Terrestrial ecosystem

There are a variety of different ecosystems around the world. Remember that an ecosystem is a group of communities of things both living and inert that are related to each other. While there are many ecosystems on earth and in the world’s waters, the  terrestrial ecosystem   is one that is found only on land . Biotic beings found in this type of ecosystem include a wide variety of life forms, such as plants and animals . The abiotic or non-living elements found in this type of ecosystem include the landforms and climate that predominate in a given place.

Characteristics of the terrestrial ecosystem

• Animals and plants live on land and in the air .
• They are classified according to abiotic factors .
• The flora and fauna of the terrestrial ecosystem depend on each other.
• Animals, birds, and plants adapt to the habitat in which they live.
• When changes arise and species fail to adapt, extinction occurs .

Parties

The parts found in a terrestrial ecosystem are, therefore: the biotic part that includes everything related to the earth or soil, vegetation, aerial and terrestrial animals, decomposing organisms, and part or abiotic factors such as the sun, rain , wind , erosion , temperature and climate changes

Types of terrestrial ecosystem

There are several types of terrestrial ecosystem that we mention below:

• Tundra : It is located between the Arctic Ocean full of coniferous forests and extends over a wide area in North America, Europe and Asia. The animals that we can find are, for example: arctic fox, polar bear, snow bear.
• Taiga : This is the most extensive biome on earth and extends in northern Europe, Asia and North America, and presents more moderate temperatures than those of the tundra, however, they always come to be below the point of freezing. The dominant vegetation is evergreen conifers with some pine and fir trees, its forests are dense and always remain green. The animals that inhabit the place are small birds that eat seeds and predators such as hawks, pumas, Siberian tiger, wolves, etc.
• Temperate deciduous forest or Mediterranean forests : They extend over central and southern Europe, eastern North America, western China , Japan , New Zealand, etc. the flora includes trees such as oak and maple. Most animals are vertebrates and invertebrates . It is characterized by having a warm summer and a mild winter with little rain. This type of biome is used as a focus for migratory birds .
• Tropical Rain Forest : They are found in tropical areas of high rainfall mainly in the equatorial regions of Central America and northern South America. Broad-leaved perennials are found .
• Savannah : it is a tropical regiondominated by grasses with scattered trees and fire resistant tree trunks. The fauna includes a great diversity of herbivores and explorer animals such as antelope, buffalo, zebra, elephant and rhinoceros. It has a dry and rainy season and its soil is clayey and impermeable .

Fauna and flora of the terrestrial ecosystem

The terrestrial fauna are the groups of animals experiencing a geographic area and found in a given ecosystem. The study of these animals is known as zoogeography . The fauna depends on abiotic and biotic factors , relations of competition and predation of the species. The terrestrial flora implies the set of vegetal species that are in a determined territory. Depending on the geographical location, the flora is considered abundant or poor, so we can say that it is highly variable. It is made up of all the plants that grow either on land or in the sea, from giant trees to seaweed.

Climate and Temperature

In reality, both the climate and the temperature will depend on the type of ecosystem we are referring to and, in fact, both issues are part of the most important aspects that are taken into account when making a proper classification of the ecosystems. The sunlight, the radiation , the amount of rain , humidity , latitude and altitude are some of the aspects that determine the climate and type of flora and fauna of a place.

Importance

Ecosystems are important to man as they give him a series of benefits for life, from trees that are used to extract wood and build, to some types of animals necessary to survive.

Examples

• Tropical forests.
• Temperate forests.
• Grasslands, scrub savannas.
• Serum formations.
• Mangroves.