Photosynthesis is the metabolic pathway by which energy and carbon enter the web of life. Photosynthetic organisms are at the base of the food chains that make up and sustain the diverse web of life on earth.
Photosynthesis is the metabolic pathway by which energy and carbon
enter the web of life. Photosynthetic organisms are at the base of the food chains that make up and sustain the diverse web of life on earth. They provide food in the form of glucose for other organisms that feed upon them. The energy contained within their covalent bonds is transferred to organisms that ingest the glucose molecules or other molecules formed from glucose or its breakdown products.
Photosynthetic phytoplankton are at the base of the marine food chain. El Nino causes changes in ocean circulation, which suppresses the upwelling of vital nutrients that the phytoplankton depend on for growth and reproduction.
What would you expect the consequences of El Nino to be for marine food chains?
What impact, if any, might this have on humans and the global environment?