Is life in biosphere cyclical?

            Have you ever wondered whether we would run out of oxygen at some point in time if all living things used it for their existence? However, we know that trees and plants release oxygen to the atmosphere. Life in biosphere is cyclical. The elements that sustain life travel from one form of life to another making each of them dependent upon the other. The most important cycles in the biosphere are nitrogen cycle, oxygen cycle, carbon cycle and water cycle.

            Nitrogen is required in all living beings to produce proteins. Nitrifying bacteria present in certain plants carry out the process of nitrogen fixation. Denitrifying bacteria decompose the dead remains and waste products of plants and animals and release nitrogen back into the atmosphere.

            Living things take in oxygen from the air as it helps the release of energy from the food they consume. The process of photosynthesis that occurs in the leaves of green plants releases oxygen. Additionally, green plants play an important role in carbon cycle. They consume carbon dioxide to produce food. When animals consume these plants, they get some part of carbon. Carbon dioxide is released back to the H atmosphere when the animals exhale. Carbon is returned to nature when the animals die.

            In the case of water cycle, water changes into vapour and rises up in the atmosphere. When it cools down, it condenses into water droplets which combine together to constitute clouds. When clouds become heavy with water droplets they fall back on Earth in the form of rain or snow.

            These cycles are vital for the existence and sustenance of life on Earth.

Picture Credit : Google