Back to the Question

Now back to the question-why is the difference between the food transport system in the plants and the animals.

Plants:

The food(glucose) is produced during photosynthesis and transported to other parts of the plant via the phloem and excess is stored as starch.

The water and mineral salts absorbed by the roots are transported to other parts of the plant through the xylem.

Animals:

Food and water passes through various parts of the digestive system in the following order:

Mouth
Esophagus
Stomach
Duodenum
Ileum
Colon
Rectum
Anus
Toilet(joking)

Much digestion takes place in the small intestine and nutients,simple sugars and amino acids are absorbed into the blood stream and to the cells. Fatty acids and glycerol pass through to the lymphatic system.While in the large intestine, water and dissolved salts are absorbed.

This much summarise my 2nd question and this may be my last post.

video

Below is a crazy video about the human digestive system.

Animal digestive systems

Below are different pictures of digestive systems of different animals, which differs from what they eat. But many of them have some things in common-the food which they eats travels from they mouth, down the oesophagus(which is the gullet),into the stomach where food is broken down by the gastric juice, down the small intestine, through the large intestine, stored in the rectum and finally out through the anus. Basically this process takes about 24 to 72 hours.



Earthworm

Rabbit


Human


resources:
http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761575197_2/Digestive_System.html
http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/BIOBK/BioBookDIGEST.html

Transport system in animals

There are a few systems in animals such as the respiratory system, circulatory system...but I will be concentrating on the digestion system...

video

Here's a video with some relavance to the transport system in plants

transport in plants

After doing research on the transport system in plants, i found out that plants transport system is made up of two tubes-the xylem vessels, and the phloem vessels(which I knew).But the interesting part is that the xylem tubes are made of dead cells while the phloem of living ones!!!

Vistit these links for more imformation:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/biology/greenplantsasorganisms/1watertransportrev3.shtml

http://www.justeducation.com/samples/2SS_Transport_Notes%20B1_I_.pdf

Next Topic

Now the next topic-transport in living things.What is the difference between the transportational system of food, waer, and minerals in animals and plants?
I will be doing more research to find out.

Conclusion

After finding out more from my relative,I have drawn one conclusion that deforestation do indeed affect the nutrients cycles.For example the oxygen cycle. Trees take in cabon dioxide and give out oxygen during photosynthesis.When they are cut down, lesser oxygen are produced.
Now on to the next Question...

BBC News on effects on nutrient cycles by deforestation

Here is some news from BBC


Deforestation hits nutrient cycle

Globally, forests are being cleared to open up areas to agriculture
The benefits of cutting down tropical forests in order to convert the nutrient-rich soil into farmland are only short-lived, scientists suggest.
US researchers studied deforested land in Mexico and found that soil levels of phosphorus, a key nutrient for plants, fell by 44% after three growing cycles.

In the long-term, the land risked becoming so degraded that it would be uneconomic to farm, they added.

The findings appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Downward spiral

The researchers from the University of Virginia examined the disruption to the phosphorus (P) cycle in southern Yucatan, where a dry tropical forest had been felled to become farmland.



"After three cultivation-fallow cycles, available soil P declines by 44%, and one-time P inputs from biomass burning decline by 76% from mature forest levels," they wrote.

The team added that the lack of a forest's canopy also resulted in hampering an area's ability to replenish phosphorus levels.

"The decline in new P from atmospheric deposition creates a long-term negative ecosystem balance."

The ongoing decline of the nutrient, which is a key component in the growth of organisms, triggered a "feedback" effect, they explained.

It could affect the growth of plants in the study area, and "may induce a shift to sparser vegetation", they warned.

As well as the area's ecosystem, the researchers added that local farmers were likely to be affected.

"Without financial support to encourage the use of fertilisers, farmers could increase the fallow period, clear new land, or abandon agriculture for off-farm employment," they wrote.

"[The farmers'] response will determine the regional balance between forest loss and forest regrowth."

Address:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7148278.stm



That pretty sums up about deforestation and how it affects the nutrient cycles. When lesser carbon dioxide are taken in, the faster global warming takes place.

Below is a video about deforestation and the damages caused by it.

Answers

Finally back to the question-Will the cycles be affected by gobal warming and deforestation.After some research hopefully I may be able to find out the answer...

videos

I have found two videos from YouTube on nitrogen fixation and carbon cycle.Enjoy!


Nitrogen Fixation video


Carbon Cycle video

Ecology

I am back!

I found out that ecology is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of life and the interactions between organisms and their environment,and it was founded by the Danish botanist, Eugenius Warming.

Picture of Eugenius Warming

All changes can be described by cycles. Cycles can be drawn up for any element, but in biology, that of oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, phosphor, sulphur, as well as water are of interest.

Phosphorus Cycle

Nitrogen Cycle

Sulfur Cycle

The Water Cycle

The water cycle is the first to be introduced as the water supply of the earth's surface is besides the sun and the amount of energy provided by it the most important precondition of vegetation and thus also of the colonization of the earth. This known fact becomes especially impressive through satellite takings made of partially irrigated dry areas.

The oxygen Cycle

The oxygen of the atmosphere is almost completely the product of the photosynthetic activity of green plants. The oxygen content of the atmosphere increased continuously during earth history since the first occurrence of organisms that were able to split water and perform photosynthesis.

The Carbon cycle

Carbon is an element that occurs for the smallest part as atoms at the earth surface (carbon, diamonds). Its main part is either oxidized (carbon dioxide, carbonate/bicarbonate and a small amount of carbon monoxide) or reduced (hydrocarbons and their derivatives). The main part of the carbon of organic substances is reduced, and the fixation of carbon occurs during photosynthesis.

The Nitrogen Cycle

79 percent of the atmosphere consist of free nitrogen and at least the same amount of bound nitrogen is found in the lithosphere. These large reservoirs are not immediately available for plants. In this context, microorganisms have a central role. Nitrogen fixation is the cue.Plants use nitrogen almost only as ammonium and nitrate ions. In organic materials, nitrogen is mainly required for the production of the amino-groups found in proteins or nucleic acids. Nitrate and nitrite bacteria convert the amino groups back to nitrate or nitrite. Nitrate-reducing bacteria living in the soil or in water reduce oxidized nitrogen compounds and do thus close the cycle. Nitrogen fixation and reduction do roughly balance one each other.

The Phosphorus and the Sulfur Cycles

Of these two elements plants can only use certain groups of compounds: phosphates and sulfates. In the earth's biosphere exist no gaseous and also no reducing phosphor compounds. Gaseous sulfur compounds like hydrogen sulfide or sulfur dioxide are rare and if they occur, they cause damage.

These are some of the nutrient cycles.I wonder will the cycles be affected by global warming caused by deforestation, emmision of carbon dioxide etc...

Bibliography:

http://www.biologie.uni-hamburg.de/b-online/e54/54d.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecology

http://www.ppi-ppic.org/ppiweb/ppibase.nsf/$webindex/article=5203CB87852569B50057E346C0116272

Biojournal

Today,I will be researching on ecology and nutrient cycles in the ecosystem.I will begin researching by searching through the internet for more information and hopefully I would find out more about the ecosystem.