Anthropogenic factors - A combination of various impacts of a person on a non-living and live nature. Only their physical existence themselves have a noticeable effect on the habitat: in the process of breathing, they annually isolated in the atmosphere 1 · 10 kg of CO 2, and with food consumes more than 5-10 15 kcal.

As a result of human impact, climate, surface relief, the chemical composition of the atmosphere, disappear, the types and natural ecosystems, etc., the most important anthropogenic factor is urbanization for nature.

Anthropogenic activity significantly affects climatic factors, changing their modes. For example, mass emissions into the atmosphere of solid and liquid particles from industrial enterprises can dramatically change the dispersion mode of solar radiation in the atmosphere and reduce the arrival of heat to the surface of the Earth. The destruction of forests and other vegetation, the creation of large artificial reservoirs in the former land areas increase the reflection of energy, and pollution with dust, for example, snow and ice - on the contrary, increases the absorption, which leads to their intensive melting.

In a much greater extent, the production activities of people affect the biosphere. As a result of this activity, the relief, the composition of the earth's crust and the atmosphere, climate is changed, the redistribution of fresh water, natural ecosystems disappear and artificial agro- and techno-ecosystems are created, cultural plants are cultivated, animals are domesticated, etc.

The impact of a person can be direct and indirect. For example, the cutting and coloring of the forests are not only direct action, but also mediated - the conditions of the existence of birds and animals change. It is estimated that since 1600, a person has destroyed 162 species of birds, over 100 mammal species and many other plant and animal species. But, on the other hand, it creates new varieties of plants and breed animals, increases their yield and productivity. Artificial resettlement of plants and animals also affects the life of ecosystems. So, rabbits brought to Australia have multiplied so much that they caused huge damage to agriculture.

The most obvious manifestation of anthropogenic influence on the biosphere is environmental pollution. The value of anthropogenic factors is constantly growing, as a person more and more subordinates nature.

Human activity is a combination of transformation by man for its own purposes of natural environmental factors and the creation of new, previously not existing in nature. Metal smelting from ore and equipment production are impossible without creating high temperatures, pressures, powerful electromagnetic fields. Obtaining and maintaining high yields of crops requires the production of fertilizers and chemical protection tools from pests and causative agents. Modern health care is not possible to imagine without hemo- and physiotherapy.

The achievements of scientific and technological progress began to be used in political and economic purposes, which was extremely manifested in the creation of special struck human and his property of environmental factors: from firearms to the means of mass physical, chemical and biological effects. In this case, they are talking about the aggregate of anthropotropic (directed to the human body) and anthropocidal factors causing environmental pollution.

On the other hand, besides such factors of targeted appointment, in the process of exploiting and processing natural resources, side chemical compounds and zones of high levels of physical factors are inevitably formed. Under the conditions of accidents and disasters, these processes can be leapped with severe environmental and material consequences. Hence it was necessary to create ways and means of protecting a person from dangerous and harmful factors, which was currently implemented in the system mentioned above - the safety of vital activity.

Ecological plasticity. Despite the large variety of environmental factors, in the nature of their impact and in responses of living organisms, a number of general patterns can be identified.

The effect of the influence of factors depends not only on the nature of their action (quality), but also from the quantitative value perceived by the organisms - high or low temperature, the degree of illumination, humidity, the amount of food, etc. In the process of evolution, the ability of organisms to adapt to environmental factors in certain quantitative limits was developed. Reducing or increasing the value of the factor behind these limits is oppressed by life, and when the death of organisms occurs, the death of any minimum or maximum level is achieved.

The environmental zones of the environmental factor and the theoretical dependence of the vital activity of the body, population or community depend on the quantitative value of the factor. The quantitative range of any environmental factor, most favorable for life, is called an environmental optimum (lat. ortimus - Best). The values \u200b\u200bof the factor lying in the oppression zone are called environmental pessimum (worst).

The minimum and maximum factor values \u200b\u200bin which death occurs is called respectively environmental minimum and environmental maximum

Any kinds of organisms, populations or communities are adapted, for example, to existence at a certain temperature range.

The property of the organisms to adapt to the existence in one or another range of the ecological factor is called environmental plasticity.

The wider the range of the environmental factor, within which this organism can live, the greater its ecological plasticity.

According to the degree of plasticity, two types of organisms are distinguished: wall-cutting (walls) and esvibionic (Evrieki).

Stopping and euribontic organisms differ in the range of the environmental factor in which they can live.

Unzobönny(gr. stenos. - narrow, close), or outer-receiving, species are capable of exist only with small deviations

factors from optimal value.

Evuryontal (gr. erys - Wide) are called broad organisms that carry out the greatest amplitude of the oscillations of the environmental factor.

Historically, adapting to environmental factors, animals, plants, microorganisms are distributed through various environments, forming all the varieties of ecosystems forming the Earth's biosphere.

Limit factors. The idea of \u200b\u200bthe limiting factors is based on two laws of the ecology: the law of the minimum and the law of tolerance.

Minimum law. In the middle of the last century, the German chemist Y. Lubih (1840), studying the effect of nutrients on the growth of plants, found that the crop depends not on those batteries that are required in large quantities and are present in abundance (for example, CO 2 and H 2 0 ), and from those that, although we need a plant in smaller quantities, but are practically absent in the soil or not available (for example, phosphorus, zinc, boron).

This pattern of libems formulated this: "The growth of the plant depends on the element of the power, which is present in the minimum quantity." Later this conclusion was known as lubiha Minimum Law And was distributed to many other environmental factors. Limit, or limit, the development of organisms can both heat, light, and water, and oxygen, and other factors, if their value corresponds to an environmental minimum. For example, tropical fish is killed if the water temperature drops below 16 ° C. And the development of algae in deep-sea ecosystems is limited to the penetration of sunlight: in the bottom layers there is no algae.

The law of a minimum of libech in general can be formulated as follows: the growth and development of organisms depend, first of all, from those factors of the natural environment, whose meanings are approaching an environmental minimum.

Studies have shown that the minimum law has two restrictions that should be taken into account in practical application.

The first limitation is that the Libiha law is strictly applicable only under the conditions of the stationary state of the system. For example, in some reservoir, the growth of algae is limited in vivo the lack of phosphates. Nitrogen compounds are contained in water in excess. If it will begin to drop wastewater with a high content of mineral phosphorus, then the reservoir can "bloody". This process will be progress until one of the elements is spent to a restrictive minimum. Now it can be nitrogen if phosphorus continues to flow. In the transitional moment (when nitrogen is still sufficient, and the phosphorus is already enough) the effect of the minimum is not observed, i.e., none of these elements affect the growth of algae.

The second limitation is associated with the interaction of several factors. Sometimes the body is able to replace the deficient element to other, chemically close. So, in places where there is a lot of strontium, in mollusc sinks, it can replace calcium with the latter shortage. Or, for example, the need for zinc in some plants is reduced if they grow in the shade. Consequently, the low concentration of zinc will less limit the growth of plants in the shade than in bright light. In these cases, the limiting effect of even an insufficient number of one or another element may not appear.

The law of tolerance (LAT. . Tolerantia. - Patience) was opened by an English biologist V. Shefod (1913), which drew attention to the fact that not only the environmental factors whose values \u200b\u200bare minimal, but also those characterized by an ecological maximum can limit the development of living organisms. Excess heat, light, water, and even nutrients can be as destructive as their disadvantage. The range of the ecological factor between the minimum and maximum V. Sheford called the limit of tolerance.

The tolerance limit describes the amplitude of the vibrations of the factors, which ensures the most complete existence of the population. Separate individuals may have several other tolerance bands.

Later, the tolerance limits relative to various environmental factors for many plants and animals were established. Laws of Yu. Libiha and V. Sheford helped to understand many phenomena and the distribution of organisms in nature. Organisms cannot be distributed everywhere because populations have a certain limit of tolerance with respect to fluctuations in environmental environmental factors.

The law of tolerance V. Sheford is formulated as: the growth and development of organisms depend primarily from those environmental factors, the values \u200b\u200bof which are approaching an environmental minimum or an environmental maximum.

The following was established:

Organisms with a wide range of tolerance to all factors are widespread in nature and are often cosmopolitans, for example, many pathogenic bacteria;

Organisms can have a wide range of tolerance in relation to one factor and a narrow range relative to the other. For example, people are more enduring to the absence of food than to the absence of water, i.e. the limit of tolerance regarding water is narrower, than relative to food;

If the conditions according to one of the environmental factors become non-optimal, then the limit of tolerance for other factors may change. For example, with a lack of nitrogen in the soil, cereals require much more water;

Observed real limits of tolerance less potential capacity capabilities to adapt to this factor. This is due to the fact that in nature, the limits of tolerance with respect to the physical conditions of the medium can be dried by biotic relationships: competition, lack of pollinators, predators, etc. Anyone is better implementing its potential opportunities in favorable conditions (fees of athletes for special training before responsible competitions, such as ). The potential ecological plasticity of the organism, defined in laboratory conditions, more realized opportunities in natural conditions. Accordingly distinguish potential and implemented environmental niches;

The limits of tolerance in breeding individuals and the offspring are less than in adult individuals, i.e. females during the reproduction period and their offspring are less hardy than adult organisms. Thus, the geographical distribution of fishing birds is more often determined by the influence of climate on eggs and chicks, and not on adult birds. Caring for offspring and careful attitude towards motherhood are dictated by the laws of nature. Unfortunately, sometimes social "achievements" contradict these laws;

Extreme (stressful) values \u200b\u200bof one of the factors lead to a decrease in tolerance limit to other factors. If the raged water is reset into the river, the fish and other organisms spend almost all their energy to overcome stress. They lack energy to produce food, protection against predators, reproduction, which leads to gradual extinction. Psychological stress can also cause many somatic (gr. sOMA - The body) of the disease is not only in humans, but also in some animals (for example, in dogs). With stressful values \u200b\u200bof the factor, adaptation to it becomes more and more "expensive."

Many organisms can change tolerance to individual factors if the conditions change gradually. You can, for example, to get used to the high temperature of water in the bath, if climb in warm water, and then gradually add hot. Such an adaptation to a slow change in factor is a useful protective property. But it may be dangerous. Unexpected, without warning signals, even a small change may be critical. The threshold effect comes: the "last drop" may turn out to be fatal. For example, a thin twig can lead to a fracture already overloaded camel back.

If the value of at least one of the environmental factors approaches a minimum or maximum, the existence and prosperity of the organism, the population or community becomes dependent on this limiting the vital activity of the factor.

The limiting factor is called any environmental factor approaching the extreme values \u200b\u200bof the tolerance limits or exceeding them. Such strongly deviating factors are primarily acquired in the lives of organisms and biological systems. They are they control the conditions of existence.

The value of the concept of limiting factors is that it allows us to understand complex relationships in ecosystems.

Fortunately, not all possible environmental factors regulate the relationship between the environment, organisms and man. Various limiting factors are prioritized in one or another segment. On these factors, the ecologist must focus on the study of ecosystems and managing them. For example, the oxygen content in terrestrial habitats is large and it is so available that it almost never serves as a limiting factor (with the exception of large heights and anthropogenic systems). Oxygen is little interested in ecologists engaged in ground ecosystems. And in water, it is often a factor limiting the development of living organisms ("Castles" of fish, for example). Therefore, the hydrobiologist always measures the oxygen content in water, in contrast to a veterinarian or an ornithologist, although the oxygen is no less important for terrestrial organisms than for water.

Limit factors determine the geographical area of \u200b\u200bthe species. Thus, the promotion of organisms to the south is limited, as a rule, lack of heat. Biotic factors also often limit the spread of certain organisms. For example, the figs brought from the Mediterranean in California did not be fruiting there until they guessed to get there and a certain appearance of the osse - the only pollinator of this plant. The identification of limiting factors is very important for many activities, especially agriculture. With a focused impact on limiting conditions, it is possible to quickly and efficiently increase the yield of plants and animal productivity. Thus, when breeding wheat on acidic soils, no agronomic measures give effect if not to use lime, which reduces the limiting effect of acids. Or if they grow corn on soils with a very low phosphorus content, then even with sufficient water, nitrogen, potassium and other nutrients, it stops growing. Phosphorus in this case is a limiting factor. And only phosphoric fertilizers can save the crop. Plants may die from too much water or excess fertilizers, which in this case are also limiting factors.

Knowledge of limiting factors gives the key to the management of ecosystems. However, in different periods of the life of the body and in different situations, various factors protrude as limiting. Therefore, only the skillful regulation of the existence conditions can give effective management results.

Interaction and compensation of factors. In nature, environmental factors act not independently of each other - they interact. Analysis of the influence of one factor on the body or community is not an end in itself, but a method for assessing the comparative significance of various conditions acting in real ecosystems.

Joint influence of factors You can consider using the example of the dependence of mortality of crabs from temperature, salinity and the presence of cadmium. In the absence of cadmium, the environmental optimum (minimum mortality) is observed in the temperature range from 20 to 28 ° C and salinity - from 24 to 34%. If toxic cadmium is added to the water, the ecological optimum is shifted: the temperature lies in the range from 13 to 26 ° C, and salinity - from 25 to 29%. The limits of tolerance are changed. The difference between the ecological maximum and a minimum for salinity after the supplement of cadmium decreases from 11 to 47% to 14 - 40%. The tolerance limit for the temperature factor, on the contrary, is expanding from 9 - 38 ° C to 0-42 ° C.

Temperature and humidity are the most important climatic factors in terrestrial habitats. The interaction of these two factors essentially forms two main types of climate: sea and continental.

The reservoirs soften the climate of the sushi, as water has high-specific melting heat and heat capacity. Therefore, the sea climate is characterized by less sharp fluctuations in temperature and humidity than the continental one.

The effects of temperature and humidity on the organisms also depends on the ratio of their absolute values. So, the temperature has a more pronounced limiting effect if the humidity is very high or very small. Everyone knows that high and low temperatures are transferred worse with high humidity than with moderate

The relationship between temperature and humidity as the main climatic factors is often depicted in the form of graphs klimograms, allowing to visually compare different years and areas and predict products of plants or animals for certain climatic conditions.

Organisms are not slaves of the medium. They adapt to the conditions of existence and change them, i.e. compensate for the negative effects of environmental factors.

Compensation of environmental factors is the desire of organisms to weaken the limiting effect of physical, biotic and anthropogenic influences. Compensation of factors is possible at the level of the body and type, but most effective at the community level.

At different temperatures, the same appearance having wide geographical distribution may acquire physiological and morphological (gr. torphe - Form, outline) features adapted to local conditions. For example, animals have ears, tails, the paws are the shorter, and the body is more massive than the colder climate.

This pattern is called Allen Rule (1877), according to which the speakers of the body of warm-blooded animals increase as it moves from the north to the south, which is associated with adaptation to maintaining the constant body temperature in various climatic conditions. So, in foxes living in Sahara, long limbs and huge ears; European fox is more progress, her ears is much shorter; And the Arctic Liser - Sands are very small ears and a short face.

In animals with well-developed motor activity, compensation of factors is possible due to adaptive behavior. So, lizards are not afraid of sharp cooling, because during the day they go to the sun, and at night are hiding under the heated stones. Changes arising in the process of adaptation are often genetically secured. At the community level, compensation of factors can be changed by changing the gradient of environmental conditions; For example, during seasonal changes, a regular change of plant species occurs.

Natural frequency of changes in environmental organisms are also used to distribute time functions. They "program" the life cycles in such a way as to maximize the use of favorable conditions.

The most striking example is the behavior of organisms depending on the length of the day - photocheter. The amplitude of the day's length increases with geographic latitude, which allows organisms to take into account not only the time of year, but also the breadth of the terrain. Photoperiod is a "time relay" or a starting mechanism for the sequence of physiological processes. It determines the flowering of plants, migration, migration and reproduction in birds and mammals, etc. Photoperiod is associated with biological clock and serves as a universal mechanism for regulating the functions in time. Biological clocks associate the rhythms of environmental factors with physiological rhythms, allowing organisms to adapt to daily, seasonal, tidal and tidying and other dynamics of factors.

By changing the photoperiod, you can cause changes and changes in the functions of the body. So, flowerflowers, changing the light mode in the greenhouses, receive extractional blossoms of plants. If after December immediately increase the length of the day, then this can cause phenomena taking place in the spring: blooming plants, molting in animals, etc. In many of the highest adaptation organisms, genetically fixed, i.e. biological clocks can work and in the absence of natural daily or seasonal speakers.

Thus, the meaning of the analysis of environmental conditions is not to draw up an immense list of environmental factors, but to detect functionally important, limiting factors and evaluate the extent to which the structure, structure and functions of ecosystems depend on the interaction of these factors.

Only in this case it is possible to reliably predict the results of changes and disorders and control ecosystems.

Anthropogenic limiting factors. As examples of anthropogenic limiting factors, allowing to manage natural and created human ecosystems, it is convenient to consider fires and anthropogenic stress.

Fires As an anthropogenic factor is more often evaluated only negatively. Studies in the last 50 years have shown that natural fires can be part of the climate in many land-hazards. They affect the evolution of flora and fauna. The biotic communities "learned" to compensate for this factor and adapt to it, as to temperature or humidity. Fire can be viewed and studying as an environmental factor, along with temperature, precipitation and soil. With proper use, the fire may be a valuable environmental tool. Some tribes burned the forests for their needs long before people began to be systematically and targeted the environment. The fire is a very important factor, including because a person can control it to a greater extent than other limiting factors. It is difficult to find a plot of land, especially in areas with arid periods, where the fire would not have happened at least once for 50 years. Most often, the cause of fires in nature is a lightning strike.

Fires are different types and lead to different consequences.

High, or "wild", fires are usually very intense and deterrent. They destroy the crown of trees and destroy the whole organicity of the soil. Fires of this type have a limiting effect on almost all community organisms. It must pass for many years while the site will recover again.

Low fires are completely different. They have an electoral action: for some organisms are more limiting than for others. Thus, lower fires contribute to the development of organisms with high tolerance to their consequences. They can be natural or specially organized person. For example, planned burning in the forest is made to eliminate competition for the valuable rock of swamp pine on the side of deciduous trees. Bolotnaya pine, in contrast to hardwood, resistant to fire, as the top kidney of its seedlings is protected by a beam of long poorly burning needles. In the absence of fires, the piglets of deciduous trees swallows pine, as well as cereals and legumes. This leads to the oppression of partridges and small herbal animals. Therefore, virgin pine forests with abundant leshes are the ecosystems of the "fire" type, that is, in need of periodic lower fires. In this case, the fire does not lead to the loss of nutrient elements of the soil, does not harm ants, insects and small mammals.

A nitrogen-fixing bean a small fire is even useful. The burning is carried out in the evening so that at night the fire was extinguished by the dew, and the narrow front of the fire could be easily stepped over. In addition, small lower fires complement the effect of bacteria on the transformation of dead residues into mineral nutrients suitable for a new generation of plants. With the same purpose, in the spring and autumn often burned foliage. Planned burning is an example of controlling the natural ecosystem with a limiting environmental factor.

Deciding whether to completely exclude the possibility of fires or fire should be used as a management factor, must depend entirely on what type of community is desirable in this area. American ecologist G. Stodarddard (1936) One of the first spoke "in defense" of controlled planned burnings to increase the products of valuable wood and Dići back in those times, when from the point of view of forest products, any fire was considered harmful.

The close binding of burnout with the composition of herbs plays a key role in maintaining an amazing variety of antelope and eating their predators in East African savannas. Positively affect the fires for many cereals, since the points of growth of their and energy reserves are underground. After burning out of the dry aboveground parts, the batteries are quickly returned to the soil and the herbs grow up lush.

The question "burn or not burn", of course, can embarrass. By negligence, a person is often the reason for increasing the frequency of destructive "wild" fires. The struggle for fire safety in forests and recreation areas is the second side of the problem.

A private person in no way has the right to intentionally or accidentally cause a fire in nature is the privilege of specially trained people familiar with land use rules.

Anthropogenic stress It can also be considered as a kind of limiting factor. Ecosystems are largely capable of compensating for anthropogenic stress. It is possible that they are from nature adapted to sharp periodic stress. And many organisms need random violating effects that contribute to their long-term sustainability. Large reservoirs often have a good self-cleaning ability and restore their qualities after contamination as well as many land ecosystems. However, long-term disorders can lead to pronounced and sustainable negative consequences. In such cases, the evolutionary history of adaptation cannot help organisms -compensation mechanisms are not irreplaceable. This is especially true of cases when strong-toxic waste is reset, which constantly produces industrialized society and which were previously absent in the environment. If we cannot isolate these poisonous waste from global life support systems, they will threaten our health directly and become the main limiting factor for humanity.

Anthropogenic stress conventionally divided into two groups: acute and chronic.

For the first characteristic, a sudden beginning, a rapid rise in intensity and a small duration. With a second - disorders of low intensity continue for a long time or repeated. Natural systems often have sufficient ability to cope with acute stress. For example, the strategy of resting seeds allows the forest to recover after cutting down. The consequences of chronic stress may be heavier, since the reactions to it are not so obvious. Years may pass years until changes in organisms are seen. So, the relationship between cancer and smoking disease was revealed only a few decades ago, although it existed for a long time.

The threshold effect partly explains why some environmental problems arise as if unexpectedly. In fact, they accumulated for many years. For example, in forests begins the mass death of trees after a long exposure to air pollutants. We begin to notice the problem only after the death of many forests in Europe and America. By this time, we were late for 10-20 years and could not prevent tragedy.

During the adaptation period to chronic anthropogenic effects, the tolerance of organisms is reduced and to other factors, such as diseases. Chronic stresses are often associated with toxic substances, which, although in small concentrations, but constantly enter the environment.

The article "American Poison" (Times magazine for September 22, 80) provides such data: "From all human interventions, none in the natural order of affairs increasing such an alarming pace as the creation of new chemical compounds. Only in the US, ingenious "Alchemists" annually create about 1,000 new drugs. There are about 50,000 different chemicals on the market. Many of them are undoubtedly bringing great benefit, but almost 35,000 connections used in the US are definitely or potentially harmful to human health. "

Danger, perhaps catastrophic, represents pollution of groundwater and deep aquifers, constituting a significant proportion of water resources on the planet. Unlike surface, soil waters are not subject to natural self-purification processes due to the lack of sunlight, rapid flow and biotic components.

Fears cause not only harmful substances falling into water, soil and food. Millions of tons of dangerous connections are taken into the atmosphere. Only over America in the late 70s. It was thrown: suspended particles - up to 25 million tons / year, SO 2 - up to 30 million tons / year, NO - up to 23 million tons / year.

We all contribute to the pollution of the air, using cars, electricity, industrial goods, etc. Air pollution is a clear negative feedback signal that can save society from death, as it is easily detected by everyone.

The processing of solid garbage has long been considered a secondary business. Until 1980, there were cases when residential neighborings were built on the former dumps of radioactive waste. Now, although with some delay, it became clear: the accumulation of waste limits the development of industry. Without the creation of technologies and centers for their removal, neutralization and recycling, the further progress of industrial society is impossible. First of all, it is necessary to safely isolate the most poisonous substances. The illegal practice of "night discharges" must be replaced by their reliable insulation. You need to look for substitutes for poisonous chemicals. With the right leadership, the disposal and disposal of waste can become a special industry industry, which will give new jobs and contribute to the economy.

The solution to the problem of anthropogenic stress should be based on the holistic concept and requires a systematic approach. Attempts to engage in every pollutant as an independent problem are ineffective - they only transfer the problem from one place to another.

If in the near decade will not be able to keep the process of deterioration of the environmental quality, it is likely that not a shortage of natural resources, but the effects of harmful substances will become a factor limiting the development of civilization.

The scale of humanity activities in the last few hundred years has increased immeasurably, it means that new anthropogenic factors have appeared. Examples of impact, place and role of humanity in the change in habitat - about all this further in the article.

life?

Part of the nature of the Earth in which organisms live are their habitat. Arising from this relationship, lifestyle, productivity, the number of creatures is studied by ecology. Allocate the main components of nature: soil, water and air. There are organisms that are adapted to habitat in one medium or in three, such as coastal plants.

Separate elements interacting with alive creatures and among themselves - environmental factors. Each of them is indispensable. But in recent decades, anthropogenic factors acquire planetary importance. Although still half a century ago, the influence of society did not pay enough attention, and 150 years ago, the science of Ecology itself was in the infancy.

What are environmental factors?

All variety of exposure to society on the environment is an anthropogenic factors. Examples of negative impact:

• reducing mineral reserves;
• forest reduction;
• soil pollution;
• hunting and fisheries;
• extermination of wild species.

The positive impact of a person on the biosphere is associated with environmental activities. Forest recovery and forest plantation, landscaping and improvement of settlements, acclimatization of animals (mammals, birds, fish) are underway.

What is done to improve the relationship between the person and the biosphere?

The above examples of anthropogenic environmental factors, human intervention in nature indicate that the impact may be positive and negative. These characteristics are conditional in nature, because a positive effect with changed conditions is often becoming its opposite, i.e. it becomes a negative color. The activity of the population is more often harmful to nature than the benefit. This fact is explained by a violation of natural patterns operating within millions of years.

Back in 1971, the United Nations Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), an international biological program called "Man and Biosphere" was approved. Its main task was to study and prevent adverse habitats. In recent years, adults and children's environmental organizations, scientific institutions are very concerned about the preservation of biological diversity.

How to improve environmental health?

We found out what an anthropogenic factor in ecology, biology, geography and other sciences is. It should be noted that the well-being of human society, the life of this and future generations of people depend on the quality and degree of influence of economic activities on the habitat. It is necessary to reduce the environmental risk associated with an ever-increasing negative role of anthropogenic factors.

According to researchers, it is not even enough to ensure the health of the environment. It may be unfavorable for human life with its former biodiversity, but strong radiation, chemical and other types of pollution.

The relationship between health and the degree of influence of anthropogenic factors is obvious. To reduce their negative impact, it is necessary to form a new environment, responsibility for the prosperous existence of wildlife and the preservation of biodiversity.

News and Society

Anthropogenic factors: examples. What is an anthropogenic factor?

November 10, 2014.

The scale of humanity activities in the last few hundred years has increased immeasurably, it means that new anthropogenic factors have appeared. Examples of impact, place and role of humanity in the change in habitat - about all this further in the article.

What is a living environment?

Part of the nature of the Earth in which organisms live are their habitat. Arising from this relationship, lifestyle, productivity, the number of creatures is studied by ecology. Allocate the main components of nature: soil, water and air. There are organisms that are adapted to habitat in one medium or in three, such as coastal plants.

Separate elements interacting with alive creatures and among themselves - environmental factors. Each of them is indispensable. But in recent decades, anthropogenic factors acquire planetary importance. Although still half a century ago, the influence of society did not pay enough attention, and 150 years ago, the science of Ecology itself was in the infancy.

What are environmental factors?

The conditions of the environment can be very diverse: space, information, energy, chemical, climatic. Any natural components of physical, chemical or biological origin are environmental factors. They directly either indirectly affect a separate biological scope, population, all biocenosis. No less there are phenomena related to human activity, such as anxiety factor. Many anthropogenic factors affect the vital activity of organisms, the condition of biocenoses and the geographical shell. Examples:

• an increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere leads to climate change;
• monoculture in agriculture causes outbreaks of the number of individual hurrying organisms;
• fires lead to the change of plant community;
• minding forests and the construction of the hydropower plant changes the river mode.

Video on the topic

What are environmental factors?

The conditions affecting living organisms and their habitat can be attributed to one of three groups:

• inorganic, or abiotic factors (solar radiation, air, temperature, water, wind, salinity);
• biotic conditions that are associated with joint habitat of microorganisms, animals, plants affecting each other for non-living nature;
• anthropogenic environmental factors - the cumulative impact of the population of the Earth in nature.

All listed groups are important. Each environmental factor is indispensable. For example, the abundance of water does not fill the amount of plants of mineral elements necessary to power the plants.

What is an anthropogenic factor?

The main sciences studying the environment - global ecology, human ecology and nature conservation. They are based on the data of theoretical ecology, the concept of "anthropogenic factors" is widely used. Anthropos translated from Greek means "man", Genos translates as "origin". The word "factor" occurred from the Latin Factor ("making producing"). So call the conditions affecting the processes, their driving force.

Any impacts of a person on living organisms, the whole environment is anthropogenic factors. Examples exist both positive and negative. There are cases of favorable changes in nature in connection with environmental protection. But more often society negatively, sometimes destructively affects the biosphere.

The place and role of the anthropogenic factor in the change in the appearance of the Earth

Any type of economic activity of the population affects the relationship between alive organisms and a natural habitat, often leads to their violation. At the site of natural complexes and landscapes arise anthropogenic:

• fields, gardens and gardens;
• reservoirs, ponds, channels;
• parks, forest belts;
• cultural pastures.

An anthropogenic, biotic and abiotic environmental factors are affected by the similarity of natural complexes in the future. Examples: Desert formation - agricultural plantations; Unestation of ponds.

How does a person affect nature?

Humanity is part of the Earth's biosphere - over a long period completely depended on the surrounding natural conditions. As the nervous system is developing, in particular the brain, thanks to the improvement of the instruments of labor, the man himself turned into a factor of evolutionary and other processes on Earth. First of all, it is necessary to mention the mastery of mechanical, electrical and atomic energy. As a result, the upper part of the earth's crust has changed significantly, the biogenic migration of atoms has increased.

All variety of exposure to society on the environment is an anthropogenic factors. Examples of negative impact:

• reducing mineral reserves;
• forest reduction;
• soil pollution;
• hunting and fisheries;
• extermination of wild species.

The positive impact of a person on the biosphere is associated with environmental activities. Forest recovery and forest plantation, landscaping and improvement of settlements, acclimatization of animals (mammals, birds, fish) are underway.

What is done to improve the relationship between the person and the biosphere?

The above examples of anthropogenic environmental factors, human intervention in nature indicate that the impact may be positive and negative. These characteristics are conditional in nature, because a positive effect with changed conditions is often becoming its opposite, i.e. it becomes a negative color. The activity of the population is more often harmful to nature than the benefit. This fact is explained by a violation of natural patterns operating within millions of years.

Back in 1971, the United Nations Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), an international biological program called "Man and Biosphere" was approved. Its main task was to study and prevent adverse habitats. In recent years, adults and children's environmental organizations, scientific institutions are very concerned about the preservation of biological diversity.

How to improve environmental health?

We found out what an anthropogenic factor in ecology, biology, geography and other sciences is. It should be noted that the well-being of human society, the life of this and future generations of people depend on the quality and degree of influence of economic activities on the habitat. It is necessary to reduce the environmental risk associated with an ever-increasing negative role of anthropogenic factors.

According to researchers, even the preservation of biological diversity is not enough to ensure the health of the medium. It may be unfavorable for human life with its former biodiversity, but strong radiation, chemical and other types of pollution.

The relationship between the health of nature, man and the degree of influence of anthropogenic factors is obvious. To reduce their negative impact, it is necessary to form a new environment, responsibility for the prosperous existence of wildlife and the preservation of biodiversity.

Anthropogenic factors - a combination of environmental factors caused by random or deliberate human activity over the period of its existence.

Types of anthropogenic factors:

· physical - the use of atomic energy, movement in trains and aircraft, the effect of noise and vibration, etc.;

· chemical - the use of mineral fertilizers and pesticides, pollution of the Earth shells by the waste industry and transport; smoking, drinking alcohol and drugs, excessive use of drugs;

· social - related to people's relationships and life in society.

· In recent decades, anthropogenic factors have increased dramatically, which led to the emergence of global environmental problems: a greenhouse effect, acid rain, the destruction of forests and desertification of territories, pollution of the environment with harmful substances, reducing the biological diversity of the planet.

Human habitat.Anthropogenic factors affect the habitat of the person himself. Since it is a substantial biosocial, then the natural and social habitat is distinguished.

Natural habitat gives man health and material for labor activity, is in close cooperation: a person constantly changes the natural environment in the process of its activities; The transformed natural medium, in turn, affects a person.

Man all the time communicates with other people, entering them into interpersonal relationships, which determines social habitat . Communication can be favorable (contributing to the development of personality) and unfavorable (leading to psychological overloads and breakdowns, to acquire detrimental habits - alcoholism, drug addiction, etc.).

Abiotic medium (environment factors) -this is a complex of conditions of the inorganic medium affecting the body. (Light, temperature, wind, air, pressure, humidity, etc.)

For example: accumulation in the soil of toxic and chemical elements, drying out water bodies during drought, increase the duration of the daylight, intensive ultraviolet radiation.

Abiotic factors, various factors not related to living organisms.

Light - The most important abiotic factor with which all life on Earth is connected. In the spectrum of sunlight, three biologically unequalities are distinguished; Ultraviolet, visible and infrared.

All plants in relation to light can be divided into the following groups:

■ Plants are light-minded - helofitis (from Grech. Helios - Sun and Phiton - Plant);

■ Plants Shadow - scoffitis (from Greek. "SCIA" - shadow, and "Phiton" - a plant);

■ Shadowish plants - optional heliophytes.

Temperatureon the earth's surface depends on geographic latitude and height above sea level. In addition, it changes by season of the year. In this regard, animals and plants exist different adaptations to temperature conditions. In most organisms, life processes occur in the range from -4 ° C to + 40 ... 45 ° C

The most perfect thermoregulation appeared only supreme vertebrae - birds and mammals, providing them with a wide settlement in all climatic belts. They got the name of homootherm (Greek. G O M O О О С - equal) organisms.

7. The concept of population. Structure, system, characteristics and dynamics of populations. Homeostasis populations.

9. The concept of environmental niche. The law of the competitive exception of G. F. Gauz.

ecological niche - This is a combination of all habitat type connections that provide existence and reproduction of individuals in nature.
The term ecological niche proposed in 1917 by J. Greennell for the characteristics of the spatial distribution of intraspecific environmental groups.
Initially, the concept of an ecological niche was close to the concept of habitat. But in 1927, Ch. Elton identified an environmental niche as a position in the community, emphasizing the special importance of trophic ties. Domestic ecologist G. F. Gauz expanded this definition: Ecological niche is a place of view in the ecosystem.
In 1984, S. Spurr and B. Barnes isolated three components of the niche: the spatial (where), temporary (when) and functional (as). In this concept, the niche emphasizes the importance of both the spatial, so the temporary component of the niche, which includes its seasonal and daily changes taking into account the circidal and circadian biorhythms.

It is often used to form a figurative definition of an ecological niche: habitat is the address of the species, and the ecological niche is his profession (Yu. ODU).

Principle of competitive exception; (\u003d Theorem Gause; \u003d Law Gauz)
The principle of exclusion of Gause - in ecology - the law, according to which two types cannot exist in the same area if they occupy the same ecological niche.

In connection with this principle, with the limited possibilities of spatial-temporary disagreement, one of the types produces a new ecological niche or disappears.
The principle of competitive exception contains two general provisions related to sympathy species:

1) If two species occupy the same ecological niche, then almost certainly one of them exceeds the other in this niche and eventually displaces a less fit. Or, in a shorter form, "coexistence is impossible between full competitors" (Hardin, 1960 *). The second position follows from the first;

2) If two types coexist in a state of stable equilibrium, then they should be environmentally friendly so that they can occupy various niches. .

The principle of competitive exception can be treated in different ways: as to the axiom and as an empirical generalization. If we consider it as an axiom, then it is logical, consistent and turns out to be very heuristic. If you consider it as an empirical generalization, it is fair in wide limits, but not universal.
Supplements
Intervidal competition can be observed in mixed laboratory populations or natural communities. To do this, it is enough to artificially remove one species and trace, whether there will be no changes in the abundance of another sympathy type with similar environmental needs. If the number of this other species after removal of the first type will increase, then we can conclude that before it was suppressed under the action of interspecific competition.

This result was obtained in the mixed laboratory Paramecium Aurelia and P. Caudatum (Gause, 1934 *) and P. Caudatum (Gause, 1934 *) and in the natural balanus and balanus (Connell, 1961 *), as well as in a number of relatively recent studies, for example on fabricated Jumpers and raceless salamander (Lemen, Freeman, 1983; Hairston, 1983 *).

Interwide competition is manifested in two broad aspects that can be called competition competition and interference competition. The first aspect is the passive use of various types of the same resource.

For example, a passive or non-aggressive competition for limited resources of soil moisture is very likely between various types of shrubs in the desert community. Types of Geospiza and other earthworms in the Galapagos Islands compete for food, and this competition is an important factor that determines their environmental and geographical distribution in several islands (Lack, 1947; V. R. Grant, PR Grant, 1982; PR Grant, 1986 * ).

The second aspect, which is often superimposed on the first, is the immediate suppression of one species to other competing with the view.

The leaves of some plant species produce substances that enter the soil and suppress the germination and growth of neighboring plants (Muller, 1966; 1970; Whittaker, Feeny, 1971 *). In animals, the suppression of one species can be achieved by others with the help of aggressive behavior or the approval of the superiority based on the threats of the attack. In the Mojave Desert (California and Nevada), the local snow ram (OVIS SAPDENSIS) and the Wild Donkey (Equus Asinus) compete for water and feed. With direct collisions, the donkey dominated above the rams: when the donkeys are approaching the sources of water engaged in the rams, the latter are inferior to them, and sometimes they leave this locality at all (Laycock, 1974; see also Monson, Summer, 1980 *).

Operational competition is paid to a lot of attention in theoretical ecology, however, as Heerston (Hearston, 1983 *) indicates, the interference competition is likely to be more favorable.

10. Food chains, food networks, trophic levels. Environmental pyramids.

11. The concept of the ecosystem. Cyclic and directed changes in ecosystems. Structure and biological productivity of ecosystems.

12. Agroecosystems and their features. Stability and instability ecosystems.

13. Ecosystems and biogeocenoses. The theory of Biogeocenology V. N. Sukacheva.

14. Dynamics and stability problems of ecosystems. Environmental Sukecession: Classification and types.

15. Biosphere as the highest level of organization of living systems. Biosphere borders.

Biosphere-organized, a certain sheath of the earth's crust, conjugate with life. " The basis of the concept of the biosphere - an idea of \u200b\u200bthe living substance. More than 90% of the total substance falls on terrestrial vegetation.

The main source of biochemistry. The activity of organisms is solar energy used in the process of photosynthesis green. Plants and some microorganis. To create an organic. Substances that provide food and energy remaining organisms. Photosynthesis led to accumulation in the atmosphere of free oxygen, the formation of the ozone layer protecting against ultropiolet and cosmic radiation. It supports the modern gas composition of the atmosphere. Living organisms and their habitat form holistic biogeocenosis systems.

The highest level of organization of life on the planet Earth is a biosphere. This term was introduced in 1875. For the first time he was used by the Austrian geologist E.Zyuss. However, the teaching of the biosphere as a biological system appeared in the 20s of the present century, the author is the Soviet scientist V.I. Vernadsky. The biosphere is the shell of the Earth, in which there existed and there are living organisms and in the formation of which they played and play a major role. The biosphere has its borders due to the spread of life. V.I. Vernadsky in the biosphere allocated three spheres of life:

The atmosphere is the gaseous shell of the Earth. It is not all populated with life, it hinders ultraviolet radiation. The boundary of the biosphere in the atmosphere is located at a height of about 25-27 km, where the ozone layer is located, absorbing about 99% of ultraviolet rays. The most populated is the surface layer of the atmosphere (1-1.5 km, and in the mountains up to 6 km above sea level).
Litosphere is a solid sheath of the Earth. It is also populated by alive organisms not completely. Spread
Life here is limited to the temperature, which gradually increases with the depth and when achieving 100? C causes the transition of water from liquid to a gaseous state. The maximum depth on which living organisms in the lithosphere are found is 4 - 4.5 km. This is the biosphere border in the lithosphere.
3. The hydrosphere is a liquid sheath of the Earth. It is populated with life completely. The border of the biosphere in the hydrosphere Vernadsky performed below the oceanic bottom, because the bottom is a product of vital activity of living organisms.
The biosphere is a gigantic biological system, which includes a huge variety of components components, to characterize which is extremely difficult individually. Vernadsky proposed everything that is included in the biosphere, combine into groups depending on the nature of the origin of the substance. It highlighted seven groups of substances: 1) a living agent is a combination of all producers, consumers and reasons inhabiting the biosphere; 2) a bone substance is a totality of substances in which living organisms did not participate in the formation, this substance was formed before the appearance of life on Earth (Mountain, rocky breeds, volcanic eruptions); 3) a biogenic substance is a totality of substances that are formed by the organisms themselves or are products of their livelihoods (stone coal, oil, limestone, peat and other minerals); 4) The biocosna substance is a substance that is a system of dynamic equilibrium between the live and oblique thing - the soil, the weatherariness bark); 5) a radioactive substance is a combination of all isotopic elements that are in a state of radioactive decay; 6) the substance of scattered atoms is a combination of all elements in atomic state and not part of any other substance; 7) A cosmic substance is a combination of substances falling into a biosphere from space and having space origins (meteorites, cosmic dust).
Vernadsky believed that a living substance plays the main transforming role in the biosphere.

16. The role of a person in the evolution of the biosphere. The influence of human activity on modern processes in the biosphere.

17. Live substance of the biosphere in V.I. Vernadsky, its characteristic. Connecting the noosphere according to V. I. Vernadsky.

18. The concept, causes and main trends of the modern environmental crisis.

19. Reducing genetic diversity, loss of gene pool. Population growth and urbanization.

20. Classification of natural resources. Exhausted and inexhaustible natural resources.

Natural resources are: --- exhausted - divided into non-repaid, relatively renewable (soil, forests), renewable (animals). --- Inexhaustible - air, solar energy, water, soil

21. Sources and extent of the pollution of the atmosphere. Acid precipitation.

22. Energy resources in the world. Alternative energy sources.

23. Greenhouse effect. The state of the ozone screen.

24. Brief characteristic of carbon cycle. Stagnation cycle.

25. Nitrogen cycle. Azotfixators. A brief description of.

26. Circulation of water in nature. A brief description of.

27. Determination of the biogeochemical cycle. List of major cycles.

28. The stream of energy and cycle of biogenic elements in the ecosystem (scheme).

29. List of major soil-forming factors (according to Dokuchav).

30. "Environmental Suksessia". "Climax Community". Definitions. Examples.

31. Basic principles of the natural device of the biosphere.

32. International "Red Book". Types of natural zones.

33. The main climatic zones of the globe (brief list according to Valtera).

34. Pollution of ocean water: the scale, the composition of pollutants, consequences.

35. Forest cutting: scale, consequences.

36. The principle of separation of human ecology on a human ecology as an organism and social environment. Ecology of a person as an outcolology of the body.

37. Biological environmental pollution. PDC.

38. Classification of pollutants discharged in reservoirs.

39. Environmental factors that cause diseases of the digestive organs, blood circulation bodies that can cause malignant neoplasms.

40. rationing: concept, species, MPC. "Could": the concept, causes of its formation, harm.

41. Demographic explosion and its danger for the current state of the biosphere. Urbanization and its negative consequences.

42. The concept of "sustainable development". Prospects for the "Sustainable Development" concept for the "Golden Billion" of the population of economically developed countries.

43. Reserves: functions and values. Types of reserves and their number in the Russian Federation, USA, Germany, Canada.

Anthropogenic factors - This is a combination of the impact of human economic activity on the environment as a habitat of other species.

Natural ecosystems have considerable stability and elasticity, which helps to carry periodic disturbing effects and are often pretty well restored after many periodic anthropogenic violations. Nature ecosystems are adapted to such effects.

However, chronic (constant) disorders can lead to pronounced and sustainable negative consequences, especially in the case of contamination of atmospheric air, natural water and soil hazardous chemicals. In such cases, the evolutionary history of adaptation no longer helps organisms and anthropogenic stress It may become for them the main limiting factor.

Anthropogenic stress ecosystems are divided into two groups:

- acute stress for which the sudden beginning is characterized, fast intensity and a small duration of violations;

- chronic stress in which violations of low intensity are long continued or often repeated, i.e. This is "constantly disturbing" impact.

Natural ecosystems have a significant ability to cope with acute stress or recover after it. The degree of stability of ecosystems is different and depends on the stiffness of the impact and on the effectiveness of internal mechanisms. Severe two types of stability:

Resistant stability - The ability to remain in a steady state under load.

Elastic stability - The ability to quickly recover.

Chronic effects of anthropogenic factors cause significant changes in the structure and functioning of ecosystems that may have catastrophic consequences. The consequences of chronic stress are harder to appreciate - sometimes only after many years there may be consequences of stress. Thus, it took years to identify the relationship between cancer and smoking or chronic, weak ionizing radiation.

If humanity in the coming decades does not attach efforts to deter strengthening the environmental impairment process, the pollutants may well become a limiting factor for industrial civilization.

3.4. Environmental valence of species and limiting factors

The amplitude of the fluctuation of the factor at which organisms can exist, called environmental valence of type . Broad organisms are called wide environmental valence evribionth, with narrow - stenzobonny.

Figure 2. Comparison of the relative limits of the tolerance of the stenothermal and euriteral organisms

(on Yu. Odumu, 1986)

In the wall-mounted species, the optimum and maximum are approximate (Fig. 2). Drops and escribionism characterize the various types of adaptation of organisms to survival. Thus, in relation to the temperature, the eury-and-sicothermal organisms are distinguished, with respect to the content of salts - Euro and Stenogalin, with respect to the light - eury and stainless, with respect to food - eury and stained.

Environmental valence of the species is wider than in more diverse conditions it lives. So, coastal forms are more heuritener and Eurygalin, than sea, where the temperature and salinity of water are more constant.

Thus, organisms can be characterized as environmental minimum , so I. environmental maximum . The range between these two values \u200b\u200bis called the limit of tolerance .

Any condition approaching to the limit of tolerance or exceeds it is called a limiting condition or a limiting factor. The limiting factor is a factor of the medium that goes beyond the endurance of the body. The limiting factor limits any manifestation of the body's vital activity. With the help of limiting factors, the state of organisms and ecosystems is regulated.

Limiting factor There may be not only a disadvantage, but also an excess of some factors, for example, such as heat, light and water. In a stationary state, the limiting will be the vital substance, the available quantities of which are closest to the required minimum. This concept is known as « minimum Law "Liby .

In 1840, the German chemist Y.Libih first concluded that the endurance of the body was determined by the weakest link in the chain of its environmental needs. This conclusion was made as a result of studying the influence of various factors on plant growth. It was found that plants are often limited not to those elements that are required in large quantities (for example, CO 2 and water, which in excess), and those required in insignificant quantities (for example, zinc), but in the environment very little.

The Law "Minimum" of the libeix has two auxiliary principle :

1. Restrictive - The law is strictly applicable only in conditions of stationary state, i.e. When the influx and outflow of energy and substances are balanced. If the equilibrium violation changes the rate of receipt of substances and the ecosystem begins to depend on other factors.

2. Interaction factors - High concentration or availability of one substance or factor may change the speed of consumption of the battery contained in a minimum amount. Sometimes the body is able to replace, at least partially, the deficit element is other, chemically close.

Studying various limiting effects of environmental factors (such as light, heat, water) American zoologist Viktor Ernest Sheford in 1913, came to the conclusion that a limiting factor can be not only a flaw, but also an excess factors. In the environmental view of the limiting effect of the maximum on a par with a minimum known as "The Law of Tolerance" V.Selford .

Organisms may have a wide range of tolerance in relation to one factor and a narrow range with respect to the other. Organisms with a wide range of tolerance for all environmental factors are usually most widely distributed.

The importance of the concept of limiting factors is that it gives an ecologist a starting point in the study of complex situations. In the study of ecosystems, the researcher must first of all pay attention to the factors that are functionally most important.