Biomas in trophic levels!(:

 Biomass is the amount of energy stored in an organism that is passed on to the next trophic level. It is important to measure it because it determines the conditions of an ecosystem: if it is healthy or not. There are different ways to measure biomass:

Biodiversity is the greatest treasure we have... Its diminishment is to be prevented at all cost. - Thomas Eisner

The Convention on Biological Diversity defines biodiversity as:"the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are a part; this includes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems."

"Science is the systematic classification of experience." George Henry Lewis

The classification can be defined as the categorization of different elements that share characteristics, in order to have order, and to work easier with the whole set of elements. Classification for organisms is useful for studying each different organism easier and grouping the ones with similar characteristics. The classification of organisms has evolved with scientific discoveries and human experience.
The classification of organisms exist since primitive cultures needed it to survive, by knowing what was safe to use or eat, and what didn't. One of the most ancient documentation that exist about organisms classification is Aristotle's division of plants and animals. But with the progress of science, that classification was not enough and, little by little a much more complex and complete system of classification named Hierarchical System of Organism Classification. This classification normally includes 7 levels:

1. Kingdom
2. Phylum
3. Class
4. Order
5. Family
6. Genus
7. Species

However, super, sub and infra-groups may occur.

Savanna♥

Savanna is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the small amout of trees, which are either too small or too spaced, and this leads to an unclosed canopy. Savannas are characterized by their seasonal water availability caused by the low precipitation and the higher temperature during dry season.
A food chain that is present in the Savanna is the following: (shea fruit-->african elephant-->lion)

With information about the quantity of each organism in certain area, several ecological pyramids can be done in order to have a graphical representation of the relationships between the different tropical levels. The pyramids that can be generated are:

• Pyramid of numbers: which represents the storages found at each trophic level.

•  Pyramid of bimass: that represent the standing stock at each trophic level.

• Pyramid of Productivity: represents the flow of energy through each trophic level. 

Trophic Levels

The food webs are organized in thropic levels that are the hierarchal position that an organism or group of organisms occupies in an ecosystem.

Ecosystems in the World

An ecosystem is the gruoup of factors (biotic and abiotic) that interact in a certain region in order to coexist.
A biome is a large geographical area of distinctive plant and animal groups, which are adapted to that particular environment.The different biomes around the Earth are determined by the climate and the geography of the region. These 2 factors, in addition to some others, are the ones that determine the flora and fauna of each particular ecosystem.  

A system is...

• a special relationship between several elements
• a set of variables that are dependent from each other, which means that a change in any, would produce a change in every part of the system. 
• a group of various elements that uses inputs, processes and outputs in order to maintain the balance or to produce an specific outcome

Introduction(Y)

This blog will contain a brief summary of the most important and relevant topics seen in the course of Environmental Systems and Societies.