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What is Ecology?
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What is Ecology??
The study of interactions that take place between organisms and their environment.
It explains how living organisms affect each other and the world they live in.
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What is Ecology??
The study of interactions that take place between organisms and their environment.
It explains how living organisms affect each other and the world they live in.
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Habitat & Niche
Habitat is the place a plant or animal lives
Niche is an organism’s total way of life-how they interact with their envir.
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5. The Nonliving Environment
Abiotic factors- the nonliving parts of an organism’s environment.
Examples include air currents, temperature, moisture, light, and soil.
Abiotic factors affect an organism’s life.
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6. The Living Environment
Biotic factors- all the living organisms that inhabit an environment.
All organisms depend on others directly or indirectly for food, shelter, reproduction, or protection.
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Abiotic or Biotic?
Biotic
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Abiotic or Biotic?
Abiotic
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Abiotic or Biotic?
Abiotic
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Abiotic or Biotic?
Biotic
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11. Levels of Organization
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12. What are the Simplest Levels?
Atom
Molecule
Organelle
Cell
Tissue
Organ
System
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13. Levels of Organization
Ecologists have organized the interactions an organism takes part in into different levels according to complexity.
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14. 1st Level of Organization
Organism: An individual living thing that is made of cells, uses energy, reproduces, responds, grows, and develops
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15. 2nd Level of Organization
Population: A group of organisms, all of the same species, which interbreed and live in the same place at the same time.
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16. 3rd Level of Organization
Biological Community: All the populations of different species that live in the same place at the same time.
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17. 4th Level of Organization
Ecosystem: Populations of plants and animals that interact with each other in a given area with the abiotic components of that area. (terrestrial or aquatic)
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18. 5th Level of Organization
Biosphere: The portion of Earth that supports life.
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The Biosphere
Life is found in air, on land, and in fresh and salt water.
The BIOSPHERE is the portion of Earth that supports living things.
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20. Relationships
Predation- organism consuming other organisms (lion hunts antelope)
Competition- organisms use the same resources and “fight” for them
Symbiosis- Realationship between two or more organisms

21. Symbiotic Relations
Mutualism- both organisms benefit (bees and flowers)
Commensalisms- one benefits the other is not harmed (small fish and sharks
Parasitism- one benefits the other is harmed. (Tick and dog)

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Energy Flow
Energy in an ecosystem originally comes from the sun
Energy flows through Ecosystems from producers to consumers
Producers (make food)
Consumers (use food by eating producers or other consumers)
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Producers
Sunlight is the main source of energy for most life on earth.
Producers contain chlorophyll & can use energy directly from the sun
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Autotrophs
An Autotroph is any organism that can produce its own food supply!
Autotrophs are also called Producers
Plants, algae, some protists, & some bacteria are examples
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Niche of a Producer
Captures energy and transforms it into organic, stored energy for the use of living organisms.
May be photoautotrophs using light energy (e.g. plants)
May be chemoautotrophs using chemical energy (e.g. cyanobacteria)
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Photoautotroph
Producer That Captures Energy from the sun by:
Photosynthesis
Adds Oxygen to the atmosphere
Removes Carbon Dioxide from the Atmosphere
Algae
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27. Called a Black smoker (thermal vent)
Chemoautotrophs
Capture energy from the bonds of inorganic molecules such as Hydrogen Sulfide
Process is called Chemosynthesis
Often occurs in deep sea vents or gut of animals
Called a Black smoker (thermal vent)
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28. Tube Worms living in Black Smoker
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29. Consumers
Heterotrophs eat other organisms to obtain energy. (e.g. animals)
Herbivores
Eat Only Plants
Carnivores
Eat Only Other Animals
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30. Consumers Heterotrophs eat other organisms to obtain energy.
Omnivores (Humans)
Eat Plants & Animals
Scavengers
Feed On Dead Plant & Animal Remains (buzzards)
Detritivores -Decomposers
Fungi & Bacteria
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31. Feeding Relationships
Energy flows through an ecosystem in one direction
from producers to various levels of consumers
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32. Feeding Relationships
Food Chain
Simple Energy path through an ecosystem
Food Web
More realistic path through an ecosystem made of many food chains
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Food Chain
3rd Order consumer
2nd Order Consumer
1st order Consumer
4th Order Consumer
Producer (trapped sunlight & stored food)
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34. Name the Producer, Consumers & Decomposers in this food chain:
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Food Web
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37. Trophic Levels
Each Level In A Food Chain or Food Web is a Trophic Level.
Producers
Always The First Trophic Level
How Energy Enters The System
Herbivores-Second Trophic Level
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Trophic Levels
Carnivores/Omnivores
Make Up The Remaining Trophic Levels
Each level depends on the one below it for energy.
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39. Ecological Pyramids
Graphic Representations Of The Relative Amounts of Energy or Matter At Each Trophic Level
May be:
Energy Pyramid
Biomass Pyramid
Pyramid of Numbers 39 39

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Energy Pyramid
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Biomass Pyramid
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Pyramid of Numbers
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