Ecosystems
Factors of an ecosystem that are non-living? ex: water
What is abiotic
Land where all the water drains and collects into one body of water and flows into a larger body of water.
What is a watershed?
Pollution that comes from a single known place
What is point source pollution?
The transition zone between land and a body of water
What is a wetland?
The amount of thermal energy
What is temperature?
Factors of an ecosystem that are living or once were living? ex: fish
What is biotic
The number of major watersheds in VA
What is three?
What is water quality?
Where freshwater from rivers and streams mixes with salty ocean water.
What is an estuary?
The oxygen gas dissolved in water for aquatic life to breathe.
What is dissolved oxygen?
the shape of the land determined by elevation, relief, and landforms
What is topography?
Smaller streams or rivers that flow into a larger stream or river
What are tributaries?
The pH level that is considered neutral
What is 7.
The Chesapeake Bay is a mix of fresh and salt water called this.
What is brackish water?
The measure of all salts dissolved in water
What is salinity?
All the living and nonliving things that interact with one another in a certain place
What is an ecosystem?
The names of the three watersheds in Virginia
1. Chesapeake Bay 2. Gulf of Mexico
3. North Carolina Sounds
The saltiness of the water
What is salinity
The largest estuary in the US
What is the Chesapeake Bay?
Chemical balance of water (acidic, basic, neutral)
What is pH?
True or False: Biotic factors need abiotic factors to survive.
What is true
The areas of high elevation that force water to be separated into different watershed systems
What is watershed divides
The cloudiness of the water
What is turbidity
Give a reason of how wetlands support water quality
1. they filter sediments, trap nutrients and break down pollution
2. they reduce erosion and slow run off of water
3. regulate runoff by storing flood waters
4. recharge groundwater
How does increased turbidity affect the dissolved oxygen in the water?
Increased turbidity decreases the oxygen levels in the water