2. * Ecology is the study of the interaction of living things and their environment interconnected * All living things are interconnected – survival of an organism depends upon it’s interactions with other living and nonliving things interdependent * Species impact each other in complex ways because they are interdependent

3. biotic abiotic * We can divide the world into the living, biotic and nonliving, abiotic * Our planet has been shaped by not only the abiotic factors but the biotic factors as well White board: find 3 biotic and 3 abiotic things in this picture.

4. * Ecology is organized into 6 levels from largest to smallest: * Biosphere * Biome * Ecosystem * Community * Population * Organism

5. * All life on Earth and everything that impacts life on Earth * Living things change the environment and visa versa * Living things are part of the water cycle, and the cycling of many nutrients that are vital to life * Without trees it would not rain as much in the rain forest, without worms, fungi, and insects there would be no soil

6. * Regions of the world with the same climate and types of organism * There are 10 major land biomes and salt water and fresh water biomes.

7. * Ecosystems: includes all the living and nonliving things that interact in a particular area * For example a pond ecosystem includes the water’s temperature, pH, salinity, and everything that lives in it * Communities: are the living things that interact with each other in a region – it does NOT include abiotic factors

8. * Individuals of the same species that interact with each other, they share/ compete for resources

9. 1. What is the difference between an ecosystem and a community? 2. Contrast abiotic and biotic. 3. Given an example of a population