THE EVOLUTION OF THE BIOSPHERE

ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCES LIBRARY

Editorial Advisory Board

R. A. Anthes, A. Berger, P. J. Crutzen, H.-W. Georgii, P. V. Hobbs, A. Hollingsworth,

G. E. Hunt, K. Y. Kondratyev, T. N. Krishnamurti, J . Latham,

D. K. Lilly, J . London, A. H. Oort, I. Orlan ski, H. R. Pruppacher, N .. J. Rosenberg, C. J . E. Schuurmans, H. Tennekes,

S. A. Twomey, T. M. L. Wigley, J. C. Wijngaard, V. E. Zuev,

National Center for Atmospheric Research (U.S.A.) Universite Catholique Louvain (Belgium) Max-Planck-Institut fUr Chemie (F.R.G.) Universitat Frankfurt (F.R.G.) University of Washington, Seattle (U.S.A.) European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts, Reading (England) University Col/ege, London (England) Laboratory of Remote Sensing, Leningrad (U.S.S.R.) The Florida State University, Tallahassee (U.S.A.) University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (England) National Center for Atmospheric Research (U.S.A.) University of Colorado, Boulder (U.S.A.) National Oceanic and Atmosp.heric Administration (U.S.A.) National Oceanic and Atmosp.heric Administration (U.S.A.) Johannes Gutenberg Universitat, Mainz (F.R.G.) University of Nebraska, Lincoln (U.s.A.) Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht (The Netherlands) Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch /nstituut, de Bilt (The Netherlands) The University of Arizona (U.S.A.) University of East Ang/ia (Eng/and) National Center for Atmospheric Research (U.S.A.) Institute for Atmospheric Optics, Tomsk (U.S.S.R.)

M. I. BUDYKO

State Hydrological Institute Leningrad, U.S.S.R.

The Evolution of the Biosphere Translated from the Russian by M. I. BUDYKO, S. F. LEMESHKO and V. G. YANUTA

D. Reidel Publishing Company

A MEMBEH OF THE KLUWER ACADEMIC PUBLISHERS GROUP

Dordrecht / Boston / Lancaster / Tokyo

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Budyko. M. I. (Mikhail Ivanovich) The evolution of the biosphere.

(Atmospheric sciences library) Translation of: Evoli~~i~ biosfery. Bibliography: p. Includes index. I. Evolution. 2. Biosphere. I. Title. II. Series.

QH371.B7713 1986 574.5 86-17799

ISBN-I3: 978-94-010-8525-0 DOl: 10.1007/978-94-009-4556-2

e-ISBN-I3: 978-94-009-4556-2

Translated from the 1984 edition of Evolyutsia Biosfery published by Gidrometeoizdat

Published by D. Reidel Publishing Company, P.O. Box 17, 3300 AA Dordrecht, Holland.

Sold and distributed in the U.S.A. and Canada by Kluwer Academic Publishers, 101 Philip Drive, Assinippi Park, Norwell, MA 02061, U.S.A.

In all other countries, sold and distributed by Kluwer Academic Publishers Group, P.O. Box 322, 3300 AH Dordrecht, Holland.

All Rights Reserved. © 1986 by D. Reidel Publishing Company. Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1 st edition 1986

CIP

No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION ix

CHAPTER 1 THE STRUCTURE OF THE BIOSPHERE 1 1.1. The Boundaries of the Biosphere 1 1.2. The Atmosphere 2 1.3. The Hydrosphere 5 1.4. The Lithosphere 8 1.5. Organisms 9

CHAPTER 2 SOLAR RADIATION AND ITS TRANSFORM A TIONS 15 2.1. Solar Radiation 15 2.2. The Energy Balance 20 2.3. Distribution of the Energy Balance Components 29

CHAPTER 3 CLTMATE AND GEOGRAPHICAL ZONES 48 3.1. Contemporary Climate 48 3.2. Polar Ice 50 3.3. The Theory of Climate 61 3.4. The Hydrological Cycle 71

3.4.1. The Water Balance 71 3.4.2. Relationship between Energy and Water Balances on

Land 76 3.4.3. The Water Cycle in the Atmosphere 82

3.5. Geographical Zones 86 3.5.1. Factors of Geographical Zonality 86 3.5.2. A Periodic Law of Geographical Zonality 91

CHAPTER 4 PLANTS 99 4.1. Plants in the Biosphere 99 4.2. The Thermal and Water Regimes of Plants 102 4.3. Photosynthesis 116 4.4. The Productivity of Vegetation Cover 131

CHAPTER 5 ANIMALS 138 5.1. Animals in the Biosphere 138 5.2. The Heat Regime of Animals and Man 143

v

vi CONTENTS

5.3. Ecological Systems 154 154 156

5.3.1. The Energy Regime of Animals 5.3.2. The Properties of Ecological Systems

CHAPTER 6 HISTORY OF THE BIOSPHERE 163 6.1. Origin of the Biosphere 163 6.2. Geochronologic Scale and the History of Organisms 168

6.2.1. The Precambrian 170 6.2.2. The Cambrian 170 6.2.3. The Ordovician 171 6.2.4. The Silurian 171 6.2.5. The Devonian 171 6.2.6. The Carboniferous 172 6.2.7. The Permian 172 6.2.8. The Triassic 173 6.2.9. The Jurassic 173 6.2.10. The Cretaceous 174 6.2.11. The Tertiary 174 6.2.12. The Quaternary 175

6.3. Lithosphere and Hydrosphere 177 6.3.1. The Lithosphere 177 6.3.2. The Oceans 182

CHAPTER 7 CHANGES OF THE ATMOSPHERE 185 7.1. Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere and the Life Activ-

ity of Organisms 185 7.2. Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere in Phanerozoic

Time 189 7.3. Climates in the Geological Past 197

7.3.1. Methods for Studying Past Climates 197 7.3.2. Precambrian Climates 199 7.3.3 . The Climates of the Palaeozoic and the Mesozoic 201 7.3.4. The Tertiary Climates 203 7.3 .5. Climate of the Quaternary 204 7.3 .6. Climate of the Holocene 205

7.4. Causes of Climatic Change 207 7.4.1. The Studies of the Causes of Climatic Change 207 7.4.2. Effects of Heat Income on the Thermal Regime 211 7.4.3. The Water Cycle Effects of Temperature Variations 219 7.4.4. Climatic Changes in Precambrian Time 221 7.4.5. Climatic Changes in the Phanerozoic 223 7.4.6. Climatic Changes in the Quaternary Period 228 7.4.7. The Climatic Effects of Volcanic Eruptions 232

CONTENTS vii

CHAPTER 8 THE EVOLUTON OF ORGANISMS 240 8.1. Abiotic Factors of Evolution 240

8.1.1. Studies of the History of Organisms 240 8.1.2. Aromorphosis 247 8.1.3. The Diversity of Successive Faunas 254

8.2. Critical Epochs in Geological History 262 8.2.1. Global Ecological Crises 262 8.2.2. Extinction at the End of the Mesozoic 270 8.2.3. The Thermal Regime of the Dinosaurs 274 8.2.4. The Causes of the Late Mesozoic Extinction 282

8.3. Macroevolution 286 8.3.1. Microevolution and Macroevolution 286 8.3.2. The Size of Organisms 290 8.3.3. General Features of Macroevolution 291

CHAPTER 9 MAN AND BIOSPHERE 294 9.1. Formation of the Noosphere 294

9.1.1. The Noosphere 294 9.1.2. The Brain 295

9.2. The Origin of Man 300 9.2.1. The Difference between Man and Animals 300 9.2.2. The Role of Changes in the Environment 303 9.2.3. The Stages of Anthropogenesis 308

9.3. The Impact of Ancient Man on the Biosphere 310 9.4. Contemporary Man's Impact on the Biosphere 321

9.4.1. Anthropogenic Ecological Crisis 321 9.4.2. Man's Influence on the Biosphere 323 9.4.3. Forecasts of a Global Ecological Crisis 326

CHAPTER 10 THE FUTURE OF THE BIOSPHERE 331 10.1. Modern Climatic Change 331

10.1.1. The 20th-Century Climate 331 10.1.2. Changes in the Chemical Composition of the Atmo-

sphere 344 10.1.3. Anthropogenic Factors in Present Climatic Change 349 10.1.4. Detecting Anthropogenic Climatic Change 354

10.2. Expected Changes of the Biosphere 358 10.2.1. Climatic Conditions of the Near Future 358 10.2.2. The Biosphere's Effects of Climatic Changes 363 10.2.3. The Distant Future of the Biosphere 372

10.3. Man in the Universe 377 10.3.1. Life in the Universe 377 10.3.2. The Biosphere's Stability 380 10.3.3. The Uniqueness of the Earth's Biosphere 390

viii CONTENTS

10.4 Preservation of the Biosphere

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES

SUBJECT INDEX

393

398

400

419

INTRODUCTION

THE STUDY OF THE BIOSPHERE

The term 'biosphere' first appeared in the works of the French biologist 1.-B. Lamarck and the Austrian geologist E. Suess in the 19th century. In the 20th century, the study of the biosphere attracted considerable attention, largely due to the research of V. I. Vernadsky (1863- 1945). The results Qf Vernadsky's investigations have appeared in a number of publications, including the monograph The Biosphere published in 1926. This work consists of two parts, The Biosphere in Cosmos' and The Zone of Life', written in a form of speculation and reflection that is rarely used in modern studies. This work concerns the distinguishing properties of the space occupied by organisms and the exceptional importance of the activities of these organisms in the formation of their environment.

In this and subsequent studies, Vernadsky has laid the foundations of the science of the biosphere, which today plays an important role in th.c many branches of science concerned with the Earth. Several terms have been suggested for the science of the biosphere, including global ecology (a discipline studying the global ecological system, whose meaning is close to that of the biosphere).

One of the most prominent predecessors of Vernadsky was his teacher V. V. Dokuchaev (1846-1903), the founder of scientific pedology. Dokuchaev was the first to study the interrelationships between living organisms and their environment in different geographical zones. In a series of articles, which first appeared in 1898-1900 and which were published later in a small volume (Dokuchaev, 1948), he considered a system of geographical zones corresponding to different types of soil formation. Dokuchaev iden­tified a relationship between geographical zones and climatic factors and constructed a table describing soils, vegetation, fauna and other components of the biosphere for each geographical zone.

Unlike Dokuchaev, Vernadsky was more interested in the global aspects of the biosphere rather than in the zonal ones. In his monograph The Biosphere he wrote: " ... the author ... attempts to describe a geologic development of life, to portray the planetary process that takes place around us". In this book, Vernadsky introduced the concept of a 'film of living matter' close to the Earth's surface, both on land and in the ocean. Pointing out that the zone in which living organisms exist comprises a considerable part of the atmos­phere and the hydrosphere, as well as the upper layers of the lithosphere, Vernadsky went on to show that the life zone of the overwhelming majority

IX

x INTRODUCTION

of organisms is limited to a comparatively thin film, including the lower layer of the atmosphere, the upper layers of the oceans and soil. He also empha­sized that the transformation of solar radiation into chemical energy, vital for the activities of organisms, largely takes place within this film.

Vernadsky indicated that, in the course of an organism's life, energy and various kinds of matter are continually being transferred from the Earth's surface to the lithosphere, atmosphere and hydrosphere. As a result, these activities appear to be the most essential factor in the geochemical evolution of geographical envelopes of the Earth (including the atmosphere, hydros­phere and upper layers of the lithosphere). Vernadsky paid much attention to the impact of human activities on the biosphere. Under this impact the biosphere is being converted into the noosphere (a word of Greek origin translated as a sphere of mind).

The great value of Vernadsky's study of the biosphere became apparent, particularly in the second half of our century, when, because of the rapidly growing impact of man's activities on the environment, ecological problems were given much greater attention.

Much research work of great importance in the study of the global ecological system (the biosphere) has been undertaken during the last few decades. This includes the studies of Sukachev (1945, 1964) on biogeo­cenose. The concept of biogeocenose is similar to that of the ecological system and has been essential in developing modern ideas of interrelations between organisms and their environment. This line of research was also de­veloped in the studies of Lavrenko (1949, 1971) who examined the properties of the phytogeosphere, the sphere of plant life; and in the studies of Bazilevich and Rodin (1967) who presented detailed information on the biomass and productivity of different vegetation types.

Dokuchaev's ideas in the field of pedology have been further developed by Gerasimov (1945, 1960) who treated soils as an element of the biosphere closely connected with its other components. The works of Volobuev (1953) and Kovda (1973) also deal with this problem and examine the process of soil formation and its dependence on external factors .

A comprehensive description of interactions among natural processes that lead to the formation of geographical zones is given in the studies of Grigoriev (1966). In these he shows the dependence of geographical zones on such climatic elements as solar radiation and precipitation. Information on the biosphere's resources in the territory of the U.S.S.R. appeared in the monograph edited by Gerasimov (1971). This study also contains an analysis of human impact on the biosphere.

For examining global ecology it is necessary to have data on the transfor­mations of solar energy in the biosphere and on the water balance of the Earth. Detailed information on the energy balance can be derived from a number of monographic studies and atlases, including Atlas of the Heat Balance of the Earth (1963). Comprehensive information on the water

INTRODUCTION xi

balance of land and ocean is presented in a collective monograph The World Water Balance and Water Resources of the Earth (1974) and in the studies of Lvovich (1974). There are a number of books in which data on the energy and water balances have been used in studying global ecology (Budyko, 1956, 1971, 1977a; H. T. Odum, 1971). A number of general studies of ecology also contain data that are relevant for the study of global ecology, among which are the monographs by E. Odum (1971) and Whittaker (1975).

The attention of many scientists has been drawn to changes in the biosphere resulting from anthropogenic influences. This subject has been treated in the works of Armand (1966), Duvigneaud and Tanghe (1967) Watt (1968), Commoner (1971), Fyodorov (1972), Izrael (1979b), amongst others. The important practical problem of developing an optimum system of observations of the state of the environment (the monitoring system) has been considered by Izrael (1974, 1979a).

The rapid change which the biosphere is undergoing at present, under the impact of anthropogenic factors, has been compared with the evolution of the biosphere in the geological past (Budyko, 1974, 1980). A number of studies have been concerned with the interrelationship between changes in the abiotic components of the biosphere and the evolution of organisms (Krasilov, 1977; Pearson, 1978, Kamshilov, 1979; Budyko, 1982). It might be thought that further development of this line of research would help in clearing up the general features of the biosphere's evolution.

The major reasons for the study of the biosphere's evolution have been discussed by Sokolov (1981) who considered the palaeontological and geological aspects of this problem and who pointed out that the study of the biosphere's history involves an extensive synthesis of material from both Earth and biological scientific disciplines.

In recent years attention has been drawn to the question, raised by Vernadsky, that the biosphere is turning into the noosphere. A modern interpretation of this question is given in the work of Yanshin (1981) who underlined the vital importance of the formation of the noosphere in our epoch.

EVOLUTION OF THE BIOSPHERE

The evolution of the biosphere presents two aspects, one of which concerns the history of the biosphere since the time when life first emerged on the Earth to the time when human activity started influencing the biosphere, and the other concerns the study of the biosphere in the present epoch, which is experiencing an ever-growing impact of anthropogenic factors.

The available information relating to past changes in the biosphere does not provide much information on the evolution of the biosphere's major components. As a result of recent advances in palaeontological research, we

xii INTRODUCTION

now have a considerable body of information on changes in successive floras and faunas. However, information is scarce on changes in the abiotic environment of organisms and particularly variations in the atmosphere. As a result, there are great difficulties in understanding the mechanism of the biosphere's evolution, particularly concerning interactions between variations in the biosphere's biotic and abiotic components.

An opportunity to determine the general patterns of the biosphere's evolution during the geologic past has only recently arisen, due largely to progress in studying the development of abiotic components of the bios­phere. The examination of these patterns, which are of importance in perceiving the history of the biosphere, is also necessary in order to under­stand the development of the biosphere in our epoch and to estimate possible future changes in the biosphere.

Although at present, anthropogenic factors often produce a greater impact on the biosphere than natural factors, evaluation of anthropogenic change in the biosphere requires in many cases a knowledge of the history of its natural change. At the same time, information on past natural changes in the biosphere is of great importance in confirming and checking models of present biosphere variations.

As mentioned above, anthropogenic changes in the biosphere have attracted considerable attention in the second half of the present century when the impact of human activities on the environment became particularly pronounced. The pollution of the atmosphere, of the continental waters and of the ocean, the destruction of natural vegetation cover, the extinction of a great many animal species, the deterioration of soils, and other consequences of the economic activities of man, have made it urgent to carry out ecological studies on a much greater scale. The overwhelming majority of these studies have been devoted to local ecological problems i.e. to examining interactions between organisms and their environment within regional ecological systems. Studies of global ecological problems concerning the biosphere as a whole, or its major parts, have been undertaken comparatively rarely.

The global problems of ecology have attracted much more attention in recent years when it appeared that human economic activities were beginning to affect large-scale natural processes. It should be mentioned that, although natural conditions throughout a considerable part of the globe have already changed because of anthropogenic impact, until recently these local effects resulting from the expansion of man's activities (which may individually affect vast areas) have, nevertheless, occurred independently of one another. For instance, the clearing of the forests on one of the continents did not affect the forests of the other continents. Similarly, the construction of dams on individual rivers did not change the run-off of the rivers that were not connected with them. A different situation arises when man starts to influ­ence nature's global processes. In this case, the impact on the environment in one region might affect natural conditions in other regions, even jf they are situated far from the initial impact.

INTRODUCTION xiii

Some examples of human influence on large-scale natural processes are known from earlier times. For instance, the annihilation of migratory birds in a number of middle latitude countries has altered the fauna of tropical countries to which these birds migrated in certain seasons of the year. A similar situation occurs with some migratory marine animals and fishes. These examples, however, refer to the biosphere's components, whose influence on the biosphere as a whole is comparatively slight.

It has been established in recent years that, under the impact of human activities, the chemical composition and physical state of the atmosphere and ocean have begun to alter and, as a result, there arises a possibility of anthropogenic changes in other components of the biosphere. Moreover, due to intensive horizontal mixing of the atmosphere and upper oceanic layers, man-made effects on the ocean and particularly on the atmosphere might influence areas at great distances from the region in which these effects originated.

Since atmospheric processes produce a significant influence on all the components of the biosphere, including living organisms, it is evident that large-scale changes in the atmosphere-ocean system will inevitably lead to changes in the biosphere as a whole, which might be unfavourable and even disastrous for human society.

In view of the uncontrolled human impact on large-scale processes in the atmosphere and ocean, which might lead in the long run to a global ecological crisis, it is necessary to study the possible large-scale anthro­pogenic changes in the biosphere, evaluating these changes quantitatively given different future scenarios of economic development. These forecasts are indispensable in finding the optimum technological progress' ways which will result in minimal harm to the environment.

To solve this and other problems of ecology, it is necessary to overcome a principal difficulty which does not emerge in many other scientific disci­plines. The study of the interrelations of living organisms (man included) and their environment involves information and methods from many scientific disciplines including biology, geography, geophysics, geochemistry, geology, meteorology, climatology, economics and technology.

At present, with the volume of information rapidly increasing in every field of science and thus promoting an ever-growing specialization within specific scientific branches, the possibility of developing a synthesis of data from many lines of research becomes more and more limited. However, without such a synthesis, progress in modern ecology will be severely restricted. This synthesis is particularly necessary if we are to properly understand the effects of anthropogenic factors on the gobal ecological system (the biosphere), the structure of which is much more complicated than that of regional and local ecological systems.

In recent years a number of attempts have been made to comprehensively study anthropogenic changes in the biosphere. Some work in this direction has been devoted to examining recent climatic change. It has been estab-

xiv INTRODUCTION

lished that, as a result of the combustion of ever-increasing amounts of coal, oil and other kinds of fossil fuels in the modern epoch, the chemical composition of the atmosphere has changed, mainly due to increasing carbon dioxide content. This has already caused some modification in global climate, and, in a few decades, will lead to changes as large as have occurred previously only over the course of many thousands or millions of years (Budyko, 1972, 1980; Energy and Climate, 1977; Climatic Effects of Increased Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide, 1982).

This change in global climate will introduce essential modifications in all basic components of the biosphere, including the hydrosphere, cryosphere, soils, vegetation cover and animal world. Because of these modifications it is important to try to forecast possible future changes in the biosphere under the influence of man's activities, using different scenarios of economic development. Since such forecasts determine to a great extent the long-term planning of economies associated with large investments, it is necessary that they should be highly reliable.

The reliability of forecasts of changes in the biosphere can be improved by further developments of global ecology, which require unfolding the follow­ing major lines of research:

1. Examination of the biosphere's components, undertaken to provide detailed qualitative descriptions for all regions of the world.

2. Study of the cycling of energy, basic types of mineral and organic matter in the biosphere for different geographic zones.

3. Construction of numerical models for each component of the bio­sphere in order to examine the processes occurring over large regions. As a result of these studies, a complex numerical model should be developed for the biosphere as a whole, incorporating the interactions among all biospheric components.

4. Collection of empirical data describing the state of the biosphere in the geological past for the purpose of understanding the general principles behind the biosphere's evolution.

5. Application of numerical models to estimate past changes in the biosphere, which will increase the possibility for explaining the mechanisms behind the biosphere's evolution. Comparison of results of calculated changes in the biosphere with empirical evidence is required in order to determine the reliability of the numerical models in making forecasts of future biosphere changes.

6. Application of numerical models for forecasting both anthropogenic modifications of the biosphere and changes arising from natural causes in order to make use of these forecasts while substantiating the optimum scenarios of economic development.

7. Devising methods for influencing large-scale processes in the bio­sphere in order to create a global system for controlling the biosphere for the sake of human society.

INTRODUCTION xv

All these problems are still very far from being fully solved, but the available data for each of these lines of research make it possible to tackle the central problems of global ecology. The nature of the available data, however, restricts the possibility of obtaining detailed and accurate informa­tion on the past and future changes in the biosphere. That is why it is necessary to promote each of the indicated lines of research.

We would like to underline the point that, to obtain a correct estimate of the impending global changes in the biosphere, great value should be attached to the study of the biosphere's evolution in the geologic past, particularly in the epochs of the swiftest changes in the biosphere, namely, of global ecological crises. It should be recognized that these epochs, and the general principles governing the evolution of the biosphere as a whole, are still incompletely understood.

This book is concerned with three major problems. The first five chapters give a description of the present state of the

biosphere with an emphasis on energy exchange, and the cycles of water, carbon and oxygen in the biosphere.

In the next three chapters (6, 7 and 8) the history of the biosphere during the geologic past is considered. The possibility of clarifying general principles of the evolution of the biosphere, through examining interrelationships between variations in the biotic and abi-otic components of the biosphere is discussed.

The concluding chapters (9 and 10) provide some information concerning human impacts on the biosphere, which appear today as a decisive factor in the biosphere's evolution. Chapter 10 presents consideratio ns about the most likely future of the biosphere.