Forests, fields, meadows, swamps and lakes are examples of natural ecosystems, or biogeocenoses. They have relatively homogeneous environmental conditions and are formed by various populations of living organisms that live together and interact both with each other and with inanimate nature. In addition, ecosystems are subject to human intervention.
In the ecological system, the community of living beings, together with their physical environment, functions as a single whole. Lakes are considered to be natural bodies of stagnant water located in depressions of the land. They are flowing and closed, fresh and salty. The lacustrine biogeocenosis consists of organisms inhabiting the reservoir, the physical and chemical properties of water, the features of the bottom relief, the composition and structure of the soil. The ecosystem is also influenced by atmospheric air interacting with the water surface, solar radiation and other factors. The influence of the person is gaining more and more weight. People can use lake ecosystems in different ways. The oldest option for the exploitation of lakes is fishing, because the very structure of lake biogeocenoses favors breeding and fishing. You can breed not only fish, but also algae, and various other organisms, which are then used in cooking, pharmacology and other areas of the national economy. A person uses lake water to water animals, for watering plants and for domestic purposes. Fertile silt extracted from the bottom of the lake can be used as fertilizer in agriculture. Since the remains of plants and animals have rotted in it for centuries, it has a special nutritional value. This natural fertilizer is superior in quality to most artificial chemical analogues. Water bodies and their surrounding territories are used by people for recreation and health improvement, tourism and sports. Large lakes can also be used as transport routes connecting different points on land. Despite the fact that the biogeocenosis is relatively stable over time and is a self-regulating and self-sustaining system, it can undergo significant changes, up to the transition to another type of ecological community. So, under certain circumstances, the lake can overgrow and turn into a swamp. This happens when decomposers (organisms that process waste) no longer cope with the load imposed on them. At the same time, the species composition of the inhabitants and the characteristics of the reservoir change. Naturally, a person can no longer exploit a swamp like a lake that once was. When using lake ecosystems, people should be aware of the environmental consequences that can result from certain manipulations. For the rational use of natural resources, it is necessary to know the structure and mechanisms of the functioning of natural communities.
