How does nitrogen enter the biotic part of the ecosystem?
Answer (3)
Plants get nitrogen from the soil but it has to be turned into nitrates (by lighting or nitrogen fixation); this because nitrogen in the air is very unreactive, Then the animal eats the plant. Bacteria can get nitrogen simply from the air
Nitrogen enters the biotic part of the ecosystem through nitrogen-fixing bacteria that convert atmospheric nitrogen into forms that plants and other organisms can use, eventually cycling back to the atmosphere via denitrification.
Nitrogen enters the biotic, or living, part of the ecosystem primarily through the activity of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These bacteria can convert atmospheric nitrogen, which makes up about 78 percent of the atmosphere in the form of dinitrogen (N2), into more chemically reactive forms like ammonia (NH3), which spontaneously becomes ammonium (NH4+). This process is known as nitrogen fixation. Other bacteria then convert ammonium into nitrites (NO2-) and then nitrates (NO3-), which plants can absorb and use to synthesize vital organic compounds like DNA and proteins. These organic forms of nitrogen are then available to other organisms in the food web. Eventually, nitrogen is returned to the atmosphere through a process called denitrification, which is carried out by soil bacteria that convert nitrates back to gaseous nitrogen.
The importance of organic nitrogen lies in its role in ecosystem dynamics, as it affects primary production and other ecosystem processes. Free-living and symbiotic bacteria, including cyanobacteria in aquatic ecosystems, are instrumental in this nitrogen uptake. Without these microscopic organisms, the organic molecules necessary for life would be in short supply, making their role in ecosystem function and terrestrial food webs invaluable.
Nitrogen enters the biotic part of the ecosystem primarily through nitrogen-fixing bacteria that convert atmospheric nitrogen into usable forms like ammonia, which is then processed into nitrites and nitrates by other bacteria. Plants absorb these nitrogen compounds to create essential organic molecules, and eventually, denitrifying bacteria convert nitrates back into nitrogen gas, completing the nitrogen cycle. This process highlights the interconnectedness of life within ecosystems and the crucial role of bacteria in making nitrogen available for biological use.
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