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What is an ecosystem?• An ecosystem is a dynamic
interaction between plants, animals, microorganisms and their environment working together as a functional unit.
• The largest ecosystems are called biomes.
What makes up an Ecosystem?
Abiotic Factors Biotic FactorsNon-living
Sunlight
Temperature
Precipitation
Water or moisture
Soil
Living
Plants
Animals
The Six Major Ecosystems; also known as Biomes
These Ecosystems can vary from place to place! (click on the buttons to learn about each ecosystem)
Temperate Forest Tropical Rainforest
Desert GrasslandTundra
Ocean/Marine
After learning about all of the different ecosystems…take the quiz!check answers!
Temperate Forest
o Found all over the worldo Mainly in the middle latitudes of the Eartho Very seasonalo Can be broken into two different types of forests:
-Deciduous forests: has trees that lose their leaves-Coniferous forests: mostly pine trees
Click to go back to ecosystems page!
Tropical Rainforest
o Rain forests get 80 inches of rain a year (a lot more compared to the rest of the world)
o The temperature almost never changes-always warm and muggy
o Consists of mostly tall trees that block out the sun and keep other plants from going below them
o The rainforest has different levels where different animals live. Click here to learn more!
o Thousands of species of plants and animals live in the rain forest:-mammals, insects, reptiles, birds, and primates
Click to go back to ecosystems page!
Levels of the Rainforesto Emergent: giant trees that are much taller than
the average canopy height. Houses many birds and insects.
o Canopy: The upper parts of trees. The leafy environment is full of life, including insects, birds, reptiles, mammals, and more!
o Understory: A dark, cool environment under the leaves but not on the ground.
o Forest Floor: Lots of animal life, especially insects. The largest animals in the rainforest usually live here.
Click here to go back to rainforests page!
Desert
o Very hot and dryo Get very little rain each yearo Made of sand and rockso Very few clouds over deserts, which makes it very
hot during the day and cold at nighto What can you find in the desert?
Plants, reptiles, birds, mammals, insects
Click here to go back to ecosystems page!
Grasslands
o Fields of grasso Many types of grasso Grasslands make up a lot of the worldo Grasslands receive from 10 to 30 inches of rain a
yearo Different types of grasslands
click here to learn about the three types of grasslands
o Many different animals live in grasslandsclick here to find out what animals live in grasslands
Click to go back to ecosystems page!
Types of North American Grasslands
1. Tall Grass Prairie-mainly in the eastern portion of the Midwest -grasses often grow to be 5 feet tall-average amount of rain is 30 inches
2. Mixed Grass Prairie-mainly in the middle part of the Midwest-grasses grow to be 2 to 3 feet tall-15 to 25 inches of rain a year-buffalo used to roam this type of prairie
3. Short Grass Prairie-mainly in the western part of the Midwest (near the edges of the desert)-the grasses grow no more than 2 feet tall-close to 10 inches of rain per year-prairie dogs are common in these grasslands
Click here to go back to grasslands page!
Animals of the Grasslandso Elephantso Bisono Black rhinoceroso Black-footed ferreto Brown hyenao Giraffeo Greater prairie chickeno Liono Ostricho Prairie dogo Pronghorno Warthog
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Tundra
o Mostly in the artico The ground is frozen for most of the year, but the
sun does thaw the top of the ground in the summer
o Soil is frozen and trees do not growo Many animals go to the tundra in the summer and
some stay through the wintero The tundra is separated into two types
click here to learn more about the two types
Click to go back to ecosystems page!
Types of Tundrao Alpine (located on mountains throughout the world at
high elevations)-dwarf trees-tussock grasses-small-leafed shrubs-heaths
o Arctic (located in the northern hemisphere around the north pole)-low shrubs-sedges-liverworts-grasses-varieties of flowers
Click here to go back to tundra page!
Oceans
o Most of the Earth is covered with watero Oceans play an important role in the water cycle
click here to learn about the water cycle!o Oceans are saltyo Four major oceans:
Arctic, Pacific, Atlantic, Indiano What lives in the ocean?
click here to find out!
Click to go back to ecosystems page!
Water Cycle
Click here to go back to oceans page!
oWater starts in the clouds, falls as rain, travels to the ocean, where it evaporates into the sky and forms clouds and then repeats itself
Evaporation: when water changes from a liquid to a gas
Ocean Life
o There are many animals that live in the oceano Different types of mammals, invertebrates and
fish all live in the ocean-whales, dolphins, otters, manatees, and seals are examples of mammals-eels, sharks, and rays are examples of fish-crabs, worms, and mollusks are examples of invertebrates
Click here to go back to oceans page!
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