1. Ecology & Ecosystems

2. Ecology is the study of the interactions between organisms (biotic factors) and their environment (abiotic factors)
Abiotic Factors: The environment’s nonliving components that shape the environment:
Energy source
Temperature
Water
Gases
Soil
Nutrient Availability

3. Energy Source & Temperature
Without a constant source of energy, living things die. The primary source of energy for living things
on Earth is the Sun.
All living organisms have a range of temperature in which they best operate
At or below 0oC and above 45oC will destroy the enzymes of most organisms.

4. Water & Gases
Water Is essential for all life.
It is critical for most
chemical reactions,
It is necessary for
diffusion, it helps
maintain body
temperature, it helps
prevent dehydration.
Organisms require
certain gases to
carry out life
processes.

5. Soil & Nutrient Availability
Nutrients are all the chemical substances an organism needs to sustain its life. Many of these nutrients are obtained through the soil by plants, which are then consumed by animals.

6. Biotic Factors
All of the living organisms in an area

7. Ecology Levels of Organization

8. Species: A group of organisms so similar that they can breed and produce fertile offspring
Population: A group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time.
Community: All the organisms living in a specific area at a specific time.
Ecosystem: All the abiotic factors and biotic factors found in a certain place at any time.
Biome: A group of ecosystems with similar climates & organisms.
Biosphere: The areas on Earth where life is found
from about 8 km above the Earth to about 11 km deep
in the ocean (on land, in the water or in the atmosphere)

9. Habitat – the place (home) you normally
find an organism in its ecosystem.
{ex: ducks at a pond}
Niche – the role (job) of an organism
in its ecosystem.
{ex: bees are pollinators for plants)
Major Biomes:
Polar Ice Caps, Tundra,
Taiga {Boreal Forest),
Grassland (Savanna),
Temperate (Deciduos) Forest,
Rainforest, Desert, Highlands,
Marine Water & Salt Water.

10. Energy Flow The sun is the main source of energy for life on earth.
< 1 % of all sunlight that reaches earth is used by living organisms.
Most of the rest is reflected off as heat energy.

11. Producers or Autotrophs
Photosynthesis is the process where autotrophs use light as an energy source to make their own food.
6CO H2O → C6H12O O2
Performed on land by plants and in
water by algae.
Chemosynthesis: using chemical energy
to make carbohydrates.
Usually performed bacteria found in harsh environments: Ocean vents, volcanoes,
and hot-acidic
environments.

12. Consumers or heterotrophs: Must get their energy by eating other organisms
Herbivores eat plants Carnivores eat meat
Omnivores eat both Detrivores eat dead stuff
plants & animals
Decomposers chemically
break down decaying stuff

13. Food Chains

14. complex net of interactions among organisms. (interdependence)
Food Webs are a
complex net of interactions
among organisms.
(interdependence)
Each location or step in
a food chain or food web
represents a trophic level.
How Wolves Change Rivers video (4 ½ minutes)

15. Ecological pyramids
Only about ten percent of the energy available within a trophic level is transferred to oragnisms at the next higher level.
Pyramid of Numbers

16. Biomass Pyramids
Biomass and numbers