1. Ecosystem
Biosphere – entire part of the Earth where living exists. Soil, water, light, air.
Ecosystem – interactions between living and non-living matter
Community – group of interacting populations
Population – individuals that belong to the same species

2. Ecosystems Interactions between living and non-living matter
Cycles – carbon, water, nitrogen

3. Carbon Cycle

4. Water Cycle

5. Nitrogen Cycle

6. Community Producers, Consumers, Decomposers – food chains
Niche – an organism’s position and function in the community.
10% Rule – only 10% of energy is transferred from one level to the next

7. Primary productivity
NPP= GPP-R

8. Trophic interactions
Dominant species – abundant, contributes the most biomass
Keystone species – have strong influence on health of a community
Ex. Sea otters eat sea urchins (eat kelp). When otter population drops?
Ex. Wolves eat large herbivores like elk, deer, coyotes pg. 249
Invasive species – kudzu, dutch elm fungus, potato protist, small pox pg. 249

9. Models of interaction Bottom up Top down Pg. 250
Biodiversity is detemined by
Climate
Latitude
Habitat
elevation

10. Food Chain

11. Pyramid of Energy

12. Community Ecology
Interspecific competition – competition between different species
Resolved by:
Competitive exclusion – Gause’s principle – one individual outcompetes the other and replaces them in the niche
Resource partitioning – when different species can occupy a slightly different niche and live together

13. Resource partitioning

14. More ways to resolve competition
Character displacement – a slight difference can change an organism’s niche and reduce competition. Ex. Bird beaks on the Galapagos
Realized Niche vs. fundamental niche – fundamental niche is the one without competition, realized is one that the organism settles for. Ex. Barnacles

15. Fundamental and Realized Niches

16. Predation True predator – kills and eats its prey
Parasite – living off of the host without killing the host
Parasitoid – lays eggs in a host
Herbivore – eats plants, granivores, grazers, browsers

17. Symbiosis Mutualism – both benefit
Commensalism – one benefits, while the other is neither helped nor harmed
Parasitism – host is harmed, parasite benefits

18. Coevolution
Coevolution – the evolution one species in response to another.
Secondary compounds – toxic chemicals that discourage herbivores.
Camouflage – is any color, pattern, shape, behavior that enables an animal to blend in with surroundings.
Aposematic coloration (warning coloration) – color of bees warns animals
Mimicry
Mullerian Mimicry – bees, wasps, yellow jackets
Batesian mimicry – flies with yellow and black markings

19. Batesian Mimicry

20. Mullerian mimicry

21. Camouflage

22. Warning Coloration

23. Ecological Succession
Ecological Succession – the change in composition over time.
As succession progresses, the species and total biomass changes.
The first species is a pioneer species. They are usually r-selected. Bacteria, fungus, protists
As soil, light, water and pH change the community changes.
K selected species replace r selected species.
The final succession is the climax community.

24. Primary Succession
Occurs when the substrate has never supported living things
Rock and lava – lichen, fungus, bacteria, mosses, protists, then insects, then K selected species such as large trees and perennial shrubs
Sand Dunes – grasses, low shrubs, oak, then maple

25. Secondary succession When communities rebound after a damaging event.
Abandoned cropland – r selected grasses and shrubs, then pines, then oaks
Lakes and ponds – submerged vegetation, then grasses and cattails, then a meadow, then forest.

26. Succession

27. Secondary Succession