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First teaching 2023

First exams 2025

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Ecosystem Stability: Skills (HL IB Biology)

Revision Note

Naomi H

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Naomi H

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Deforestation of Amazon Rainforest

  • The Amazon rainforest is an example of an ecosystem where human activities are endangering ecosystem sustainability
  • Deforestation is affecting the self sufficiency of the Amazon ecosystem by influencing its temperature and rainfall
    • Transpiration releases water vapour into the air above the rainforest
    • This has a cooling effect which affects air movement and rainfall
    • Changes in the number of trees carrying out transpiration can therefore influence local temperatures and rainfall
  • Temperature and rainfall are factors in the rates of photosynthesis and nutrient cycling, so deforestation could have a knock-on effect on other important ecosystem stability factors
  • Scientists are concerned that the Amazon could reach a tipping point beyond which it is no longer stable
    • So many trees are removed that temperature and rainfall patterns change significantly
    • Climatic factors may change beyond tolerance levels for some species
  • There is uncertainty around the area of rainforest that would need to be lost for this tipping point to be reached, so we do not know how close the Amazon rainforest is to losing stability

Global deforestation map

Global deforestation map 2015

Information from 2015 shows high rates of annual deforestation occurring in the Amazon rainforest, South America; it is thought that this deforestation could destabilise the ecosystem if it is allowed to continue

Examiner Tip

Note that you could be asked to calculate percentage change in the context of ecosystem loss, in order to calculate the extent of deforestation.

Percentage loss of rainforest would be calculated as follows:

Percentage space loss space of space rainforest space equals fraction numerator change space in space rainforest space area over denominator original space rainforest space area end fraction space straight x space 100

Change in forest cover can be calculated by subtracting the final forest cover from the initial forest cover.

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Naomi H

Author: Naomi H

Expertise: Biology

Naomi graduated from the University of Oxford with a degree in Biological Sciences. She has 8 years of classroom experience teaching Key Stage 3 up to A-Level biology, and is currently a tutor and A-Level examiner. Naomi especially enjoys creating resources that enable students to build a solid understanding of subject content, while also connecting their knowledge with biology’s exciting, real-world applications.