1. Ecology

2. What is ecology?
The scientific study of interactions between organisms and their environment.
Interactions can take place between living and nonliving things.

3. Abiotic Factors --- Nonliving parts of environment
Soil
Temperature
Sunlight
Water/Moisture

4. Biotic Factors
All the living organisms

5. Levels of Organization in Ecology
Organism – an individual
Population – a group of organisms of the same species that live in the same place at the same time.
Community – a collection of interacting populations
Ecosystem – interactions of living and nonliving things in the community

6. Organism

7. Population

8. Community

9. Ecosystem

10. How organisms obtain energy
Producers – can make own food; usually use radiant energy from the sun (photosynthesis)
6CO2 + 6H2O  C6H12O6 + 6O2
Carbon dioxide+ water  Glucose Oxygen
Consumers – must eat other organisms; cannot make own food

11. Different Types of Consumers
Herbivore – eat only plants
Carnivore – eat only animals
Omnivore – eat both plants and animals
Decomposer – break down and absorb nutrients of dead plants and animals
Release nutrients into the
soil for the plants
Scavenger – eat rotting flesh (like road kill)

12. How does this work? Food Chain
Shows how matter and energy move through ecosystem
Arrows indicate flow of energy from one organism to the next.
Only a portion of original energy is passed on to other organisms in chain (10% each link)
Example:
Energy Transfer Energy Transfer
Algae Fish Heron

13. How does this work? Food Chain
Producer: Plants
Absorbs energy from the sun
Provide oxygen as a result of photosynthesis ( takes place in chloroplast)
Provide glucose to consumers for energy

14. How does this work? Food Chain
Consumers:
Herbivore – primary consumer
Most efficient users of solar energy (thru cellular respiration process in the mitochondria)
Get energy from plants they eat
Carnivore/Omnivore – Secondary/Tertiary
Use energy from other consumers (animals) by eating them

15. How does this work? Food Chain
Decomposers
Provide nutrients to the soil by breaking down organic material (dead animals and dead trees/limbs)
Nutrients return to soil and absorb by plants

16. Food Web Made up of many food chains
Shows all possible feeding relationships in a community
More realistic than a food chain, because most animals eat more than one thing.

17. Identify the: 1. Producers 2. Primary Consumers 3. Secondary Consumers
2. Primary Consumers
3. Secondary Consumers
4. Herbivores
5. Carnivores
6. Omnivores
7. Tertiary Consumer

18. What if we remove producers from the web?
Food chain collapses because:
No food for herbivores and carnivores
No oxygen production by photosynthesis:
No cellular respiration, so no energy for all levels
Decomposers run out of material to break down

19. Energy Pyramid Draw the pyramid

20. Let’s check for understanding!
Are you ready?

21. Question 1 Which of these does not belong to the group? Consumer Human
Fish
Plant

22. Question 2 All energy transformations in an ecosystem begin with --
A scavenger
A decomposer
The Sun
An herbivore

23. Question 3
In a food chain, which are the most efficient users of solar energy?
Herbivores
Carnivores
Omnivores
Scavengers

24. Question 4