1. Meadow Food Web

2. Ecology:
the study of the interactions between organisms and their environment

3. Biotic:
Living parts of the ecosystem:
Plants, animals,
decomposers

4. Abiotic:
Nonliving parts of the ecosystem:
soil, water, air, weather

5. Levels of Organization: 1. Individual organism

6. 2. Population - members of the same species in one area

7. 3. Community – many populations in the same area

8. 4. Ecosystem – the biotic and abiotic factors in the area

9. 5. Biome – group of ecosystems with the same climate and dominant communities

10. 6. Biosphere – portion of the planet where all life exists (8 km above Earth’s surface to 11 km below the ocean)

11. Methods of Ecological Study
Field observations – counting populations, observing interactions

12. 2. Experimenting -
set up a small environment, manipulate the conditions, observe the results

13. 3. Modelling - Uses Mathematical formulas based on data collected
Computer models of interactions may predict outcomes of environmental change