Transcript Sustainability of Ecosystems - Prairie Spirit School Division

At the completion of this unit, the students should
be able to answer the following key questions
(as per the Sask. Learning curriculum):
 1. What is sustainability?
 2. How does biodiversity indicate the health of
an ecosystem?
 3. What natural factors affect the stability of an
ecosystem
 4. How do energy and matter flow through an
ecosystem?
 5. How do human activities affect the
sustainability of an ecosystem
 6. How can humans in general improve the
sustainability of our ecosystems?
What is Sustainability
Sustainability is the ability to endure
 In Ecology – the ability of an ecosystem
to stay healthy and thrive.
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Human impact…
What is your ecological footprint?
 What are some things you can do to
improve your ecological footprint?
 Why should we care?
 How does the information from each of
the quizes compare?
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How does our footprint (canadians)
compare to other countries? What ‘s the
difference between the countries i.e.
what makes it worse or better?
Websites
http://www.myfootprint.org/
 http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index
.php/gfn/page/calculators/
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Find a place outside, look around.
 How many different plants and animals
do you see. List them (describe/ draw a
picture if you don’t know the name).
 Look at the ground in the area you are
in. How many plants and animals do you
see in the immediate area.
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What is biodiversity?
Biodiversity within Ecosystems
Biodiversity of an ecosystem is the
measurement of the number of species
within that ecosystem.
 It involves the dynamic abilities of
species to adapt to and survive in an
ever changing world.
 There are presently over 10 million
different species on Earth.
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Each member of an ecosystem is a
valuable participant in the stability of that
area.
 All organisms have a niche, or role to
play within that ecosystem. Whether
they are predators, prey, producers or
decomposers, their position is valuable
to the sustainability of the region.
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Even now, biodiversity is disappearing at
an alarming rate. It has been estimated
that nearly 50% of all mammals and
birds could become extinct within the
next century
Vocabulary – define the
following:
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abiotic
biodiversity
biosphere
biotic
ecological footprint
ecosystems
efficiency
energy
matter
overexploit
productivity
resilience
stability