Question

Now it’s time to apply what you have learned in this unit by making a cycle of another kind of matter—water. After you have reviewed the carbon and nitrogen cycles, you will make a diagram to show how water cycles in an ecosystem. The water cycle greatly affects both the living and the nonliving parts of the environment. Think about where water is found. Where does rain come from? Is the sun involved in the movement of water through the environment? How? Think about these questions. Then choose an ecosystem and make a diagram showing a possible water cycle. Be sure to include both living and nonliving parts in your diagram.

Answer 1

Creating a diagram to illustrate the water cycle in an ecosystem involves understanding the various processes that contribute to the movement of water. Here’s a breakdown of how you can create a diagram depicting the water cycle in a common ecosystem, such as a forest.

Components of the Water Cycle

1. Evaporation: Water from oceans, rivers, lakes, and soil transforms into vapor due to the sun’s heat.
2. Transpiration: Plants absorb water from the soil and release it as vapor through small openings called stomata.
3. Condensation: Water vapor cools and condenses to form clouds in the atmosphere.
4. Precipitation: When clouds become heavy with water, it falls back to the earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
5. Infiltration: Water seeps into the ground to replenish groundwater supplies and can also be taken up by plant roots.
6. Runoff: Water flows over the land, returning to bodies of water (oceans, lakes, rivers).

Living and Nonliving Components

• Living components (biotic): Trees, plants, animals, soil microorganisms.
• Nonliving components (abiotic): Water bodies (rivers, lakes, oceans), the atmosphere, sunlight, soil.

Diagram Representation

Here’s a description of a simple, illustrative diagram you can create:

1. Top portion: Draw a large sun, and arrows pointing down towards a water body (e.g., a lake), indicating evaporation.
2. Middle portion: Draw clouds in the sky with arrows pointing down to represent precipitation (rain) falling onto the ground and water bodies.
3. Ground portion:
   • Draw soil layers and plants. Label arrows from the soil to the plants as root uptake.
   • Mark arrows leading up from the leaves of the plants to the atmosphere as transpiration.
   • For infiltration, use arrows indicating how rainwater seeps into the ground.
   • Show runoff with arrows flowing from the land back to the water body.

Sample Diagram Layout

Here’s a simple layout for your diagram:

                   [ ☼ ] 
                /         \
           [ Clouds ]
              /       \
            /           \
        [Precipitation] ---> (Rain to Earth)

                 ↓
         [ Ground with Plants ]
        (Infiltration & Root Uptake)
                 ↑
             [ Transpiration ]
                     
       [ Water bodies ]
             ↘ [ Runoff ]
                  ↘ (Back to lakes/rivers)

Summary

This diagram will help illustrate the water cycle in a forest ecosystem, showing how water moves through various biotic and abiotic components. Feel free to add additional elements or annotations to further elaborate on each process!