What member of an ecosystem produces oxygen, and also provides homes for animals?
Wildlife is important to the heritage, culture, and heart of America, and we want to preserve it as a legacy for our children. Show Although you cannot put a value on all the ways the natural world enriches our lives, there are many tangible benefits to living in a world with strong and healthy ecosystems. We have a stronger economy, diverse food products, and advancements in medical research as a result of wildlife and natural ecosystems. The value of nature to people has long been recognized, but in recent years, the concept of ecosystem services has been developed to describe these various benefits. An ecosystem service is any positive benefit that wildlife or ecosystems provide to people. The benefits can be direct or indirect—small or large. Four Types of Ecosystem ServicesThe Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), a major UN-sponsored effort to analyze the impact of human actions on ecosystems and human well-being, identified four major categories of ecosystem services: provisioning, regulating, cultural and supporting services. 1. Provisioning Services 2. Regulating Services 3. Cultural Services 4. Supporting Services In Focus: WetlandsWetlands are one of the most threatened ecosystems in the United States. We have lost more than 50 percent of wetlands in the contiguous United States. Just a quick overview of some of the services provided by wetlands shows how important they are to people and why we should work to protect and restore them. Many of the fish we rely on for food spend at least part of their life cycle in wetland habitats. Wetlands retain and control flood waters. Wetland plants absorb nutrients and chemicals from the water, and they act as a natural filtration system. Wetland plants and soils store large amounts of carbon that, if released, would contribute to climate change. Wetlands are also a vital habitat for migratory birds, fish, and mammals, and their loss impacts recreation and biodiversity. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style Copy CitationShare Share Share to social media Facebook Twitter URL Give Feedback External Websites Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Your Feedback Submit FeedbackThank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Join Britannica's Publishing Partner Program and our community of experts to gain a global audience for your work!External Websites
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By The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Edit History Table of Contentsoxygen cycle See all media Related Topics:oxygen biogeochemical cycle...(Show more) See all related content → oxygen cycle, circulation of oxygen in various forms through nature. Free in the air and dissolved in water, oxygen is second only to nitrogen in abundance among uncombined elements in the atmosphere. Plants and animals use oxygen to respire and return it to the air and water as carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 is then taken up by algae and terrestrial green plants and converted into carbohydrates during the process of photosynthesis, oxygen being a by-product. The waters of the world are the main oxygen generators of the biosphere; their algae are estimated to replace about 90 percent of all oxygen used. Oxygen is involved to some degree in all the other biogeochemical cycles. For example, over time, detritus from living organisms transfers oxygen-containing compounds such as calcium carbonates into the lithosphere. Despite the burning of fossil fuel and the reduction of natural vegetation (on land and in the sea), the level of atmospheric oxygen appears to be relatively stable because of the increase in plant productivity resulting from agricultural advances worldwide. Which organism provides oxygen and food in an ecosystem?Plankton may be small, but these tiny drifters play a huge role in aquatic ecosystems. Many animals, including whales, rely on them for food. Plankton that are plants, known as phytoplankton, grow and get their own energy through photosynthesis and are responsible for producing an estimated 80% of the world's oxygen.
What are the 4 types of ecosystems?Types of Ecosystem. Forest Ecosystem.. Grassland Ecosystem.. Tundra Ecosystem.. Desert Ecosystem.. What part of an ecosystem are plants animals and people?Ecosystems contain biotic or living, parts, as well as abiotic factors, or nonliving parts. Biotic factors include plants, animals, and other organisms. Abiotic factors include rocks, temperature, and humidity.
How does an ecosystem support living organisms?Ecosystems provide many of the basic services that make life possible for people. Plants clean air and filter water, bacteria decompose wastes, bees pollinate flowers, and tree roots hold soil in place to prevent erosion.
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