Question

During the daylight hours, a field of plants in the Midwest has a gross primary productivity value of 22 gCm² day. During the roughly 12 hours of the night, the plants use about 6.6 gCm² day. What is the net primary productivity of this field?

Answer 1

Net primary productivity (NPP) of the field is 15.4 gCm² per day, which is calculated by subtracting the respiration rate (6.6 gCm² per day) from the gross primary productivity (22 gCm² per day).

Step-by-step explanation:

The student is asking about net primary productivity (NPP), which is an important concept in ecology. Gross primary productivity (GPP) refers to the total amount of carbon fixed by photosynthesis in plants and other photoautotrophs. To calculate the net primary productivity, we subtract the carbon used by the plants during respiration (R) from the gross primary productivity. In this case, the plants have a GPP of 22 gCm² per day and use 6.6 gCm² during the night for respiration.

The calculation for NPP would be as follows:

NPP = GPP - R

NPP = 22 gCm²/day - 6.6 gCm²/day

NPP = 15.4 gCm²/day

So, the net primary productivity of the field is 15.4 gCm² per day.