What factors contribute to the resilience of ecosystems? Why are some ecosystems more resilient than others?

In an ecosystem, resilience often increases with higher levels of biodiversity - this includes genetic, species, and habitat diversity. This is kind of like having a diverse stock portfolio - if one stock fails, the others are there to back it up.

Real-World Example: Picture a forest ecosystem. If it relies on just one type of tree for its survival and a disease wipes out that tree species, the ecosystem could collapse. But, if there are many different types of trees, the forest can still thrive even if one tree species gets wiped out.

The more intricate the food webs and nutrient cycling, the better. This complexity, including the role of keystone species (the big players in an ecosystem), gives the system multiple backup options if one part fails.

Real-World Example: In a coral reef, if a disease wipes out a species of fish, there are still other species that can fill its ecological role, thus maintaining the balance of the ecosystem.

A more resilient ecosystem tends to have large "storages", like big populations of organisms and abundant resources (think food, water, sunlight, and space). It's like having a well-stocked pantry in your house - you're ready to weather a storm (or a really long movie night)!