OUR ENVIRONMENT

Important term to remember:

Environment: The immediate natural surroundings of man is called environment. E.g.: Plants, Air, Water,
Landforms, Wildlife, etc....... The word Environment has been derived from a French word "Environner"
which means "Neighborhood".
Components of Environment: (a) Natural Environment (b) Human Environment (c) Human Made
Environment

Biotic Components: All living things are known as Biotic Components. E.g.: Plants, Animal Kingdoms
including man, etc....

Abiotic Components: All non-living things are known as Abiotic Components. E.g.: Air, Water, Land, etc.....

Ecosystem: Interrelation between plants and animals in the natural environment is called Ecosystem.

Ecology: The Science with studies the relationship between living and non-living environment is termed
as Ecology.

Domains of Earth: The Four domains or realms of the Earth which jointly support life are:
(a) Atmosphere (b) Hydrosphere (c) Lithosphere (d) Biosphere

Biosphere: Plant and animal kingdom together make Biosphere or the living worlds. It is a narrow zone of
the Earth where Air, Water and Land interact with each other to support life.

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Geography studies the interrelationship between human beings and the environment.

Natural Environment:

1. Lithosphere
 It is the solid crust or the hard-top layer of the earth.
 It is made up of rocks and minerals and covered by a thin layer of soil.
 It is an irregular surface with various landforms such as mountains, plateaus, plains, valleys, etc.
Landforms are found over the continents and also on the ocean floors.
 Lithosphere is the domain that provides us forests, grasslands for grazing, land for agriculture and
human settlements. It is also a source of mineral wealth.

2. Hydrosphere
 The water bodies on the earth's surface together form the Hydrosphere. E.g., Seas & Oceans, Rivers,
Lakes, etc.
 Earth is also known as "Watery Planet", because 71% of its surface is covered with water.
 Water is used for various purposes, i.e., domestic, agriculture, industries, transportation, generating
electricity, etc.

3. Atmosphere
 The gaseous envelope around the earth's surface consisting of mixture of gases, water vapour and
tiny dust particles is called atmosphere.
 Atmosphere is endless with no visible boundary.
 Atmosphere is composed of various gases. Major gases present are: Nitrogen – 78%, Oxygen – 21%,
Argon - .93%, Carbon Dioxide – 0.03%, Other Gases – 0.04% (like – helium, hydrogen, methane, ozone,
etc. and water vapours & dust particles.
 Ozone layer protects us from harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun.
 It acts as a blanket which prevents the earth from becoming too hot during day and too cold during
night.

4.Biosphere
 Plant and animal kingdom together make biosphere or the living world.
 It is a narrow zone of the earth where Land (Lithosphere), Water (Hydrosphere) and Air (Atmosphere)
interact with each other to support life.
 Biosphere makes the earth a unique planet in the solar system.

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ECOSYSTEM
 All plants, animals and human beings depend on their immediate surroundings. Often they are also
interdependent on each other.
 This relation between the living organisms, as well as the relation between the organisms and their
surroundings form an ecosystem.
 There could be an ecosystem of large rain forest, grassland, desert, mountains, lake, river, ocean and
even a small pond.
 In every ecosystem, there is a perfect balance in the transfer of energy and matter among the different
components. This is known as Ecological Balance.

ELEMENTS OF BIOSPHERE
1. Elements of Biosphere: Basically, there are three elements of Biosphere: -
(a) Producers (b) Consumers (c) Decomposers
(a) Producers: Plant Kingdom.

(b) Consumers:
Herbivores: First consumers, plant eating animals. E.g. goat, dear, etc. They are large in number and
reproduce faster.
Carnivores: Second level consumers. Flesh eating animals. E.g. lion, tiger, etc. They have sharp teeth and
claws and reproduce at a slower rate.
Omnivores: Consumers. They eat both plants and animals. E.g. man, ant, etc

Decomposers: Microorganisms like bacteria get their food from dead plants and animals by decomposing
them and are known as Decomposers. They keep the natural environment clean because they convert the
dead matter of plants and animals into simple compound which then enter the soil and air.
Food Chain: In the process of consuming plants by herbivores and herbivores by carnivores, there is a
transfer of energy from one level to another, which is called Food Chain.

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HUMAN ENVIRONMENT
 Human beings are the most important part of environment. They not only interact with the
environment but also modify it according to their needs.
 Early humans adapted themselves to the natural surroundings. They led a simple life and fulfilled their
requirements from the nature around them. With time needs grew and became more varied.
 Modifications done by human beings have disturbed our ecosystem. Man is responsible for degrading
the environment. Deforestation, Soil Erosion, etc. are some of the important factors.
 Humans must maintain balance between natural and human environment. Resources to be used
wisely and should be preserved for future.

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 BIOSPHERE
Introduction
The biosphere concept is common to many scientific disciplines including astronomy, geophysics, geology,
hydrology, biogeography and evolution, and is a core concept in ecology, earth science and physical
geography. Biosphere is a key component of earth systems, which interacts with and exchanges matter
and energy with the other spheres, helping to drive the global biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen,
phosphorus, sulfur and other elements. From an ecological point of view, the biosphere is the "global
ecosystem", comprising the totality of biodiversity on earth and performing all manner of biological
functions, including photosynthesis, respiration, decomposition, nitrogen fixation and denitrification. All
these are very vital for sustaining life. Therefore, the biosphere is the sphere of life. It is the world of living
organisms which dwell on land, water and in the air we breathe. The living organisms range from
microscopic (extremely small-size) to giant tress and animals. Scientists estimate that about one million
different species of animals and perhaps three thousand million species of plants have existed since life
began on earth.

The biosphere is dynamic, undergoing strong seasonal cycles in primary productivity and many biological
processes driven by the energy captured by photosynthesis. Seasonal cycles in solar irradiation of the
hemispheres is the main driver of this dynamic, especially by its strong effect on terrestrial primary
productivity in the temperate and boreal biomes, which essentially cease productivity in the winter time.
The biosphere has evolved since the first single-celled organisms originated 3.5 billion years ago under
atmospheric conditions resembling those of our neighboring planets Mars and Venus, which have
atmospheres composed primarily of carbon dioxide. Billions of years of primary production by plants
released oxygen from this carbon dioxide and deposited the carbon in sediments, eventually producing
the oxygen-rich atmosphere we know today. Free oxygen, both for breathing (O2, respiration) and in the
stratospheric ozone (O3) that protects us from harmful UV radiation, has made possible life as we know
it while transforming the chemistry of earth systems forever.

As a result of long-term interactions between the biosphere and the other earth systems, there is almost
no part of the earth's surface that has not been profoundly altered by living organisms. The earth is a
living planet, even in terms of its physics and chemistry. A concept related to, but different from, that of
the biosphere, is the Gaia hypotheses, which posits that living organisms have and continue to transform
earth systems for their own benefit.

Components of the Biosphere

A convenient way of discussing the biosphere is to divide it into living and non-living parts. By doing this,
the flow of energy and the exchange of materials between the living and the non-living part of the system
can be properly examined and the intricate relationships existing between them properly brought out.
This approach is used to present the discussion on the biosphere here. The division of the biosphere into
its living and non-living parts i.e. the biotic and abiotic components is present in the next section

BIOTIC COMPONENTS

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The biotic components of the biosphere are the living organisms. These are the elements which are
composed essentially of organic compounds or of compounds containing carbon. This contrasts them with
the rest of the earth crust for which the main elements are oxygen and silicon. It is usual to think of living
organisms in terms of the ability to grow, eat, move and multiply. While all these are true, the definition
given above is more scientific. Having said this, it should be understood that the main categories of living
things are plants and animals. To this list we can also add viruses. Plants and animals which are the main
categories of living things can be differentiated on the basis of their sources of nutrition. Therefore, biotic
components usually include:

 Producers, i.e. autotrophs: e.g. plants, which convert the energy [from photosynthesis (the transfer
of sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into energy), or other sources such as hydrothermal vents] into
food.
 Consumers, i.e. heterotrophs: e.g. animals, which depend upon producers (occasionally other
consumers) for food.

 Decomposers, i.e. detritivores: e.g. fungi and bacteria, which break down chemicals from producers
and consumers (usually dead) into simpler form which can be reused.
Animals cannot use anything simpler than amino acid for protein digestion. And for energy they rely on
carbohydrates and fats. By contrast, plants manufacture their own food, making use of the light energy
which they absorb from the sun in chemo- and photosynthetic processes. Animals and plants are found
in the various parts of the world. While some terrestrial animals can be found all over the world, many
are confined to specific locations. It is usual to describe the regions on the earth surface on the basis of
the life forms dominant in them. In the section that follows an attempt will be made to describe some of
the main life forms found on the earth surface and where they are found.

Life forms of the land surface

Over the land surface, the most densely inhabited portion by different life forms is the plant-soil interface.
This is the boundary or the meeting point of plants and soils. Within this layer the vegetation varies from
the forests to grasslands. To this we can add a third group. These are the desert communities.

Forests are plant formations which are dominated by woody species. These species of plants can be shrubs
or trees. Usually, they are so closely spaced that their canopies form a continuous layer or stratum that
shades the ground beneath them. It is useful to note that the basic physical appearance, of the temperate
and tropical forests is essentially the same. However, while temperate forests are dominated by a few
species of trees, sometimes just one species, the tropical forests are made up of a wide range of species.

The grasslands on the other hand are vegetation completely made up of grasses in which there is a
dominant grassy ground layer. It is thus clear that grasslands can be divided into two: these are
(1) The tropical grasslands or savannas and
(2) The middle and high-latitude grasslands.
The Savannas vary from an almost complete grassland cover to woody formations with a ground stratum
of grasses. The former can be found in the semi-arid parts of the tropics while the latter is found adjoining

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the moist deciduous tropical forests. The middle and high-latitude grasslands are dominated by tall,
luxuriant and deep-rooted grasses.

The third group-desert community consists of a scattered growth of drought tolerant (xerophytic) plants
with large areas of bare ground in-between. Xerophytes are plants which are well adapted to the dry
conditions of the desert environment. Their leaves are characteristically small to reduce evapo-
transpiration. The plants are also usually thorny to prevent or at least, minimize browsing by herbivores
living in the environment.

It is of interest to know that the pattern of vegetation distribution present in Nigeria is mainly controlled
by the availability of water. The greater the amount of annual rainfall in a given location, the richer the
vegetation associated with it. A wide variety of animals inhabit the different vegetation formations
discussed above. However, the animal species found in the various formations tend to differ according to
whether we have a predominance of trees or grasses. For instance, within the forest zone, the tree tops
are inhabited by birds and insects. Below the top layer, we have the canopy layer which houses a variety
of tree-dwelling monkeys. The ground dwellers include deer, rodents and wild pigs. Within the top soil in
the leaf covered layer are found bacteria and burrowing animals like the earthworm.

Life in the Oceans

Marine life in the oceans includes organisms of all sizes, shapes, and character, from the smallest bacteria
and protists that is single-celled heterotrophs and autotrophs which are visible through the highest power
microscopes to the largest organism on planet Earth at 100 feet long, the Blue Whale. Each of these
organisms interacts with and is affected by the oceans in different ways. The living creatures of the oceans
and seas are classified by location – either as plankton, nekton, or benthos. Plankton are organisms that
live in the water column, but that either cannot swim or cannot swim faster than currents. They are drifted
helplessly by currents and waves. Planktons are the most important creatures in the sea because it is on
them that other groups depend for food supply. They are small varying in size from a few centimeters to
a few thousandths of millimeter in length. They are found mainly within the first few metres of the ocean
surface. Examples include microscopic foraminifera, coccolithophores, radiolarian, diatoms,
dinoflagellates, and the larvae of many marine animals, such as crabs, fish, and sea stars – as well as larger
organisms like floating sargasssum weed and jellyfish.

Nekton form the second class of living organisms in the ocean. They are organisms that spend most of
their time in the water column and can swim freely and faster than currents. They are powerful enough
to determine where they want to go. Examples include whales, most fish, and squid. The major difference
between plankton and Nekton is in their habitat. All the marine animals inhabit oceanic areas but the zone
in which they inhabit greatly impacts the evolution of them. For example, a plankton is largely different
from benthos in that a benthos organism is far more capable of sustaining colder temperatures as sunlight
penetration is impossible at such deep levels. Plankton cannot propel themselves through water. Nekton
propel themselves through water by swimming or other means. Nektons are either vertebrates (fish) or
invertebrates (shrimp).

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Benthos form the third class of living organisms in the ocean. The benthos includes animals that are
ecologically linked to the ocean's floor. Including many echinoderms, benthonic fishes, crustaceans,
mollusks, poriferans and annelids. What about organisms that live mostly on the bottom, but that can
also swim? Like octopus, sawfish, rays, and flatfish? We call these organisms’ nektobenthos.

Living Creatures in the air

The living creatures in the air are extremely tiny. For this reason they can be airborne. They include various
viruses and bacteria which can only be detected with the aid of the microscope. As far as the concentration
of life form is concerned, the air is insignificant. It should be noted however that life forms in the air have
had the greatest effect on man in terms of spreading disease. They are beneficial to man in many respects.
For example, fermentation which is important in the preparation of wine is made possible by a group of
bacteria.

ABIOTIC COMPONENTS

Abiotic component of the biosphere refers to the physical environment (non-living parts) and its several
interacting variables which can be divided into four folds:
 Lithosphere which means the solid mineral matter on the earth and the land form as well;
 Hydrosphere, i.e. the water in oceans, lakes, river, ice-caps, etc;
 Atmosphere, the gaseous mixture in the air; and
 The radiant solar energy.
The position and movement of the earth with its gravitational force are additional abiotic components of
the biosphere (See Figure 3.1). However, these components create invariability of magnitude and duration
of other environmental factors. It is these which constitute the habitats in which plants and animals live.

Figure 3.1: The abiotic components and their interactions

Solar Energy
Solar energy interacts with rocks, water and gases to produce a complex environment with a large number
of identifiable variables such as heat, light, rain, wind, snow, fog, dust, storm, fire, etc. Thus, by the
interaction of variables, the environment is created and maintained as a unit where any single component

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cannot be removed or altered without disturbing the other components. Therefore, the environment is a
dynamic whole, which remain continuously in a state of flux and also varies in space. Functionally the
ecosystem allows the flow of energy and cycling of materials which ensures the stability of the system and
continuity of life. The energy needed for all life processes come from solar radiation (Figure 3.2)

During photosynthesis, green plants convert light energy to chemical (poten-tial) energy and make it
available to other organisms as food. Thus, a continuous flow of energy from sun through organisms
maintains the life on earth. Laws of Thermodynamics govern on the transfer and transformation of energy.
It says, the energy can never be destroyed, but it is transformed into different forms. Therefore, the part
of solar radiant energy that is not used in photosynthesis is used in heating of air, water and soil. So some
change does occur in cyclic order of nature.

Ultimately the energy is reflected back to outer space as heat. In fact, a small fraction of available light
energy is utilized during photosynthesis and a very little part is stored in animal tissues; the bulk is wasted
as heat. The next point is the ratio between the production and assimilation of energy. The small
organisms utilize a large part of the assimilated energy for growth while larger organisms consume a larger
part of the assimilated energy for maintenance of the organism (respiration). How-ever, all these
mechanisms-the transformation of energy, the food chain, the assimilation etc., are expressed as
ecological efficiency.

Figure 3.2: Hypothetical Model of a Functional Ecosystem

The Soils
In any consideration of the biosphere, soil is important because it is a most important medium for plant
growth. It provides support or anchorage for plant roots, and several ground based animals burrow in
them. Besides this, soil contains several mineral elements which are essential to life. These include
potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, Sulphur, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, molybdenum,
boron and chlorine. For example, Sulphur is necessary for the formation of amino acids, which are the
building blocks of protein. Calcium helps to strengthen cell walls and without magnesium chlorophyll

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production (i.e. the green pigment in plants) will be impaired. Besides providing anchorage for plants,
Soils is also a living environment for animals –termites, earthworms and bacteria etc.

Water
Apart from acting as a medium of life for several species of plants and animals, the ocean can be regarded
as a solution of nutrients. It is on such nutrients that plants and animals life depends. The ocean also
contains in dissolved form, the principal gases of the atmosphere namely oxygen, nitrogen and carbon
dioxide etc. the importance of gases to life is discussed in the section that follows.

Air
The atmosphere contains four elements which are essential to life. These are carbon (in form of carbon
dioxide), oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen. Oxygen, carbon and hydrogen are the major components of fats
and carbohydrates. On the other hand nitrogen is important for the synthesis of protein. The four
elements discussed above come ultimately from the atmosphere. The twelve elements which we
discussed under soil together with nitrogen are usually derived from bedrock from which the soils are
formed. Thus neither soil nor the atmosphere can support life alone. It is the Nature and extent of these
relationships which are considered below.

Interrelationships among the Components of the biosphere

In any part of the environment of life, whatever the scale, all the organisms present interact with the
physical environment. This interaction takes the form of a flow of energy and an exchange of materials
between living and non-living parts within the system. For convenience we shall discuss these two forms
of interaction separately.

Energy flow in the Biosphere

All living things require a constant supply of energy for the various functions they perform. The energy is
obtained from the sun. This energy is introduced into the biosphere by green plants through a process
known as photosynthesis. Plants are able to trap this light energy and by the process of photosynthesis
convert it into chemical energy. Thus the initial point of entry of energy in the ecosystem is through the
green plants (autotrophs or producers). In this way, it is energy from the sun that usually powers the base
of the food chain. An exception occurs in deep-sea hydrothermal ecosystems, where there is no sunlight.
Here primary producers manufacture food through a process called chemosynthesis. It has been
estimated that on an average, about one per cent of total sun's energy reaching the earth is trapped by
green plants during the process of food manufacture (i.e., photosynthesis). The energy thus trapped by
plants is stored as carbohydrates. Some of the energy trapped by plants is used by them in performing
their metabolic activities like respiration, growth, etc., and some energy is released in the atmosphere as
heat. The energy regulates the humidity of atmosphere and forms the air currents. It determines the
different types of climates like the tropical, temperate, subtropics and arctic. The heating effect of the
solar radiations determines the atmosphere and soil temperature. They are dependent on the angle of
radiations which play an important role in the determination of season. The energy forms the water
vapors, clouds and rain.

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When plants are eaten by herbivorous animals, the energy stored in plants gets transferred to the
consumer animals. These animals utilize this energy for their own metabolic activities. Here again some
of the energy is released as heat. When primary consumers are eaten by secondary consumers, the same
process is repeated at every step of the food chain. Here it must be remembered, that energy released as
heat is considered as energy lost. The simple model of energy transfers within the biosphere is the food
chain (Figure 3.4).

solar radiation

primary secondary
herbivore
carnivore carnivore

d e c o m p o s it io n

Figure 3.3: Energy Flow through a Food Chain (Source: Simmons, 1982)

It can thus be conclude as follows:

 Conversion of energy takes place from one form to another. The light energy gets converted into
chemical energy by plants during photosynthesis.
 Plants act as converters of energy. They do not produce energy.
 The energy lost as heat is quite substantial, if taken together from various trophic levels
 During the transfer of energy through successive trophic levels in an ecosystem, there is a lost of
energy at each trophic level. In other words, the level following the previous one always receives less
amount of energy. After studying various food chains and energy transfers in different ecosystems,
Lindemann in 1942 gave the generalization called "The 10 per cent law", which shows that about 90%
of the energy is used up at each level and only 10% of it is transferred to the next trophic level. As a
result, at the last trophic level (decomposer), no energy is left for recycling. This is how the flow of
energy is unidirectional. Fast decreasing energy level at each step sets the limit of trophic levels only
to 4-5 at the maximum. Therefore, the plants (producers) receive the maximum energy and as you go
further down the trophic levels, the energy in the food goes on decreasing.
 The flow of energy is unidirectional. It enters into the living system from non-living environment
 The energy lost as heat cannot be utilized.

Each stage in the food chain is called a trophic level. Trophic levels are represented by numbers, starting
at level 1 with plants which are the producers. Further trophic levels are numbered subsequently
according to how far the organism is along the food chain. As illustrated below:

 Level 1: Plants and algae make their own food and are called primary producers.

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 Level 2: Herbivores eat plants and are called primary consumers.
 Level 3: Carnivores that eat herbivores are called secondary consumers.
 Level 4: Carnivores that eat other carnivores are called tertiary consumers.
 Level 5: Apex predators that have no predators are at the top of the food chain.

The feeding pattern of the living organisms over the land may be more complex than has been depicted
here. However, this is a simple way of trying to understand a really complex phenomenon. One more
point which should be emphasized about the food chain is that the energy which is passed from one
trophic level to the next is reduced. At each trophic level, the organisms lose energy in the form of heat
to the environment because they do work. To understand this, think of how you sweat profusely when
you run or do any physical work. Similarly, a carnivore may have to expend a great deal of energy catching
the herbivorous animals it will eat. Imagine the amount of energy man will have to expend if he relies on
hunting for meat. It should be noted too that by using solar energy and losing some energy at each trophic
level as heat an interaction is maintained between the system and the outer space.

Nutrient Cycling Within the Biosphere

The living and the non-living parts of the biosphere do not interact among themselves by means of energy
flow only; they also interact through the cycling of mineral nutrients. These are the elements which are
essential to life. Above we have divided the nutrients by source into those which ultimately come from
the atmosphere and those which essentially derived from the bedrock. They are called here mineral
nutrients because they are involved in the growth and maintenance of organisms.

The pathways of circulation of the mineral nutrients are generally described as cyclic. This should be
understood to mean that the circulation involves a use and re-use of the nutrients. Also because the
pathways involve the living and the non-living parts of the biosphere they are usually described as bio-
geo-chemical cycles. There are two major ways of recycling mineral nutrients in the biosphere. The first is
by way of animal excretion. This process is self-explanatory. It ensures a return with the soil of the mineral
nutrient used by the primary producer and passed onto either the primary or secondary consumers.

The second pathway for recycling the nutrient is by way of microbial decomposition of plants and animals
remains through the activities of decomposer organisms. The decomposer organisms belong to two main
groups. Bacteria and fungi constitute the first group. The second group is made up of animal such as
earthworms, beetles, and springtails and termites. Dung beetles and termites are more visible in the
tropics. Roughly speaking, the animal decomposers breakdown the debris physically by feeding off the
tougher elements in it and the smaller pieces are then subject to decomposition by fungi and bacteria.

The final stage is the transfer of minerals from the quickly decomposing litter directly to the up taking
plant roots. This is done via a coat of fungi which selectively takes up the minerals required by the plant.

It should be noted that this is a generalized biogeochemical cycle for most chemical elements. Human
actions can interfere in the circulation of the mineral nutrient. For instance, through forest and grassland
fires, some of the nutrients can be returned straight to the litter layer or burnt off. On the other hand,

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earth physical processes like erosion, rock weathering and volcanic eruption can act to release nutrients
from the soil and bedrock in an organic form.

There is one more important point for us to note in energy flow and nutrient cycling within the biosphere.
We have discussed them separately for the sake of convenience. In practice the nutrient cycling is not
separate from energy flow. In fact the plants and animals have to use part of the energy available to them
for maintaining the cycling of the nutrients.

Biotic Community
Plants and animals interact with other factors of their physical environment-climate, water, and soils-in
the manner we have described above to produce distinctive communities. It is these that are referred to
as biotic communities. The biotic community can occur at any scale. It can vary in size from the lawn in
front of a house, to a fish pond or it can involve the entire planet. What matters about the biotic
community is that as a unit it includes all of the organisms in a given area interacting with their physical
environment so that a flow of energy leads to an exchange of materials between living and non-living
parts within the system.
Having known how a community is constituted and operates, it is convenient to examine the categories
of communities that exist. For convenience these communities are divided into (1) land or terrestrial
communities and (2) water or aquatic communities.

Land or Terrestrial Communities

If you open your atlas to the section which shows the world vegetation, you can see the various terrestrial
communities that exist. However, such a map will conceal the fact that there are distinctive animals, soils
and climates associated with each vegetation. Once we add all these then we are studying the world’s
major terrestrial communities. Because the list of the world major terrestrial communities is too long to
be covered in an introductory discussion on the biosphere, we shall illustrate the general points by
discussing the tropical evergreen forest and the Savannah.

The tropical rain forest

The tropical rain forests are found mainly in the lowland areas of the Zaire and Amazon basins. In Nigeria,
they can be found in the extreme Southern parts as shown in figure 3.1. They occur in climates which have
both high and constant temperature and humidity, an annual precipitation of over 2000mm and at least
120mm in the driest months. This range of conditions can only be satisfied in a small section of Southern
Nigeria.

The trees of the rain forest are typically tall and jointly produce three layers or sinusiae (see figure 3.8).
The upper layer consists of the tallest trees which may be 45 to 50 meters high. This is also known as the
emergent layer. The second layer is the canopy layer. This is made up of trees which grow to a height of
25-35m. The trees of this layer form an almost continuous canopy which shades the ground from sunlight.
The third layer is made up of undergrowth. This is not dense because of the absence of sunlight.

There are more than 7000 species of trees in the tropical rainforest of the world with the forest found in
South East Asia and The Amazon basin having the larger numbers. In the West African sub-region, they

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number well over 3000. This makes the tropical rainforest the richest vegetation formation in the world.
In the wetter parts of the tropics, the tree both flower and leaves all the year round. Thus there is no
period of the year when the vegetation loses its greenness. This is why the vegetation in this area is often
described as Evergreen forest. The trees present in the tropical rainforest of Nigeria include the Melicia
excelsa (iroko), Khaya grandifolia, Ceiba petandara etc.

Like the trees, the animal communities are stratified. The upper layer of the forest is inhabited mostly by
birds and insects which live their whole lives in this arboreal habitat. The canopy layer houses the highest
variety of animals in the form of tree dwelling monkeys, sloths and anteaters. These rarely descend to the
ground. The ground dwellers are less diverse. They include deer, rodents, wild pigs etc. within the litter
layer can be found burrowing animals like earthworms.

Tropical Savanna
As discussed above, the Savanna occupies a large belt in Nigeria. It changes its character from the margin
with the forest in the south to the northern border of the country as the rainfall decreases in a northward
direction. Grassland fires and grazing by animals have also added their own impact in the distributional
pattern. Characteristically, however, the savanna can be found in the areas of Nigeria where there is at
least one long dry season. It should be stated here that savanna also occurs in areas that would be
classified as rain forest belt. Such savanna is not climatically defined. They may have anthropogenic origins
or may have existed because the local soils are poor. Such savannas units are described as a zonal because
they are confined to locations where the factors that produce them are potent. Tropical savannas exist
either as pure stands of grasses or as variable mixture of grasses and trees. The trees are usually 6-12m in
height; they are strongly rooted with flat crowns. They cope with the water shortage of the sometimes
long dry season by partially or totally losing their leaves during the period. Others cope by having small
leaves in addition. Generally, they are fire-tolerant, and have a wide range of adaptive capability for this
such as thick, flaking barks. In Nigeria, important savanna trees include Parkia filicoidea, Anogeissus
leiocarpus, Daniellia oliveri and Butyrospermum paradoxum. The grasses in the savanna are often long,
reaching up to 3.5m in height. Pennisetum purpureum (the elephant grass) may even grow up to 5m in
height.

The savanna vegetation supports a wide variety of animals. Some of the richest game reserves are located
in the tropical savanna. For example, the East African Savanna supports several species. Examples of these
species are the African Buffalo, the Zebra and many antelopes. Birds make a good use of a variety of food
species present. However, they can move quickly to evade unfavorable conditions. The insects are
dominated by the locusts, grasshoppers, ants and termites. The last named are locally more important
because they are a major component of the decomposer chain.

Water or Aquatic Communities

The life forms of the ocean have been examined under our discussion of biotic components. As already
indicated sea water is a solution of nutrients and salts. Thus, because the variation in the chemical
composition of other water bodies such as ponds, streams and rivers, you will also expect the life forms
inhabiting them to vary. We will not go into such details in this introductory discussion on the biosphere.

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Thus, our consideration of the life forms of the ocean will still be sufficient as an example of an aquatic
community.

The Dynamics of Biotic Communities

The biotic communities which have been considered above may change their features over time. There
are opportunities for us in our environment to watch such changes take place. For example, farmers in
tropical Africa practice shifting cultivation as a method of farming. This practice involves moving from one
plot to another as the land becomes infertile. If the plot is left fallow for many years it will be colonized
again by the type of vegetation which is normally supported by the climate of the area. Also the
progression from the establishment of life from the fallow stage to the climax vegetation is described as
Succession.

We can witness the progressive development of life forms due to some other events in our environment.
Consider for example they are of an abandoned mine quarry or an area which had just witnessed volcanic
eruption. Each of these events will create a fresh stage for life forms to reestablish themselves until the
features of the community created are in agreement with the climate of the area.

Man and the Biosphere

The biotic communities that we have discussed in this chapter are far from being static. Over the years
man has interfered with them altering and replacing many of them. The discussion so far has tried to
present the biosphere when human influence was minimal. This was deliberate to enable us to bring out
clearly the effect of man on the biotic communities human interference. The influence of man can be
itemized as follows: (a) domestication (b) simplification (c) obliteration (d) diversification and (e)
protection. Apart from understanding what each of these means, it is also important to be able to
recognize their effects on the earth’s biotic community at large.

Domestication
Domestication involves the production of plant or animals which is suited to human use. To accomplish
the objective domestication has taken the form of replacing the processes of natural selection by those
of human selection. Apart from this it may also involve the elimination of competitors. Agriculture
provides good examples of such processes e.g. the elimination of weeds from a maize farm.

Domestication however has effects on biotic community. First the domesticated plants and animals is
often reproductively isolated from its wild ancestor and so becomes effectively a new species. Besides,
there is usually a distinct change in shape and size of the domestic variety. In plant this is often in the
direction of a large size-if not the whole plant then of the edible parts such as seeds or leaves. The earliest
evidence of plant domestication comes from the Nile valley and is for the cultivation of barley in about
16,000 B.C. For the period between 9000 B.C and continuing to about 3000 B.C, modern Iran, Iraq, and
Palestine became the focus of domestication for animals such as sheep, goat, and cattle and for basic
crops such as barley, wheat, oats etc. The process of domestication did not stop with the ancient world.
Rather; it is a process which has continued through time-right up to the present day when scientific
knowledge has greatly increased the volume and effectiveness of domestication. Today domestication
has also included plants and animals breeding programmes.

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Simplification
Simplification as the name implies involves changing the complexity of biotic communities. This may take
the form of reducing the numbers of life forms present in the community or shortening their food chain.
Simplification may be achieved either through agricultural processes, pest control or accidentally by the
process of contamination.

As a basis for understanding how agricultural processes can lead to simplification consider for example
the diversity of species in the rain forest community. For instance, in some parts of Brazil there may be
about 300 species of trees within an area of 2 sq. km. by replacing such woodland with agricultural system
may now have a community of a single crop.

Pest control is one of the most common simplicity processes. This usually involves ridding the community
of all plants and animals that are not wanted. These are then labeled ‘weeds’ and ‘pests’. There are now
various chemicals formulations for killing weeds, viruses, bacteria and fungi etc. When such chemicals are
applied, it may lead to wiping off an important species of a given biotic community. Thus, with their
elimination, the biotic community becomes simplified in composition

Contamination may also bring about the simplification of biotic communities. For instance when the
atmosphere is contaminated by sulphur dioxides, lichens cannot grow.

Obliteration
Obliteration means the extinction of a species whether of plants or animals. We set in motion the process
of extinction when we attack species directly and reduce them to such small populations that they cannot
survive. Alternatively, we set the extinction processes in motion when we change plants and animals
habitat for our own purposes and thus break up the food chain on which they depend. Consider for
example the role of fire in the savanna environment. This is probably responsible for the maintenance of
savanna as grassy communities because when absent the tree cover increases. On a much local scale, you
can also think of grazing and overgrazing by animals. All domestic animals graze selectively and so the
vegetation is gradually altered as the more palatable plants are eaten by the snails. It is possible for
overgrazing to turn the vegetation into a more desert like community. Eventually soil erosion may set in
and the area may be reduced to a virtual desert. The example has also been quoted of the shrinkage of
health land in Southern England. This is a vegetation type in the temperate climate. It would interest you
to know that the shrinkage brought the Dartford Warbler bird to a verge of extinction in the United
Kingdom.

Diversification of biotic community is brought about by the introduction of a plant or an animal to a habitat
which it is not native to. In a few cases, the new species’ does well in its new home to the point where it
is naturalized and is often thought of as an indigenous species. The cassava food, for example is such a
familiar sight in Abeokuta, Ogun State that it may be difficult to imagine that it was introduced to Nigeria
by the Portuguese from Fernando Po in the 16th century. Similarly, the cocoa tree which is now a familiar
tree crop in forest parts of south western Nigeria was not introduced into the country until the late
nineteenth century.

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The introduction of new species of plants and animals has been influenced by so many factors. These
include economic and cultural. The economic factor is perhaps most important especially with respect to
cash crops. New species might have been brought also for emotional reasons. The freed slaves from the
New World came home with plants they got familiar with when they were under captivity. We say
emotional because they may want the new species either of plants or animals to serve as reminders of
their homes of last abode.

For whatever reason new species of plants and animals are introduced, they bring about wholesale
changes in the landscape and the biotic community. Let us consider for example the introduction of goats
on a large scale to a community. This animal is a grazer. Thus its large scale introduction may begin to
affect the regeneration of forests in the area by giving such a region a completely new outlook. Introduced
species also tend to bring their pests and parasites with them and these may then spread into native
species creating problems where none existed before.

Protection
Protection refers to deliberate attempt by man to protect nature. We can divide the methods being
adopted into two parts. First, individual species which are rare perhaps, typical or even sacred may be
deliberately protected to ensure that they do not become extinct as many have. Second, a whole
community may be protected as sanctuary for endangered species or as a “laboratory” for observation.
The protection of a species may begin and end with legislation which forbids, for example, the killing of
an animal. This may extend to the whole of the legislative area covered.

However, such attempt at protection may be insufficient and sometimes becomes necessary to establish
a refuge for the plant or animal. In such places it is hoped that they can live unmolested such that their
food supplies and other environmental conditions are assured. We call such areas Reserves. Examples in
Nigeria are the Kainji National Park and the Yankari Games Reserve. They may be set up by national
governments, local governments, voluntary or religious bodies or even by the local community. In the
latter two cases, what is worthy of note to us is that either the religious or community reserve protects
both its plant and animal populations. What is the overall erect, if any, or conservation first, it enables us
to preserve a certain proportion of the Earth’s surface in mature biotic communities as distinct from the
‘derived’ systems produced by human activity. Beyond this, it enables us to preserve the natural diversity
of the living things and their communities on the face of the Earth.

It is clear from the foregoing account of man’s interference with the biosphere, that some of the human
actions are deliberate or purposeful while others are not.

From the foregoing, man interaction with the biosphere can be summarized under two main headings
(negative and positive) because our focus is to establish how man can live in harmonious relationship and
peaceably with this important component of the environment. Previous studies has shown that man
stands at the top of the ecological pyramid. He is an omnivore - a tertiary consumer, consuming both
plants and animals. In other to close this chapter, the content therein shall be summarized into the impact
of man on this component, which may be negative or positive depending on human decision.

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The negative impact of humans on the biosphere

 The growth in human population and industrialization has resulted in the extinction of a number
of flora and fauna by deforestation.
 Clearing the natural vegetation and its replacement by a single crop has reduced the biological
diversity and the single crop has become susceptible to pests and insects.
 Burning of fossil fuels, automobile exhausts, gaseous effluents from factories have led to pollution
of land, air and water and its related consequences.
 Hunting of animals and birds and introduction of new predators in the environment has caused
extinction of some species.

While the overall impact of humans on the planet's biosphere have been negative, humans have done
many things to improve the overall quality for living things in biosphere we have damaged or
destroyed. Some other ways in which humans have attempted to minimize negative impacts or improve
the biosphere are listed below:

 Sustaining endangered species by using habitat protection methods such as wildlife refuges and
national parks.
 Passing wildlife management laws, such as game laws and catch restrictions.
 Adding lime to Adirondack lakes in an effort to neutralize their acid pollution so the original living
things in these lakes can be reintroduced.
 Design new products which meet basic needs without generating pollution.
 Inspection of all materials before entering the country to prevent pest introduction.
 Increased use of biodegradable packaging materials which will recycle themselves quickly to the
environment.
 Use fuels which contain less pollutants, such as low sulfur coal and oil.
 Remove pollutants by using such devices as afterburners or catalytic converters before they enter
the air.

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