1. Introduction to Ecology: Historical Foundations and Developing Frontiers
Chapter 1
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2. Outline
Overview of Ecology
Ecology of Forest Birds
Forest Canopy Research
Climatic and Ecological Change
The Scope of Ecology

3. Overview of Ecology
Ecology: Study of relationships between organisms and the environment.
Simple definition does not convey the extreme breadth of this discipline.
Ecosystem: Includes all organisms living in an area, and the physical environment with which these organisms interact.
Biosphere: Highest level of ecological organization.

5. Ecology of Forest Birds
Robert MacArthur studied the ecology of five species of warblers in spruce forests in N.A.
Theory predicted two species with identical ecological requirements could not coexist indefinitely.
Studies found warblers coexisted by feeding in different zones of the same tree.

6. Bay-breasted Warbler

7. Blackburnian Warbler

8. Black-throated Green Warbler

9. Yellow-rumped Warbler

10. Cape May Warbler

11. Warbler Feeding Zones

12. Stable Isotope Analysis
Chemical elements have different atomic masses (isotopes)
Proportions of isotopes vary across the environment and this is reflected in the body tissue of organisms
Recent advances in ecology take advantage of this variation
By examining body tissue, ecologists can determine food sources and habitat use

13. Forest Canopy Research
Due to heavy rainfall, many rainforest soils are nutrient-poor.
Nutrient stores in rainforest canopies are associated with epiphytes.
Epiphyte mats contain significant quantities of nutrients.
Trees send roots up to epiphyte mats to access nutrients.

14. Climatic and Ecological Change
Many environmental changes occur over large spatial or temporal scales.
Davis monitored plant pollen deposited in lake sediments in the Appalachian Mtns.
Documented large temporal changes to nearby plant communities.

15. Paleoecology: Vegetation History from Pollen Sediments

16. The Scope of Ecology
Ecology: Study of relationships between organisms and the environment.
Wide variety of approaches.
Large temporal and spatial scales.
Field
Lab
Observational
Manipulative