Climate Change and Ecology

UNIT 4 DISCUSSION

mites > ants > spider > bird > cat > hawk

Humans may be found all over the food web: they are producers and carnivores and every human is really different, so some might produce more than others and others might not consume any meat at all.

Some advantages of being part of a food web rather than a food chain are that the food web is more complexly organized and provides more options for food sources.

In the Lake Michigan food web, it is not possible to identify the most important producer because there are so many channels and ins-and-outs linking one animal to another.

Humans could impact the food web by disrupting the relationships between animals through pollution in which an environment is destroyed and through targeting in which a specific species is targeted for eradication. Both will result in changes for that environment.

When a new predator enters into an existing ecosystem, species there must learn to adapt to avoid being prey and the predator must adapt to survive.

Steps should not be taken to eradicate this species unless it is demonstrably having a negative effect on the ecosystem. If so, fisherman could be incentivized to capture and kill this species.

UNIT 5 DISCUSSION

There are not many natural imbalances in my region. We do live in a valley, so we get a lot of pollen in the air in the warmer months and that gives everyone allergies.

Whenever we have tornados in the area, we get tornado warnings from the local stations. Everyone is put on high alert.

People in our area prepare for tornados, which don’t come often, by having their local towns issue warnings over loud speakers in case TV stations go offline. We have never had FEMA in the area, but FEMA will respond to massive tornado damage.

Some of my classmates live in the plains and have a higher tornado threat than we do here because of the flat lands out there and the way the air pressurizes. Rescue efforts are more intensive and practiced there because of the tornado alley.

Climate change could impact my area by causing more hurricanes to barrel up the east coast. We are a few hundred miles off the coast, but we get very high winds if a strong enough hurricane comes up the coast. Climate change could cause the frequency and ferocity of these hurricanes to increase, which would impact our area and could lead to wind damage.

UNIT 6 DISCUSSION

The gray bat is an endangered species in our region, though they seem to be common enough and get into the attics of people’s houses sometimes. It is considered endangered because it plays such an important role in consuming mosquitoes and because for a while people were killing them whenever they were found in homes. Components that make some species more vulnerable to extinction include ecological and environmental factors—such as what is preying on this species and is there enough food in the ecological system for this species to survive. The extinction of other species can impact the endangered species especially if the species was a source of food. Decisions about recovery and preservation are difficult because the bats are seen as a nuisance by many while at the same time they serve a very good purpose, which is eating up bothersome insects too. Ethical responsibilities that humans have to other creatures on the planet include being respectful and appreciative: we are all part of the same planet and rely upon one another to make it work. I would be willing to make some sacrifices to help protect another species, so long as it did not intrude upon my ability to make a living for my family.