming, bodies scales
• Eggs for survival – mostly food for others
• Pilchards, sardines, anchovies, hake, mackerel, kingklip, snoek, tuna, cob and
steenbras
• Custaceans – rock lobsters and crabs
• Associated with upwelling – large quantities at Luderitz
• Red brown
• Five pairs of legs
• Two pairs of antennae
• Nine years to mature
• Can live up to forty years
• Eggs by age of five
• Lobster Season : 1 November – 31 May
• Strict regulations
• Mussels, oysters , limpets and squid – molluscs
• Mussels are filter feeders – filter plankton out the water
• Food for people, fish, crabs and lobsters
• Walvisbay on Namibian Coast – Wetland
• Terns, gulls, flamingoes, plovers, pelicans and cormorants – common birds
How do humans benefit
• Fishing industry
• Recreational fisherman
• Commercial fisherman
• Marketing fish – large companies, Walvisbay and
Luderitz
• Saltworks
• Guano platform
• Harbours
• Tourists
• Sport and recreation
Harmful impact of humans on the sea
ecosystem
• Over-fishing
• Illegal fishing
• Pollution of water
• Oil spills
• Driving on beaches
• Litter in the sea - plastic
Desert Ecosystem
• Abiotic Factors
• Very little rainfall
• Oldest and driest
• Very hot and cold at night
• Because air is so dry
• Heat gained during day – lost quickly at night
• No moisture to hold the heat
• Low rainfall and extreme temperatures difficult
for organism to survive
Namib Desert
• Northern Namib (Skeleton Coast)
• Central Namib (Naukluft Park)
• Southern Namib (Sperrgebiet)
• Precipitation in form of fog
• Warm air carrying moisture blows over Benguela
Current, cooled and air condenses
• Condensed moisture is fog
• Because of fog – more animals than any other desert in
the world
• Closes area to coast receives fog
• Adapted to use water of fog
Biotic factors
• Animals and plants have adapted to the
following conditions:
• Lack of water
• Strong winds
• Extreme temperatures
• Fog
Plants of the Desert
• Plants have adapted:
• Lichens get water from fog
• They have fleshy stems to store water
• Few or no leaves – Lithops
• Leaves are very small and covered with waxy
layer to avoid losing water
• Plants produce lots of seeds
• Some roots just below the surface
Adaptation Purpose
Succulent leaves, swollen Store water
stems, branches or roots
Few leaves Loss of little water
Small leaves Loss little water, prevent
evaporation
No Leaves (Nara) Large reduction water loss
Hairy leaves Reduce water loss, reflect
sunlight
Seasonal leaves Prevent loss in dry season
Leaves with waxy layers Reduce water loss
Thorns Protection
Long roots Deep underground water
Camouflage Protection
Stomata on top of leaves Absorb fog water
Poisonous Protection
Mat of roots Absorb water from rain and
fog
Fast Life Cycle Produce seeds quickly
Animals of the desert
• Gemsbok and ground squirrels are common mammals
• Gemsbok or Oryx special adaptation:
• Special cooling system cooling down blood from heart to
brain
• Blood warmer than 40 °C will damage brain
• Special blood vessels in snout
• Blood vessels carrying blood from the heart to the brain
pass close by this special network – cooled down
• Temperature of blood reaching the brain is lower than rest
of the body
• Does not need to drink water
• Get water from melons and Nara plants
• Ground Squirrel – protects itself from the sun – flaring its bushy tail,
bending it over back and head - umbrella
• Hottest part of day in burrows
• Lying on stomach to cool down quickly
• Stomach less hair
• Side-winding adder and desert plated lizards – reptiles of the desert
• Covered with scales – prevent loss of water
• Buries itself in sand – heat / prevent loss water
• It moves sideways – only two parts of body touch sand
• Desert Plated Lizard – able to move over hot sand
• Only two feet contact with sand – other cool down
• Head Standing Beetle – insect
• Has adapted to use body to collect water from fog
• Climb to top of dune – stand head facing down
• Water condenses into tiny droplets on back – runs down to mouth
• Buries themselves in soft dune sand (hot days / cold nights)
• African Ostrich- large flightless bird:
• Use wings to cool them down
• Allow wings to hang down when hot – exposing bare skin
• Body heat is lost quickly from this bare skin
• Will also use wings to provide shade for their chicks
• Namaqua Sandgrouse:
• Only eat dry seeds
• Not enough water to survive
• Fly long distances to find water in mornings
and evenings
• Chicks cannot fly these distances
• Male sandgrouse have special adapted
feathers on chest and bellies
• Feathers absorb and hold water
• Male birds soak their feathers in water and fly
back to chicks
How do people benefit from desert
• Tourists
• Recreational area
• Home to many unique animal and
plant species protected in
reserves
• Diamonds in Sperrgebiet
Harmful impact of humans
• Irresponsible off-road driving
• Litter everywhere
• Subsistence farmers – overgrazing
• Noise pollution
• Removal of desert succulent plants by
irresponsible people
Savanna Ecosystem
• Abiotic factors:
• Yearly rainfall: 50-700 mm
• Rainy season: November – April
• Winter temp: -3°C - 15°C
• Summer temp: 31°C - 47°C
• Trees, grass and shrubs
• Most of Namibia part of savanna
• Average rainfall much higher than desert
• Difference of temperatures not as extreme
• Soil is mostly mixture of sandy and loamy soils
Biotic factors:
• Large part of Namibia
• Northeast – thickly vegetated
• Central: scattered trees
• South: few trees
• Much more living organism than desert
• More water
• Richer biodiversity
• Savanna: semi-arid area except in North East
Plants and trees:
• Grasses most common and abundant plants
• Most important producers of the savanna
• Animals eat leaf blades, stems and seeds
• Roots – mat below surface of the ground
• Enables high absorption of water
• Holds plant and serves as anchor – prevents soil erosion
• Grasses have small flowers but large quantities of pollen / seeds
• Pollinated by wind
• Grasslands with scattered trees: Camelthorn, Mopani, Makalani Palm, Boabab,
Marula and Sweet Thorn
• Most trees are acacia trees
• Black thorn bush – widely spread
• Taking over off grasslands – bush
encroachment
• Devils’ Claw is a creeper – leaves hairy
leathery to prevent loss of water
• Swollen succulent leaves to store water
• People use roots as natural medicine
• Claws have hooks – animals disperse seeds
• Tsamma Melon – sweet juicy fruit
• Source of water
Animals of the savanna
• Herbivorous animals: kudu, zebra,
impala, warthog, locusts and giraffe
• Stock with livestock
• Cheetah typical carnivore
People benefits
• Most people live in savanna
• Farms produce food employ people
• Sustainable use of natural resources
• Large protection areas like Etosha National
Park earns foreign currency
Harmful impact of humans
• Habitat destruction
• Air pollution
• Water pollution
• Noise pollution
• Over-grazing
• Deforestation
• Depletion of natural resources
• Exploitation of animals and plants
• Over-population
Storage and Conservation of Water
How???
• No large gardens
• Indigenous plants – less water
• Water garden late afternoon
• Re-use bath water – water garden
• Check taps and repair leaks
• Report broken pipes
• Fix leaking toilets
• Cover swimming pools
• Shower before you bath
• Do not wash hands under running water
• Use water in glass when brush your teeth
• Use bucket of water when you wash cars
• Catch rainwater
• Do not pollute water
Conserve Soil
• Do not allow over-grazing
• Put back in soil what you take out
• Do not cut down trees
• Do not pollute soil with oil and
chemicals
• Prevent spread of bush fires