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Asked by johnfraser to Edd, Jess, Nicolas, Zara on 22 Jun 2011.
Question: what ecosystems have you been to and which ones are the most interesting?
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Zara Gladman answered on 22 Jun 2011:
Hello johnfraser! š
Good question! I’ve seen many different ecosystems… I’m sure you have too, ‘cos they’re everywhere! Even a small rock pool on the sea shore can be considered an ecosystem. I saw lots of rock pools when I went on a field trip to the Isle of Cumbrae a few years agoā¦ each one was teeming with life, from tiny shrimp to barnacles and limpets!
On a slightly larger scale, I went snorkelling over coral reef in Tobago some years ago and saw loads of awesome tropical fishā¦ including jacks and barracudas (scary:
)! So cool. Coral reef is very vulnerable to damage so I had to be careful not to stand on itā¦ itās also very threatened by global warming because higher temperatures lead to ācoral bleachingā, in which the microorganisms that coral rely on to survive are killed off.I think the most interesting ecosystem Iāve visited would have to be the tropical rainforest I saw in Trinidad (hereās a photo of our group beside the buttress roots of a massive tree:
). Tropical rainforests are āhotspotsā for biodiversity. They only cover a tiny percentage of the worldās land mass but account for an enormous number of species, many of which we havenāt discovered yet!In the rainforest I sawā¦ snakes (I almost stood on this one, which is called a āfer-de-lanceā, a very dangerous snake:
), tree frogs (
), bats (there was a colony of vampire bats living near us! I had to get a Rabies jab before I went), monkeys, and hundreds of insects (I was bitten by ants and mosquitoes loads!). Hereās a compilation of photos that we took: 
and thatās just a tiny selection of what I saw!
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Edward Codling answered on 22 Jun 2011:
One of my favourite ecosystems is the high alpine mountain valleys (e.g. in the Alps or Pyrenees: http://www.mountainbug.com/Library/about%20the%20Pyrenees.htm ). I love mountain climbing and walking and it always surprises me how such a delicate environment can support such a diverse range of species. In the winter the whole area is covered in snow, but then in the spring there are a huge range of alpine plants – gentians and saxifrage and eidelweiss (and loads more) that suddenly all flower at once. Add to that the chance to see large wild animals quite close up – chamois and marmots (my favourite) as well as eagles and even snakes and salamanders (I’ve seen all in the Pyrenees and Alps when there). My favourite experience was when we climbed a very high rocky mountain in the Dolomites in Italy – right at the top was a colony of choughs – these are like crows but with red beaks and legs. In the UK they are very rare and protected, but these choughs weren’t afraid of people and ate raisins out of my hand!
The other type of ecosystems that I find interesting are the natural UK ecosystems that we take for granted but are unique to us. Our peat bogs and mountain uplands are unique. The limestone pavement that is found in the Yorkshire Dales is unique to the British Isles and supports a few very rare species. Similarly, the mud flats and estuaries on the east coast of England don’t seem that amazing but they actually form a crucial habitat for thousands of migratory birds, and also form the home for many large colonies of seals.
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