1. The study of the interactions between organisms & the environment.
ECOLOGY
The study of the interactions between organisms & the environment.

2. Review basic Ecology vocabulary:
organism = a living thing extinct = species that is no longer living
energy = ability to do work endangered = species at risk of becoming extinct
food = substance an organism needs for energy bio- = prefix that means “life”
habitat = home for an organism biology = the study of life
predator = organism who hunts & eats another one hierarchy = ranking in order
prey = organism who is hunted & eaten by another
photosynthesis = process when plants make their own food using sunlight for energy
*Activity = for 60 seconds, review these terms with a partner
*If you don’t understand any of the basic terms on this slide, please come to Knight Time or tutoring!

3. Review basic Ecology vocabulary:
Producers = (also called autotrophs) make their own food using sunlight; plants, algae, & some bacteria
Consumers = (also called heterotrophs) eats other organisms for energy;
animals & fungi
carnivore = only eats animals (cat, dog, lions, crocodiles, T-rex)
herbivore = only eats plants (cows, bees, pandas, deer, termites, lemurs)
omnivore = eats both plants & animals (humans, bears, squirrels, turtles, fish)
Decomposers = (process called rotting) breaks down dead organisms into soil; bacteria & fungi
*optional activity = review these terms with a partner
*optional activity = make a drawing of these 3 functional groups in your notes

4. Biotic = living components of an ecosystem Abiotic = nonliving components of an ecosystem
Place the following terms on the Venn diagram in your notes:
grass sunlight spiders climate flowers
rotting tree air fish water dead frog U.V. light
sun living temperature squirrel soil nonliving

5. Organization Biosphere - areas of planet earth that support life
(air, land, water, volcanic thermal vents…what?)
Biome - an ecosystem that occupies a particular climate zone
Ecosystem - all the living & nonliving things that interact in a particular area
Community - different groups of populations in the same area
Population - group of one type of organism
Organism - individual living thing

7. Where would a biome fit into this hierarchy?

8. Long term temperature & weather conditions in a particular area.
Climate Biome
Long term temperature & weather conditions in a particular area.
Plants, animals, & ecosystems adapted to a particular climatic condition.
Essential question: What are some specific ways climate affects a biome?
Cacti must conserve water in the desert because of dry conditions.
Fish have gills to breathe the dissolved oxygen in the water they live in.
Polar bears have large amounts of fat to store energy to survive arctic conditions.