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River Ecosystem Article
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A Terrestrial Ecosystem is a functioning community of plant and animal life that exists away from an aquatic environment.
from:A terrestrial ecosystem relates to the specific environment that contains a specific diversity of plant and animal life. The terrestrial ecosystem includes the living and non living influences, from flora, fauna and fungi to the influences of their surroundings. Without being immersed in water, the terrestrial ecosystem is concerned with the way in which species of plants and animals and insects survive away from the water. Things such as humidity, elevation, salinity, and drainage will impact on the conditions of the living organisms right down to bacteria.
The terrestrial ecosystem will involve the interaction between all the species that inhabit the area, even if they only move through the area on a seasonal basis. The physiognomic-ecological classification system has been implemented to identify ecosystems in order to help protect them. The classification system takes into account all the living organisms and how they interact with the non living organisms and the overall environmental conditions the ecosystem exists within and whether it is an aquatic ecosystem or a terrestrial ecosystem.
The living organisms in any terrestrial ecosystem will include the larger animals, mammals, insects, plants, and fungi right through to the smallest bacteria and moulds. The environment and non living aspect of the terrestrial ecosystem include the landscape, from the formation and types of rocks, soils, underlying water table, climate, elevation, exposure and location.
In the study of a terrestrial ecosystem the number and condition of the living organisms will help in forming a classification for the type of ecosystem. The location of the landscape will also effect the terrestrial ecosystems classification. There are many types of terrestrial ecosystem. A desert landscape with its flora and fauna, the grassland and the mountain landscape all are individual terrestrial ecosystems. Human interaction affects many terrestrial ecosystems and must be taken into account in the protection of the environment.
As with any environmental factors effecting life on earth, studies of any given terrestrial ecosystem will include the life cycle of the trees, grasses, fungi and moulds. Each living species within the terrestrial ecosystem must be taken into account. To study a terrestrial ecosystem the interaction between species and their environment and the unique conditions must be explored. Every terrestrial ecosystem has a climate, culture, environmental impact and symbiotic relationship between living and non living organisms. It is this relationship and the number and diversity of the life forms involved that give an ecosystem its unique value in our world.
A terrestrial ecosystem exists within its own parameters but outside influence can impact upon the species and landforms involved. A terrestrial ecosystem may vary from one side of a mountain to the other, from one part of a stream to another. Any change in soil type, drainage, salinity or even human encroachment can change the whole ecosystem. They are delicate and balanced in nature, and many will not stand the impact of change.
River Ecosystem Specific links
River Ecosystem News
Managing the Mississippi River for ecosystem restoration, navigation and flood protection: A win-win-win
By Alisha A. Renfro, Ph.D., Coastal Scientist, National Wildlife Federation The Mississippi River is one of the largest rivers in the world, carrying water, nutrients and sediment across America’s heartland, through Louisiana and into the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi River Hydrodynamic and Delta Management Study is a Louisiana Coastal Area project that has recently been initiated by the U.S ...
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Wind River, a world leader in embedded and mobile software, announced support, training and services for the development of applications based on the Intel® Data Plane Development Kit .
Read more...Long-term river planning on hold
A one-year hiatus on long-term planning for how to manage the Missouri River and restore its ecosystem has prompted an advocacy group to designate the Missouri the nation's fourth-most endangered river.
Read more...Chub rescue takes to air
Endangered humpback chub are relocated by helicopter along the Colorado River.
Read more...Glen Canyon to see more ‘grand flushes’
Glen Canyon to see more ‘grand flushes’ By brandon loomis The Salt Lake Tribune Published May 23, 2012 10:40PM MDT The Grand Canyon will get more seasonal floods to churn up sediment and build Colorado River beaches and sandbars under a Glen Canyon Dam flow protocol announced Wednesday by U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. The move amounts to a small victory for environmentalists, fish ...
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