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What is an Ecosystem? |
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Within all species, individuals interact with each other - feeding together, mating together, and living together. Some species have a pecking order as well, and each individual has a role to play within it.
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The whole earth's surface can be described by a series of interconnected ecosystems. All living beings form and are part of ecosystems. They are diverse and always changing. Within an ecosystem, all aspects of the environment (both living things and their non-living settings) interact and affect one another. Every species affects the lives of those around them. A small ecosystem in the boreal forest might look something like this: in the summertime, trees in forests (that produce oxygen used by living things through photosynthesis) lower the temperature in the forest for communities in the hot summer months. In turn, some members of the communities will probably feed upon the tree to gain nourishment, thus affecting or stunting the tree's growth. Different areas in the world house different ecosystems. For example, you won't find an elephant or a tropical rainforest in Alberta! The different world ecological units are called biomes and they each have different flora, fauna, landscapes and weather patterns. An ecosystem is not the same thing as a biome. A biome is a large unit that is home to many different ecosystems. Within Alberta, there are six different biomes that each have their own specific flora and fauna distribution. These regions are: Grassland, Parkland, Boreal Forest, Foothill, Rocky Mountain and the Canadian Shield, all indicated on the map of Alberta's Regions.
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Updated August 13th, 2001 by AB |