Ecosystems

A small – scale study of the school grounds

What is an ecosystem?

“An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all plants, animals and

micro-organisms (biotic factors) in an area functioning together with all of the non-living physical (abiotic) factors of the environment. It can be made up of

a number of different habitats”

Biotic or abiotic?

Soil Water

Nutrients

Sunlight – light and heat

Animals

Plants

Air

Decomposers

Image from http://www.bexley.gov.uk (Artist; Barry Small)

Your school ecosystem

• You’ve probably never really thought of your school as an ecosystem

• Can you think of examples of the different habitats which make up your school grounds ecosystem?

• Which living things have you seen which live in your school grounds ecosystem?

Source: field-studies-council.org

This may help…

The fieldwork

Aims

1. To survey

a) The soilsb) The microclimate

at several different locations within your school grounds

2. To analyse and compare results, and use them to decide on the most suitable location for a new vegetable allotment

Soil

• One of the Earth’s most important natural resources

• Like a thin carpet covering the land, between the atmosphere and lithosphere

Image from Soil-Net.com

What is it?

• Soil consists of a mixture of sand, silt and clay, and organic matter on top

• Different soils have different proportions of each of these

• The texture, pH and hydrology of each different type varies

A very fine, sandy soil

A clay soil (dry)

Images from Soil-Net.com

Soil surveys

You will …

1. Use a key to find out the type of soil

2. Test the pH of the soil

3. Test the infiltration rate of the soil

in each location

Image from Soil-Net.com

Microclimates – a definition

A microclimate is where there are local differences in the climatic conditions.

These conditions can vary quite dramatically in a very small area

The variations are caused by a number of environmental factors – can you think of any?

Microclimate surveys

• Ground surface (cover and colour), aspect – the direction the site faces, shelter / exposure all affect the microclimate

• For each study site in your school grounds, you’ll be recording…

The aspect using a compass

The temperature using a thermometer

Wind speed and direction

Precipitation, using a rain gauge

What next?

• Read the instructions in the fieldwork booklet and other resources carefully

• Use the map to identify the study sites within your school grounds

• Watch and listen to your teacher carefully as they explain / demonstrate the fieldwork techniques

• For each site, fill in the data collection tables fully and accurately

Follow up: Part 1

Analysing your data

• Read the instructions in the ‘follow up resource 1’ carefully

• Complete all tasks

• There are extension activities to stretch you

Follow-up: Part 2

A school vegetable garden

You are going use the data from your fieldwork to;

• Decide which would be the most suitable site for a vegetable garden in your school grounds

• Research and make decisions about which vegetables would be the best to grow in your garden

Image from gardenorganic.org.uk

Small to big

• If soil and climatic conditions can vary in as small an area as that of your school grounds…

• Think how they’ll vary across the UK…

• Visit http://www.landis.org.uk/soilscapes/ to find out!

What about in a biome?

“A biome is a very large ecosystem, e.g. hot desert, tropical rainforest,

deciduous forest”

Hot, dry exposed. Highly alkaline soils, low in nutrients

Hot and wet. Sheltered. Acidic soils, poor stored nutrients