Introduction to Ecology (Ch. 3) Why should I learn about Ecology? 1

How are living things organized? Organisms: individuals such as a whitetail deer Populations: Group of organisms of one species 2

How are living things organized? Community: Collection of interacting populations 3

How are living things organized? Ecosystem: Interactions within a community plus the physical surroundings 4

How are living things organized? Biome: A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms 5

How are living things organized? Biosphere: The entire planet – living and nonliving 6

What are the parts of an environment? Biotic Factors: The living (plants and animals) Abiotic Factors: The nonliving ( rocks, air, soil, water) 7

Where do organisms live? Habitat: Where an organism lives –Fish in a pond, fox in a forest 8

What do organisms do in the environment? Niche: The role a species plays in a community –Wolf eats dying or weak animals 9

How do organisms get their energy? Plants: sunlight is used by a plant to make food for itself 10

Feeding Relationships Producers –Autotrophs: use solar or chemical energy to manufacture food 11

Feeding Relationships Consumers –Heterotrophs: An organism that must find its food 12

How do organisms get their energy? Animals: eat other organisms – there are many different types of eating styles Herbivores Carnivores Omnivores Scavengers Decomposers 13

Herbivores “herb” means grass Herbivores are plant eaters Carnivores “carn” means flesh Carnivores are meat eaters 14

Omnivores “omni” means all Omnivores eat both plants and animals 15

Scavengers Feed on carrion, refuse and most anything edible Decomposers Feed by breaking down and absorbing nutrients from dead organisms. Create detritus. 16

Detritivores Feed on detritus particles. They will often digest decomposers that live on the material they eat. 17

Consumers First level (primary) consumers –Herbivores 18

Consumers Second level consumers –Eat first level consumers 19

Consumers Third level (Tertiary) consumers –Carnivores that mainly eat 2 nd level consumers 20

Food Chain Shows how matter and energy move through an ecosystem Each organism represents a different trophic level Quaternary Consumer 21

Food Webs Shows all of the possible feeding relationships in a community Several chains put together 22

How does energy flow through an ecosystem? Energy Pyramids: shows energy decreasing at each succeeding trophic level 23

Biomagnification 24

How do organisms interact with each other? Symbiosis: close relationship between different species 25

Mutualism Both species benefit from the relationship 26

Commensalism One species benefits, the other is not harmed or benefits 27

Parasitism One species benefits at the expense of the other –Ticks, tapeworm 28

Predation One species benefits at the expense of the other. The other organism will lose its life because of the relationship. 29

The Water Cycle 30

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