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Abiotic factors of an ecosystem
An abiotic factor is a non-living thing. Some examples include temperature, rain, and wind -
Burning of fossil fuels
Carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels collects in the atmosphere. This process is a part which causes global warming. But it also affects our oceans. As carbon dioxide enters the ocean, it mixes with the seawater to form carbonic acid. -
Increased Carbon Dioxide
Ocean acidification is occurring because the extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is being sucked in at the surface of the ocean at an increasing rate. This extra carbon dioxide results in more hydrogen ions, which increases the acidity into the ocean. -
Dissolved Carbon Dioxide decreased pH of the ocean causing acidification
When there is more dissolved carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the more decreased the pH level gets. This means that the further down the pH level gets, the more acidic the ocean is. -
Ocean acidification damaged corals and other calcifiers weakening their shells
The rising acidity of the oceans makes calcifiers start to die because the acid is making it harder for them to build their skeletons. for example coral reefs. When they can't build up their skeletons then the start to die. -
Summary
To conclude this timeline, this lesson on ocean acidification can also tie into our lesson with coyotes in the city. This can tie in because we talked about the effects of abiotic factors in both lessons. In the coyote's in the city, we talked about the different abiotic factors that we have on the coyote's lifestyle. and for this lesson, we looked at how different abiotic factors affect our oceans acidification levels.