1. Ecology

2. Ecosystems
An ecosystem is all the organisms that live in an area together with the nonliving factors of the environment
Ex. Pond or pine forest
Ecology is the study of how organisms interact with each other & the physical environment

3. Populations
All the organisms in an ecosystem that belong to the same species
Ex. Mice living in a meadow or pine trees in a forest
Species are a group of organisms that can mate to produce offspring that can produce more offspring
Ex. Brown pelican or human

4. Community
All the populations of different species that live in an ecosystem & share resources
Ex. Pine tree forest forms a community with populations of deer, mice, raccoons, bacteria, mushrooms, & ferns

5. Fill in the circle & give an example as we go through the next slide
Practice
Fill in the circle & give an example as we go through the next slide
Biosphere

6. Levels of Organization

7. Habitat
Habitat- The natural environment where an organism lives that provides food, shelter, moisture, & temperature needed for survival
the physical environment
Ex. The polar bears main habitat is
on offshore pack ice, and along coasts and island of the Arctic region. 

8. Group Time!
What kinds of plants & animals do you think you would find living in this habitat?

9. Niche
The unique ways an organism survives, obtains food & shelter, reproduces, cares for its young, and avoids danger (how it has adapted)

10. Ex. Polar Bear Niche
Large feet and short, sharp, stocky claws are adaptations to this environment.
Thick layer of fat under a thick fur to provide protection from extreme cold temperatures
Polar bears depend on sea ice as a platform for hunting seals.
Eat seals, walrus, & fish
Care for young for 2 years

11. Interactions Within Communities
All organisms need ENERGY to survive.
The sun is the source of energy that fuels most life on Earth

12. Feeding Relationships
Two categories of organisms
Autotrophs are organisms that can make their own food for energy by capturing sunlight or other chemicals
Heterotrophs can not make their own food for energy & must obtain it by feeding on another organism
3 main types
Producers (Autotrophs)
Consumers (heterotrophs)
Decomposers (heterotrophs)

13. Producers
Organisms that make their own food using energy from the sun & raw materials from the environment
Most producers are plants that use the process of photosynthesis to make food

14. Photosynthesis
Plants use carbon dioxide and water with light-energy in the presence of chlorophyll in the chloroplast of the cells to make glucose and oxygen
Directly or indirectly produces food for almost all organisms
Phytoplankton & algae also play a huge role as producers in the environment
carbon dioxide + water + sunlight oxygen + glucose
(CO2) (H2O) (energy) (O2) (C6H1206)

15. Consumers
Organisms that cannot make their own food & Obtain energy by eating other organisms & cellular respiration
Three Types:
Herbivores: eat only plants/producers
Carnivores: eat only animals
Omnivores: eat both plant & animals

16. Consumers

17. Decomposers
Organisms that feed on the dead remains or waste products of other organisms to obtain energy
Ex. Bacteria, earthworms, & fungi

18. oxygen + sugar carbon dioxide + water + energy
Cellular Respiration
The purpose of cellular respiration is to release energy that can be used by cells to perform their specialized function
Cellular respiration occurs in the mitochondria of cells.
The mitochondria uses glucose & oxygen and converts it in a chemical reaction to produce carbon dioxide, water, and energy
oxygen + sugar carbon dioxide + water + energy
6O2 C6H CO H2O

19. Nitrogen Cycle
The movement of nitrogen between plants, animals, bacteria, soil, and the atmosphere.
Important part of cells, proteins, and DNA
78% of atmosphere is nitrogen
Nitrogen fixation- bacteria change nitrogen into ammonium that is used by plants
Humans have altered the nitrogen cycle by adding fertilizer to soil.
_pg20_nitrogen/em05_pg20_nitrogen.swf

20. Nitrogen Cycle

21. Carbon Cycle Found in all living things
Plants remove CO2 from the atmosphere to make carbohydrates (sugars).
Transferred to animals when the eat the plant
Animals release CO2 during respiration.
Returns to soil or atmosphere when the animal dies and decays.
Humans have altered this cycle by burning fossil fuels and cutting down trees.

22. Carbon Cycle

23. Hands up, Stand up, Pair up
Compare & contrast Photosynthesis & Cellular Respiration & make a list of what you see?
How are these two processes related to each other?

24. Food Chains
A model that shows the flow of energy through feeding relationships among organisms in a particular ecosystems

25. Food Webs
A model that links the organisms within an ecosystem by how they depend on each other for food.
The lines drawn represent the flow of energy through the ecosystem & show a variety of food chains

26. Energy Pyramid
An energy pyramid shows the amount of energy available at each level of a food chain.
Only about 10% of energy is passed to next level.
The rest is lost as heat.
Producers- bottom level- have the most energy
Primary consumers- eat producers
Secondary consumers- eat primary consumers
Tertiary consumers- eat secondary consumers

27. Energy Pyramid

28. Energy Pyramid What are the secondary consumers?
If there are 50,000 kcal available to the giraffes, how many are available to the lions?
Why does the energy get lost at each level?

29. Relationships Between Populations
Competition: Occurs when more that one individual or population tries to make use of the same limited resources
Ex. Food, water, or space
Predation: Type of feeding relationship in which one animal captures & eats another animal for food
Animal being eaten is the prey
Animal doing the eating is the predator
Predator/prey relationships help keep an ecosystem in balance by preventing any one population from growing too large

30. Predation