1. Ecosystems (Part 1) Notes

2. Biotic Definition: A living component of an ecosystem. Examples: Trees
Grass
Birds
Humans
Flowers

3. Abiotic Definition: A non-living component of an ecosystem. Examples:
Clouds
Water
Temperature
Air
Rocks
Minerals

4. Producer
Definition: An organism that makes its own food using sunlight.
Examples:
Trees
Flowers
Plants

5. Consumer
Definition: An organism that eats other organisms to get energy.
Examples:
Humans
Goats
Wolves

6. Decomposer
Definition: An organism that breaks down dead organisms to get energy.
Examples:
Bacteria
Worms
Fungi

7. Population
Definition: A group of individuals of the same species living in a specific area.
Examples:
A group of jellyfish living in the same area of the ocean
A group of wolves living together in Alaska

8. Community
Definition: All of the populations of species living and interacting together in the same habitat.
Examples:
Jellyfish, sharks, and plankton all living together and interacting in the same ocean
Wolves, deer, and bears all living together and interacting in Alaska

9. Ecosystem
Definition: A community of organisms and their abiotic environment.
Examples:
Jellyfish, sharks, plankton, water, and temperature
Wolves, deer, bears, rocks, clouds, temperature

10. Population, Community, Ecosystem

11. Population, Community, Ecosystem

12. Population, Community, Ecosystem

13. Influences on Population Size
Food supply
Temperature
Rainfall
Disease
Pollution
Invasive (new) species
Human development

14. Indirect Causes of Population Change
Changes in rainfall or average temperature can indirectly influence plant populations, which can indirectly influence animal populations that eat those plants for food.

15. Invasive Species
New (invasive) species in an ecosystem can influence changes in populations.
Zebra mussels and purple loosetrife cause changes in the populations of native species.