The bottle ecosystem created contains three compartments. It includes an aquatic habitat at the bottom, a filter in the center, and a terrestrial habitat at the top. The aquatic habitat included guppies, shrimp, a snail, and elodea. The filter was composed of a layer of fine sand, coarse sand, activated carbon, and gravel. The terrestrial habitat in our bottle ecosystem featured mealworms, a mealworm beetle, annual bluegrass, and purslane.
In the aquatic habitat, the aquatic plant that was used was Elodea canadensi. Elodea canadensi, or the American waterweed is a common plant and is found throughout temperate North America. It features three leaves per whorl and grows completely submerged underwater, with the exception of its attached flowers that float at the surface. …show more content…
They can survive in temperatures ranging from 60°F to 82°F, in many different levels of water hardness, and a pH spectrum of 6 to 8. They typically feed on plant vegetation, and have a lifespan of 12 to 18 months.
Water from the pond in is collected through a flap using a pipette, and used to water the terrestrial plants in the terrestrial habitat at the top. This water is beneficial to the plants because it is high in ammonium from the fish, providing the plant with essential nitrates. The terrestrial plants used were purslane and annual bluegrass, which were found growing outside near the roots of a tree. These terrestrial plants are important to the terrestrial habitat because they provide the organisms living there with oxygen.
Portulaca oleracea L., better known as purslane, is a common weed succulent found in Houston. It can be found in a variety of areas year round because of its tolerance to poor soil conditions. This annual succulent can be grow up to about 10 cm and its nutritional content make its edible stems and leaves a widely used addition in European, Asian, and Mediterranean