8-1 “Components of an Ecosystem”

Ecosystem All the living and non-living things that interact in a particular area make up an ecosystem A prairie is just one of the many different ecosystems found on Earth Other ecosystems include: mountain streams, deep oceans, swamps and dense forests.

Habitats Organisms(living things)-live in a specific place within an ecosystem. Organisms obtain food, water, shelter and other things it needs to live, grow and reproduce from its surroundings The place where an organism lives and that provides the things the organism needs is called its habitat.

Biotic Factors An organism interacts with and responds to both the living and nonliving things in its environment The living parts of an ecosystem are called biotic factors Examples: grass, plants, hawks, ferrets, eagles, worms, fungi, and bacteria.

Abiotic Factors The nonliving parts of an ecosystem. Remember –TWOSS Temperature Water Oxygen Sunlight Soil

Temperature The temperatures of an area determine if an organism can live there. Ex: Warm areas you might see palm trees, but not in very cold areas. Some animals respond to very hot or very cold temperatures by altering their environment. Ex: Prairie dogs line their dens with grass to keep warm.

Water All living things need water to carry out their life processes. Plants and algae use water, along with sunlight and carbon dioxide, to make food in the process of photosynthesis.

Oxygen Most living things require oxygen to carry out their life processes. Some organisms obtain oxygen from the air, which is about 20% oxygen. Fish and other water organisms obtain dissolved oxygen from the water around them.

Sunlight Necessary for photosynthesis. Important for plants, algae and other living things. Places that receive little to no sunlight-like caves-have only a few organisms that can live their.

Soil A mixture of rock fragments, nutrients, air, water and the decaying remains of living things. Types of soil influence the kinds of plants that can grow there. Microscopic organisms such as bacteria live in soil and break down the remains of other living things.

Population All the members of one species in a particular area. Populations can be as small as a blade of grass or as large as the whole planet. Individual members in some populations do not interact very much. Some populations are very structured and relate to one another in specific ways.

Society A society is a closely related population of animals that work together for the benefit of the whole group. Ex: Honeybees-every member has a specific function.

Community Most ecosystems contain more than one type of organism. All the different populations that live together in an area make up a community. To be considered a community, the different populations must live close enough together to interact.

Levels of Organization in an Ecosystem OPCE Organism-the smallest unit of organization, that belongs to a population. Population-other members of its species that belong to a community. Community-different species in an ecosystem. Ecosystem-community and abiotic factors together.

Levels of Organization

Ecology The study of how living things interact with one another and with their environment. Ecologist are scientists who study ecology. They look at how all the biotic and abiotic factors in an ecosystem are related Ecologist study how organisms respond to changes in their environment.