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William Ayling: Favorites Edit title

Profile PhotoWilliam AylingJanuary 5, 2012
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strategy

Species richness helps system respond to disturbanceecosystems

Ecosystems survive biotic and abiotic disturbances by having multiple species that respond in different ways.

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Manage disturbance in a communityProtect from animals
strategy

Fruiting tree holds key role in forestCaesaria tree

The Caesaria tree helps maintain diversity and prevent extinctions in its forest ecosystem because it produces fruit to sustain several animal species through times of scarcity.

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Cooperate within an ecosystemDisperse seedsMaintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Microbial biodiversity maintainedheather moorland

The soil microbial community of heather moorlands is kept in balance by above-ground ecosystem engineers.

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Cycle nutrientsGenerate soil/renew fertilityMaintain biodiversity
strategy

Ecosystem has long-term sustainabilitydehesa ecosystem

Dehesas maintain a diversity of products and long-term ecological sustainability by sub-optimization of resources.

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Maintain biodiversity
strategy

Ecosystems have stability and resiliencysavannas

Savannahs have functional stability and resiliency due to unique properties of species and their interaction at system level.

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Maintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Predatory fish maintain ecosystem functionslake ecosystem

Predatory fish maintain lake ecosystems by keeping trophic cascade levels in equilibrium.

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Biological control of populations, pests, diseasesMaintain biodiversity
strategy

Blades balance drag reduction and solar exposureBull kelp

Blades of bull kelp balance drag reduction and sunlight exposure in different flow environments via changes in width and flatness.

Profile PhotoDimitri Smirnoff
Adapt phenotypeCapture, absorb, or filter energyManage turbulenceModify size/shape/mass/volumeOptimize shape/materials
strategy

Stream community depends on ecosystem engineerssediment-processing fish

Andean stream communities depend on detritivorous fish that modify habitat structure and resource availability.

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Cycle nutrientsMaintain biodiversity
strategy

Enhancing species richnessbeavers

Beavers enhance species richness in their environments by increasing habitat heterogeneity.

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Maintain biodiversity
idea

The Land Institute permacultureThe Land Institute

Perennial grain cropping mimics natural ecosystem behavior.

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Biological control of populations, pests, diseasesControl erosion and sedimentCycle nutrientsDetoxification/purification of air/water/wasteGenerate soil/renew fertilityMaintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a communityRegulate water storage
strategy

Surviving changing conditionsecosystems

Natural ecosystems survive variable conditions, disease emergence, herbivores, predators, and other environmental changes by having adaptive responses.

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Biological control of populations, pests, diseasesManage disturbance in a communityProtect from animalsProtect from microbes
strategy

Storage of organic matter plugs carbon "leaks"riparian habitat

Trees along rivers help retain carbon in an ecosystem by adding organic debris and slowing down water.

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Store chemical entities
strategy

Stream remodeling alters ecosystemsAmerican beaver

Beavers alter ecosystems by cutting trees and shrubs and creating mosaics of wetlands, moist meadows, and ponds.

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Control erosion and sedimentMaintain biodiversityRegulate hydrological flows
strategy

Nature maintains biodiversityecosystems

Natural ecosystems react to low biodiversity levels by exploiting unused or poorly used resources to increase biodiversity.

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Biological control of populations, pests, diseasesMaintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Ecosystems recover from disturbanceforests

Forests and other ecosystems can return to their predisturbance composition and struture through the presence of biological legacies, mobile links, and support areas.

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Manage disturbance in a community
strategy

Canopies enhance species diversitywetland ecosystems

Different kinds of plant canopies in wetlands enable great species diversity by providing a variety of microenvironments.

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Maintain biodiversityRegulate climate
strategy

Communities recover from floodsriparian habitat

Riparian systems recover from floods by having plant communities that are adapted to the disturbances.

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Cooperate within an ecosystemCoordinate by self-organizationManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Microtopographic relief fosters diversitywetland ecosystems

Wetlands create diversity by having microtopographic relief that creates microhabitats for plants and animals.

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Maintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Interaction helps retain waterforests

Forests help retain water onsite through interaction of many species.

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Regulate water storage
strategy

Feeding behavior increases nitrogen availabilitynematodes

The feeding behavior of nematodes increases nitrogen availability to plants because they prey on nitrogen-hoarding bacteria and excrete excess nitrogen in a form plants can use.

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Cycle nutrients
strategy

Deciduous trees allow higher seasonal water yieldsOaks

Deciduous trees allow more water to reach the soil and seep into streams by seasonally shedding leaves that lose water via evaporation.

Profile PhotoLeon Wang
Regulate hydrological flowsRegulate water storage
strategy

Hydrological regimes maintain organismsstreams

Streams maintain aquatic organisms by maintaining natural hydrological regimes.

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Regulate hydrological flows
strategy

Communities develop and changeriparian habitat

Riparian communities form through a succession of colonizers.

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Coordinate by self-organizationManage disturbance in a community
strategy

Fallen trees stabilize, enrich soilDouglas fir forests

Trees in Douglas fir forests provide growing conditions for plants and animals by stabilizing soil and trapping sediment when they fall across a slope.

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Control erosion and sedimentGenerate soil/renew fertilityMaintain biodiversity
strategy

Habitat mosaics stop firesbeaver

Beavers reduce fire impacts in spruce stands by creating a mosaic of habitats that act as natural firebreaks.

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Manage disturbance in a community
strategy

Native plants persist in changing conditionswetland ecosystems

Some native plant species in wetlands have long-term persistence despite fluctuating water levels because they have long-lived seeds deposited in the soil seed bank.

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Disperse seedsGenerate soil/renew fertilityMaintain biodiversityManage disturbance in a communityProtect from excess liquids
strategy

Appendages used for movement and filteringDaphnia

The appendages of Daphnia are used for both paddling movement and filter feeding because they are equipped with bristles, allowing them to operate at different Reynolds numbers for different functions.

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Adapt behaviorsCapture, absorb, or filter solidsMove in/on liquidsOptimize shape/materialsPhysically assemble structure
strategy

Organisms concentrate carbon dioxidegreen algae

Algae concentrate carbon dioxide to fix CO2 more efficiently, possibly using one or more HCO3- transporter proteins.

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Capture, absorb, or filter chemical entitiesRegulate atmospheric chemical/gas composition
strategy

Photosynthesis makes useful organic compounds out of CO2plants

Photosynthesis in plants makes useful organic compounds out of carbon dioxide through carbon-fixation reactions.

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Catalyze chemical breakdownChemically assemble organic compoundsChemically break down inorganic compounds
idea

Vertical FarmingDick Despommier

3-D agriculture for the modern human

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Cooperate within an ecosystemCoordinate systemsCycle nutrientsMaintain biodiversity
idea

Calera MAP cement-making processCalera

Mineralization via Aqueous Precipitation (MAP) process sequesters CO2

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idea

Artificial Inorganic LeafState Key Lab of Metal Matrix Composites at Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China (Tongxiang Fan, Di Zhang, Han Zhou)

A major step toward artificial photosynthesis

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idea

Ecovative DesignEcovative Design

Biodegradable, compostable packaging

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idea

Synthetic solar storageSun Catalytix

Photosynthetically inspired energy storage & artificial photosynthesis.

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Catalyze chemical breakdownTransform chemical energy
idea

Self-repairing concreteAdvanced Civil Engineering - Materials Research Lab at the Univeristy of Michigan

Flexible and self-repairing concrete to revolutionize infrastructure

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idea

Virus BatteryMassachusetts Institute of Technology (Belcher Lab), University of Maryland

Growing Batteries

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idea

Novomer carbon dioxide-based plasticsNovomer, LLC

Polycarbonate plastics made from carbon dioxide

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idea

AkerminSaint Louis University's Shelley Minteer, Ph.D.

Bioelectrocatalysis: Batteries that run on sugar.

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idea

Polymer-cellulosic batteriesThe Angstrom Laboratory (An interdisciplinary laboratory at Uppsala University, Sweden), Albert Mihrayan.

Algae transform polymer-cellulosic batteries

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idea

MicrobatteriesYale Department of Chemical Engineering

Efficient, implantable batteries

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idea

Biolytix water filterBiolytix Water Australia Pty Ltd

Water filtering system cleans without chemicals

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Detoxification/purification of air/water/waste
idea

Waste recycling and upcyclingWaste Management

Garbage collection turns into garbage processing

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idea

NanoChem BioPolymersNanoChem Solutions, Inc.

Biodegradable, water-soluble polymers for industrial and consumer applications

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idea

Baleen Filters water filtersBaleen Filters

Self-cleaning water filtering system cleans without chemicals

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strategy

Food web complexity increases along gradientdune ecosystem

The complexity of food webs in sandy dune ecosystems increases along productivity gradients, with feedback loops governing the stability of the system.

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Maintain biodiversity
strategy

Tentacles help filter foodburrowing sea cucumber

The tentacles of the burrowing sea cucumber capture floating particulate food matter using on a complex particle trap, mucus, and an oral passageway.

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Capture, absorb, or filter energyCapture, absorb, or filter solids
strategy

Photosynthesis in low-light conditionsTaeniophyllum orchid

The green, ribbon-like roots of Taeniophyllum orchids assist in food production because they have been modified to carry out photosynthesis.

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Adapt behaviorsCapture, absorb, or filter energy
strategy

Electron flow generates heatsacred lotus

The sacred lotus attracts pollinators by producing heat through a nonphosphorylating electron transport pathway that releases energy by electron flow through an alternative respiratory pathway.

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Send light signals in the non-visible spectrumTransform thermal energy
strategy

Light generated chemicallyfirefly

Fireflies inhale oxygen and exhale light with help from an enzyme.

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Transform radiant energy (light)
strategy

Protein channels move water across membranescells

Aquaporin protein channels in cell membranes selectively allow polar water molecules to flow through them because they’re lined with specific, charged chemical groups.

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Capture, absorb, or filter chemical entitiesCapture, absorb, or filter liquidsDistribute liquids
strategy

Pigments cells respond to hormonesAfrican clawed frog

Pigments in frog skin change color in response to hormones by moving melanin grains around cells.

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Modify light/colorProtect from animalsProtect from lightProtect from temperatureSense chemicals (odor, taste, etc) from the environment
strategy

Limited organic nutrients are recycledbenthic communities

Limited organic nutrients in Antarctica's benthic communities are recycled after the spring and summer seasons by being redistributed through the aquatic food chain.

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Capture, absorb, or filter solidsCycle nutrients
idea

Eco-Machine wastewater managementJohn Todd Ecological Design, Inc.

Custom-built wastewater treatment system purifies water without chemicals by mimicking a natural ecosystem.

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Chemically break down organic compoundsCycle nutrientsDetoxification/purification of air/water/waste
idea

Solar Botanic energy harvesting treesSolarBotanic Ltd

Artificial trees that convert wind energy and electromagnetic waves from the sun via its Nanoleaf technology

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Contributed by William Ayling

I am an Environmental Consultant that seeks to provide sustainability solutions to municipalities and businesses.  My experience includes protection of water resources.  Biomimicry provides an additional framework that supports these services.

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