ORGANISM → POPULATION a functioning creature Ex. One squirrel group of organisms of the same species Ex. All the wolves in a specific area

COMMUNITY → ECOSYSTEM a group of different populations which interact in a particular area Ex. All of the squirrels, trees, birds, insects etc. in a forest All of the living & nonliving factors in a particular area Ex. A forest (includes all the organisms & the soil, water etc.)

Community Groups of different populations that live in a defined area

BIOME→BIOSPHERE A group of ecosystems with the same climate & similar communities Ex. Temperate Deciduous Forest any where on Earth that organisms can live

Ecological Methods 1.Observing –Descriptive (observations) –Quantitative (measurements) 2.Experimenting –In lab or in the “field” 3.Modeling –Mathematical/computer

Producers (“self-feeders”) also known as the autotrophs produce their own food use the processes of photosynthesis or chemosynthesis

Photosynthesis: -green plants produce sugar Chemosynthesis: -bacteria produce ATP from inorganic substances

Consumers can not make their own food also known as heterotrophs

Types of Heterotrophs Herbivores plant eating organisms Primary Consumers (1st to eat plants)

Types of Heterotrophs Carnivores Eat other animals Secondary Consumers (eat the primary consumers)

Types of Heterotrophs Omnivores Eat both plant & animal matter

Types of Heterotrophs Detrivores (scavengers) Feed on plant & animal remains

Types of Heterotrophs Decomposers special heterotrophs which break down organic matter recyclers Make essential nutrients available Ex. Bacteria & fungi

Feeding Relationships A food chain shows the flow of energy between the organisms in an environment

Food Webs (interconnected food chains) show the directions that energy flows in an ecosystem.

Energy Moves in a Food Web Plants make glucose from light Some animals get glucose from plants Other animals get energy from the fat and protein in other animals

Parts of a Food Web Producers: organisms that use light to store energy in organic compounds. –(examples: plants, algae, phytoplankton)

Parts of a Food Web Where are the producers in the food web below?

Parts of a Food Web Consumers: organisms that eat other organisms to get organic compounds that they use for energy –(examples: humans, cows, insects, birds…)

Parts of a Food Web Where are the consumers in the food web below?

Producer Primary Consumer Secondary Consumer Tertiary Consumer

Population Impacts in a Food Web If the population of organisms at any level of the food web changes, it will affect the population at other levels

If the population of producers decreases, then the population of primary consumers will decrease if they don’t have enough food.

If the population of primary consumers decreases, then… –The producers will increase because there are less consumers eating them –The secondary consumers will decrease because there is less food for them

Energy Pyramids More energy at the bottom, decreases as the pyramid moves up the food web More Energy Less Energy

Energy Pyramid Labels Producers Tertiary Consumers Primary Consumers Secondary Consumers

Energy Transfer in Energy Pyramids Each trophic level of the energy pyramid supplies energy to the level above it. Each transfer loses 90% of the energy Only 10% of the energy at a level is passed to the next level up! 90% is “lost” - used for movement, respiration, & reproduction – lost as heat (not a useable form of energy)

Energy Transfer (percents) 100% 0.1% 10% 1%

Energy Transfer (calories) 1,000 calories 1 calorie 100 calories 10 calories

Biomass Pyramid total amount of living tissue in a trophic level represents amount of potential food available for each trophic level

Abiotic Factors 1.Inorganic Matter not living, never was living does not include carbon ex. - rocks & minerals; water (nonliving factors)

Abiotic Factors 2. Organic matter  Carbon based  Includes decomposed organisms & waste products of organisms

Abiotic Factors 3. Physical Factors Other factors which influence organisms Ex. Temperature, amount of sunlight, rainfall etc.

Biotic factors Humans Bacteria Fungus Plants Insects Amphibians Reptiles Mammals Birds Abiotic factors Water Soil Wind or Air Gases –oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen Temperature Sunlight pH –Acid or base What are living factors called?

Abiotic or Biotic? The air temperature is 45 degrees F = The soil is made of rocks and minerals = A bird lays eggs = Bacteria break down dead organisms = The pH or the water is 2 (acidic) =abiotic abiotic abiotic biotic biotic

Which of the following is a relationship between abiotic and biotic factors? A) The rain on an open field washes away soil B) A hawk hunts a mouse and swoops down into the forest for the kill C) A lake has very acidic water which causes many fish populations to die D) A deer grazes in a field of grasses Abiotic Biotic

Habitats A habitat is the place in which an organism lives. –Made up of the soil, air, and water, as well as the plants of the area. (incl. biotic & abiotic factors) Can you think of other examples? Pond Thicket

Forest stream Meadow Marsh

Niche A niche is the role or job of a specific organism. –Each organism has a specific niche. –Includes how the organism uses the biotic and abiotic conditions to survive. –Includes its role in the food web –Includes when and how reproduction occurs

Giraffes & gazelles share habitat, not niches (they eat different food – no competition)

Predation One organism captures and feeds on the other.

Predator – Prey -a larger organism (predator) feeds on a smaller organism (prey)

Competition organisms of the same or different species attempt to use an ecological resource in the same place at the same time. Purple Loosestrife (from Great Britain) Invasive wetland plant that overtakes native plants that provide better nutrition/habitat for water fowl Resources - Food, water, nutrients, sunlight, space, shelter

competitive exclusion principle – No two species may occupy the same niche in the same habitat at the same time. one species will always use the resources more efficiently that species will reproduce more slight advantage leads to the elimination of the weaker competitor

Ex. Intraspecific Competition: Competition among organisms of the same species

Ex. Interspecific Competition Competition among organisms of different species

Symbiosis Symbiosis: a long- term relationship between two organisms in an ecosystem.

Types of Symbiosis 1.Mutualism: both organisms benefit from their relationship 2.Commensalism: one organism benefits, and the other is unaffected 3.Parasitism: one organisms benefits, and the other is harmed

Parasitism: -a smaller organism (parasite) feeds on a larger organism (host)

Name That Symbiosis Leeches feed off of the lamprey below, and eventually cause it to die. parasitism

Name That Symbiosis A clown fish lives among the sea anemone. The clown fish gains protection, but the anemone is neither harmed nor helped. commensalism

Name That Symbiosis Ox-peckers live on the heads of the ox, eating insects and keeping the ox clean. The birds also get a place to live. mutualism

Tapeworm Scolex – may attach to human intestines parasitism head with hooks and suckers

Cleaner fish mutualism

commensalism Shark & Remora

mutualism Lichens (fungus & algae)