Title: Default for Ecosystems
Course: What can WE do for biodiversity? The European Strategies for habitat conservation

Q: Look at the alpine meadow from figure 5, and classify these components into biotic or abiotic components.
- Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) | biotic component
- High altitude | abiotic component
- Presence of snow | abiotic component
- Pyrenean lily (Lilium pyrenaicum) | biotic component
- Low temperature | abiotic component
- Marmot (Marmota marmota) | biotic component
- High insolation | abiotic component
- Limestonce rocks | abiotic component

Look at the food web and indicate the role each of the living organisms in this food web play

[Image]

Q: OSPREY
- Producer
- Primary consumer
- Secondary consumer
- Tertiary consumer
A: Tertiary consumer

Q: LARGE PISCIVOROUS FISH
- Producer
- Primary consumer
- Secondary consumer
- Tertiary consumer
A: Secondary consumer

Q: Look at the food web and indicate the role each of the living organisms in this food web play

[Image]
- BIVALVES | Primary consumer
- OSPREY | Tertiary consumer
- LARGE PISCIVOROUS FISH | Secondary consumer
- PHYTOPLANKTON | Producer
- TUNDRA SWAN | Primary and secondary consumer
- BENTHIC INVERTEBRATES | Primary consumer
- HERBIVOROUS DUCKS | Primary and secondary consumer
- SUBMERGED AQUATIC VEGETATION | Producer
- BALD EAGLE | Tertiary consumer
- WADING BIRDS | Secondary consumer
- ZOOPLANKTON | Primary consumer
- GULLS AND TERNS | Secondary consumer
- GEESE AND MUTE SWANS | Primary consumer
- VEGETATION | Producer
- SEA DUCKS | Secondary consumer
- SMALL PLANKTIVOROUS FISH | Primary consumer
Also offered: Producer and primary consumer; Secondary and Tertiary consumer

Why a trophic chain or web always start by the producers?

Q: Which trophic level is missing from this food web?
A: Decomposers

Q: Look at the energy pyramid and tell whether the following statements are true or false

[Image]
- All energy is recycled through ecosystems | False
- All the energy that reaches a trophic level is transferred to the next | False
- All trophic levels transfer energy to the environment in the form of heat | True
- Since heat is lost in all trophic levels, tertiary consumers have less energy available than producers | True
- The energy lost as heat can be reused in some trophic levels | False
- Producers transform sunlight energy into chemical energy | True
- The energy lost in the form of heat is related to the energy that living organisms use to carry out life processes | True
- Each level in the pyramid represents the energy produced by one species | False
- Decomposers use the energy that has not been used in the previous trophic levels | True
- The stored energy decreases in each level as we move up the pyramid | True
- The energy that is not used in a trophic level is available for the next trophic level | True
- The energy used by the living organisms in any given trophic level may be reused by decomposers | False

Which is the external source of energy that sets ecosystems in motion?

Q: How much energy is transferred from one level to the next one, in average, according to the diagram in the figure?
A: 90% / 90 %

Why this energy decreases from one level to the next one?

Why ecosystems cannot have many trophic levels?

Which are the main causes of Iberian lynx population decreasing?

Which actions do you think could be made in order to help the lynx to avoid extinction?

Which are the international programs for conservation mentioned in the text? Which institutions are involved in these strategies? Which are their objectives? Look for some information.

What is the UICN’s red list ? In what categories are the species divided? Look for the Iberian lynx file and write down a small text explaining what kind of information is included.

Explore the database and look for five species with different categories from your region of interest.

WWF-Spain/Adena considers that the Natura2000 network does not cover some important corridors. What is a corridor, in this context? Why do you think is important to include them in the network?

Go to Natura2000 Network website and explore it. Write down any interesting information you found there.