1. Ecology mega notes

2. Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes
Certain characteristics help to identify biomes.
Temperature and precipitation are two of the most important abiotic factors.
Other factors include latitude, elevation, and ocean currents.
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Biomes of the World

3. Temperature and precipitation Biome Chart
Practice: Identify the biome using the chart below.
Ave annual precipitation of 175cm and ave annual temperature of 50C.
Boreal Forest
Temperature ranges 00C – 200C and receives about 100 cm of rain.
Temperate Deciduous Forest
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Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes (continued)
Latitude is an abiotic factor that influences biomes.
Latitude is the distance north and south from the equator.
Latitude influences both temperature and precipitation.
The tropical zone has very warm temperatures and high precipitation.
The tropical zone receives more direct sunlight than do temperate zones.
Zones of the World
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5. Temperature and precipitation Biome Chart
Practice: Identify the biome using the chart below.
Ave annual precipitation of 175cm and ave annual temperature of 50C.
Boreal Forest
Temperature ranges 00C – 200C and receives about 100 cm of rain.
Temperate Deciduous Forest
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Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes (continued)
Latitude is an abiotic factor that influences biomes.
Latitude is the distance north and south from the equator.
Latitude influences both temperature and precipitation.
The tropical zone has very warm temperatures and high precipitation.
The tropical zone receives more direct sunlight than do temperate zones.
Zones of the World
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Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes (continued)
Elevation is the height of a land mass above sea level and also influences biomes.
Elevation effects temperature:
The atmosphere is thinner at higher elevations, and therefore less heat is retained.
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Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes (continued)
Elevation affects precipitation:
On the windward sides of mountains, clouds filled with moisture rise and cool, then release rain or snow.
On the leeward side of a mountain, which is the side sheltered from the wind, the air warms again, which allows it to absorb water, creating a dry land area.
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Factors That Influence the Characteristics and Distribution of Biomes (continued)
Ocean currents are another abiotic factor that affects temperature and precipitation and therefore influences biome characteristics.
Ocean currents carry warmth and moisture to coastal areas.
Where warm currents meet land, temperate biomes are found.
e.i. Both Canada’s and New Zealand’s temperate rainforest.
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Climatographs
Climate refers to the average pattern of weather conditions of a large region over a period of 30 years or more.
A climatograph shows the average temperature and precipitation for a location over a period of 30 years or more.
Biomes are often defined using information in climatographs.
Examine the differences
between the climatographs
for Tofino and Osoyoos
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11. Biodiversity in Ecosystems
By studying past and present ecosystems, we can better understand what may happen in the future.
Historical ecology is the study of natural and written materials to better understand the ecology of a certain area.
Many First Nations sources provide detailed knowledge of plants, animals, and natural occurrences of an area.
Ecology is the “the study of the interrelationships between the biotic (living organisms) and abiotic (non-living) factors within a given environment.
Ecosystems are the basic unit of ecology.
See pages
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An Ecosystem is:
“A definable area containing a relatively self-sustained community of organisms interacting with their non-living surroundings.”
Examples of Ecosystems
Small pool of water
Pond
Lake
Ocean
Biosphere
An ecosystem is made up of many parts.
Abiotic factors include air, water, soil, nutrients,
and light.
Biotic factors include plants, animals, and
micro-organisms.
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Habitats
Within ecosystems are habitats.
A habitat is where an organism lives.
Pacific spotted scorpionfish, Malpelo, Pacific Ocean blends in with it’s habitat.
The habitat of the red fox often includes the edges of forests or marshlands.
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14. Abiotic Interactions in Ecosystems
The abiotic components are what allow the biotic components to survive in an ecosystem.
Abiotic factors include oxygen, water, nutrients, light and soil.
Oxygen is produced by the green plants and certain micro-organisms and is used by animals and most other micro-organisms.
Water is necessary for all life.
Nutrients often enter the food chain with plants and are very important for growth.
Light is required for photosynthesis,
which is the process in plants that
converts and stores the Sun’s energy
into starches and carbohydrates.
Soil not only contains water and nutrients
but also is home to many plants and animals.
Earthworms in soil
See pages
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15. Biotic Interactions in Ecosystems
A species is a group of closely related organisms that share similar characteristics and can reproduce with one another.
A population refers to all the members of a particular species within an ecosystem.
A community is all the populations of the different species that interact in a specific area or ecosystem.
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16. Biotic Interactions in Ecosystems
Symbiosis refers to the interactions between members of two different species that live together in a close association.
There are three main types of symbiotic relationships:
Commensalism
Mutualism
Parasitism
See pages
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Commensalism
One species benefits, one is not affected.
Examples:
Barnacles on a whale
Spanish Moss on tree branches – Spanish moss has no roots, it is an epiphyte. Epiphytes are plants that are supported by or anchored on other plants, but they don’t obtain nutrients and water from the host tree.
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Mutualism
Both species benefit
Examples:
Bee gathering nectar from a flower
Ants and the bull horn acacia plant. The ants live in hollow thorns on the plant and sip the plants nectar. In return for food and shelter, the ants aggressively protect the plant by fighting off other insects and animals by stinging them.
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Mutualism Continue
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Parasitism
One species benefits, the other is harmed
Parasites are usually much smaller and more numerous than their hosts.
Parasites may live on or in their hosts feed on the host’s blood or body tissues.
Usually, the host is not killed, but a parasite can cause great damage and weaken the hosts, sometimes causing death.
Example:
Hookworm living in dogs and or humans
Mountain Pine beetle in Pine trees
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Parasitism Continue
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Niches
A niche refers to the specific role an organism has within an ecosystem, physically, chemically and biologically.
Within its niche, an organism interacts with other individuals of the same species or with individuals of other species.
For example, great blue herons always live near water where they can fish, and near trees where they can nest.
Only one organisms can occupy the same
niche, at the same time in the same
environment.
See pages
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Competition
Competition occurs when a resource is
needed by two or more individuals.
Competition usually means resources are limited.
This limits the size and health of that individual
and perhaps that population.
Some plants have characteristics that make them successful competitors.
Example: spotted knapweed release chemicals into the soil, which prevents the growth of other plants and allows the knapweed to populate a field quickly.
Coyotes compete over habitat or food sources.
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Predation
Predation is the relationship between the “eaters” and the “eaten”.
Predators have adaptations to help them catch their prey.
Prey have adaptations to help avoid predators.
Examples of adaptations include
Spines
Shells
Poisonous substances
Camouflage – blending into the environment
Mimicry – a prey animal mimics another
species that is dangerous or tastes bad.
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25. Predator-Prey Relationships
The numbers of predators and prey influence each other.
Example: the size of the prey population can be affected by the number of predators. In the example of the lynx and the hare,
The prey population grows when there are few predators.
When the predator population is high, the prey population shrinks.
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26. Biodiversity in Ecosystems
Biodiversity refers to the variety and number of different individuals and species in an ecosystem.
Healthy ecosystems generally have high biodiversity.
Most biodiversity losses occur from the loss of habitat.
Humans often have a negative impact on biodiversity.
Many efforts are now made to lessen this
impact in order to maintain biodiversity.
Ecological management programs try to
balance human progress with
maintaining biodiversity.
Wetlands provide habitats.
See page 48
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27. Energy Flow in Ecosystems
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28. Energy Flow in Ecosystems
Biomass is the total mass of all living things in a given area.
Biomass can also refer to the mass of a particular type of matter, such as organic materials used to produce biofuels.
Biomass is generally measured in g/m2 or kg/m2 .
The most successful animal species, in terms of biomass, is probably the Antarctic krill, with a biomass of about 500 million tonnes.
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29. Energy Flow
Within an organism’s niche, the organism interacts with the ecosystem by:
Obtaining food from the ecosystem
Contributing energy to the ecosystem
Plants are called producers because they produce
carbohydrates from carbon dioxide, water, and the Sun’s energy.
Consumers get their energy by feeding on producers or other consumers.
Decomposition is the breakdown of wastes and dead organisms by organisms called decomposers through the process of biodegradation.
Bees are consumers.
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30. Energy Flow and Energy Loss in Ecosystems:Food Chains
Scientists use different methods to represent energy moving through ecosystems.
Food chains
Food webs
Food pyramids
Food chains show the flow of
energy in an ecosystem.
Each step in a food chain is a trophic level
Producers = 1st trophic level
Primary consumers = 2nd trophic level
Secondary consumers = 3rd trophic level
Tertiary consumers = 4th trophic level
Examples of terrestrial and aquatic food chains
See pages
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31. Predator/Prey and Food Chains
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32. Energy Flow and Energy Loss in Ecosystems: Food Chains (continued)
Consumers in a food chain can be classified as:
1. Detrivores 3. Carnivores
2. Herbivores 4. Omnivores
See page 61
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33. Detrivores
Detrivores – consumers that obtain energy and nutrients from dead organisms and waste matter
Examples include earthworms, bacteria and fungi.
Detrivores feed at every trophic level.
Detrivores have their own, separate food chains
and are very numerous.
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34. Herbivores Herbivores – primary consumers
Herbivores eat plants (producers) only.
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35. Carnivores Carnivores – secondary or tertiary consumers
Secondary consumers eat non-producers, such as herbivores.
Tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers.
Also called top consumers or top carnivores.
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36. Omnivores Omnivores – consumers that eat both plants and animals
Examples include humans and bears.
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37. Energy Flow and Energy Loss in Ecosystems: Food Webs
This food web represents a terrestrial ecosystem that could be found in British Columbia.
Most organisms are part of many food chains.
Food webs represent interconnected food chains.
Food webs are models of the feeding relationships in an ecosystem.
Arrows in a food web represent the flow of energy and nutrients.
Following the arrows leads to the top carnivore(s).
See page 62
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38. Energy Flow and Energy Loss in Ecosystems: Food Pyramids
Food pyramids show the changes in available energy from one trophic level to another in a food chain.
Energy enters at the first trophic level (producers), where there is a large amount of biomass and therefore much energy.
It takes large quantities of organisms in one trophic level to meet the energy needs of the next trophic level.
Each level loses large amounts of the energy
it gathers through basic processes of living.
80 – 90 % of energy taken in by consumers is used in chemical reactions in the body and is lost as thermal energy.
There is very little energy left over for growth or increase in biomass.
Ninety percent of this mouse’s food energy is used to maintain its life functions.

39. Energy Flow and Energy Loss in Ecosystems: Food Pyramids (continued)
Food pyramids are also known as ecological pyramids.
Ecological pyramids may show biomass, population, or energy numbers.
The amount of life an ecosystem can contain is based on the bottom level of the ecological pyramid, where producers capture energy from the Sun.
Each level in the energy pyramid = a loss of 90 % of total energy available.
Lower trophic levels have much
larger populations than upper levels.
This shows the importance of
maintaining large, biodiverse
populations at the lowest levels
of the food pyramid.
See pages
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Take the Section 2.1 Quiz

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