Analyzing Public Service Announcement Limiting Factors Florida

Public Service Announcement: Limiting Factors Florida Factors affecting Florida Ecosystems Public service announcement: 120 seconds (PSA) The term "limiting factor" is defined as any environmental factor capable of preventing a given population from attaining its maximum potential size. Populations cease growing when their surrounding environment cannot support more of their ilk. A population's size may be restricted by nonliving as well as living environmental elements. Food, nutrients, water, shelter, space, light, diseases, predators, and parasites are some limiting factors.

At any given point of time, there is only one limiting factor associated with a specific population. Often, a limiting factor is the lowest score of available resources and dangers. For instance, if food is 1,000 and water available is 500 for a population at one time, its limiting factor will be water at that point in time (Carptow, 2016). Beaches Predators and human development form the limiting factors for beaches. Beaches are home to birds, clams, crabs, and sea turtles, as well as crustaceans and fish.

Aside from the two mentioned above, limiting factors for beaches may be human activities such as air and water pollution, and littering, which constitute major problems. However, humanity has been trying to help these ecosystems by cleaning out litter, reducing pollution, etc., thereby delimiting these areas. Dunes Low-growing vegetation and birds are the life-forms that make their homes in dunes. The limiting factors for dunes are human development, steep slopes, and sands. Prairies Prairies are home to herbivores. Limiting factors for prairies are herbivores and fires.

While the latter curtails tree-growth, it can bring about fresh grass growth. Forest Herbivores (e.g., deer) and predators (e.g. panthers) dwell in forests. Limiting factors in this ecosystem are forest fires, nutrients, predators, space, and light. While fire may benefit plant life in forests, it is harmful to animal species. Light levels in forests are important, as plants -- the first step of nature's food chain -- require photosynthesis to begin making food.

Also, in the absence of sunlight, plants will be unable to carry out life processes such as breathing, which is especially important, as they take in CO2 (carbon dioxide), and expel oxygen that, humanity inhales to live. Moreover, without photosynthesis, the natural food chain cannot continue, as other species will cease to have anything to eat. A key species in the Floridian forest ecosystem is the nocturnal Cuban Tree Frog, shipped from Cuba by boat to other countries and islands.

These are found mostly in isolated regions of Florida's Panhandle and the peninsula. They dwell in natural and urban areas of a number of south Floridian counties, including wildlife refuges and other ecologically valuable places. These frogs live on lizards, insects, mice, other frogs, small snakes, hatching birds, and even on members of their own species.

They spend a majority of their time on and amongst trees and have a depleting impact on the natural ecosystem, as they eat tree frogs, native to the area, causing a decline in their numbers (Gray, 2013). Wetlands The Wetlands comprise of swamps or marshes. Wetlands are of several different types. The Southern Floridian region is chiefly comprised of wetlands, of which the largest is The Everglades, created by a slow-moving, shallow expanse of water.