Our project was to find an issue in a specific ecosystem and come up with an innovative way to solve it. Our group chose to help the Atlantic Ocean. We decided to help the Atlantic Ocean. We focused on the negative affects of Chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere. We did our best to stop the chlorofluorocarbons by informing our classmates about the issue and showing them places they can donate to help the ocean.
Concepts:
Carrying Capacity- The amount of life an area can maintain
Abiotic- a non-living object in an environment (rock, air, water)
Biotic- a living object in an environment. Any organism is biotic
Carbon Cycle- The natural occurrence of carbon going through stages and processes such as photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and the burning of fossil fuels
Nitrogen Cycle- The natural occurrence of nitrogen going through stages and processes such as being atmospheric nitrogen which then gets converted into nitrates and nitrites from bacteria. One nitrate compound is ammonia. Decomposition is one step of the nitrogen cycle
Water Cycle- The natural occurrence of water going through stages and processes such as evaporation, condensation, and precipitation
Individual- A single organism in the environment.
Population- More than one members of a species in an area.
Community- The interaction of more than one populations in an area
Ecosystem- The interaction of the biotic and abiotic factors in that area.
Biome- A specific large ecosystem that can be found in many areas around the world with the shared characteristics of climate and adaptations of the species living there.
Biosphere- The global connection of all ecosystems and biomes in one huge system.
Competition- When two species fight over the same resource and both are negatively affected. Narwhal and seal have competition over the Arctic Cod
Parasitism- When one species gains something from another in the expense of the other species. The Atlantic Sea Lamprey attaching to a tuna
Mutualism- When two species gain something from one another. Cleaner fish eating the dirt off of whales like the bowhead whale
Commensalism- When one species gains something from another species without the other species gaining or losing anything. A barnacle on a bowhead whale
Biomass- The weight of organisms in an area
Food Web- a diagram showing the transfer of energy to multiple species
Food Chain- A simple diagram showing the transfer of energy from one species to the next.
10% Rule- Every level up on the trophic levels gains only 10% of the energy from the next lowest level.
Limiting Factors- Factors that limit or reduce the growth of a community. (the amount of food and water keeps the amount of life to a specific limit)
Trophic Levels- The levels of an ecosystem correlating to the transfer of energy.
Producer- An organism that creates it's own energy.
Consumer- An organsim that needs to consume another organism for it's energy.
Chlorofluorocarbons- (CFC) A compound that is the main cause of Ozone depletion.
Climate- The normal weather patterns of an area.
Ozone- The layer of O3 and O2 in the stratosphere that protects the Earth from the Sun's UV radiation.
Biodiversity- The diversity of living creatures in an ecosystem.
Reflection: I enjoyed learning about the ecosystems in the Atlantic Ocean but I was also horrified at the dangers of CFCs in the atmosphere. This project was a challenge because there was not one day with my entire group was at school at the same time, but we still worked pretty well together. I feel that my group did good work on this project.