Download Part 1: Everything is Connected

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Introduction to Ecology—Ecosystems and Biomes
E-Science Notes
Take notes on the video: Introduction to Ecology, Ecosystems, and Biomes
Part 1: Everything is Connected
Biotic and Abiotic Factors
Environments have two parts:
 Abiotic Factors: Affect the ability of organisms _______________________________________ and
reproduce; help determine ________________________________________ of organisms able to exist in
environment; ______________________________________ restrict growth.
 Biotic Factors: Living things that __________________________________ affect organisms in
environment; factors include organisms, ____________________________, waste; ____________________,
disease, predation.
Identify each item as biotic or abiotic:
1. Shark: ________________________
2. Sun: _________________________
3.
4.
Windmills: _________________________
Turtle: ____________________________
Make a T-chart listing the biotic and abiotic factors in this picture.
Part II: Web of Life
Ecology is the study of the ______________________________________________________________________________.
Ways organisms interact:
1. Predator and __________________________
2. ______________________________: between and within species
3. ___________________________________
Individual Activity: go to BandwidthOregon.com and open the links Organisms Interact. Complete
the activity below.
Organisms Interact
1. Name one way organisms interact as:
a. Prey and Predator
b. Competitors
c. Cooperators
2. What are two ways to look at a food chain?
3. Identify two ways predators effect prey.
4. What effect do prey have on predators?
5. Define competition.
6. Give an example of competition between members of the same species.
7. Give an example of competition between members of different species.
8. Does competition occur between all the species that share an environment? Explain.
9. Define cooperation and give two examples.
10.Define symbiosis.
11.Define mutualism and give an example.
12.Define commensalism and give two examples: one that involves food and one that
doesn’t.
13.Define parasitism and give an example.
14.Think of a biological community near you and give an example of how one
population has affected another.
15.Explain how symbiotic relationships are similar to and different from predator-prey
relationships.
Lab 1: Species Interactions
 With a lab group, complete the Investigative Lab on page 57 of the link: Organisms Interact
on the BandwidthOregon.com web page.
 Copy the chart below on a sheet of notebook paper. Keep a table recording results for each of
the 15 rounds.
Round
# Prey Survived
# Predator Survived
Answer the questions below.
1. How does the size of the prey population effect the size of the predator population?
2. How might the size of a habitat effect the interaction of predators and prey?
Graph the data with a line graph.
Part III: Organization in the Environment
Levels of the Environment
 Level 1: ____________________________________
 Level 2: Population: a group of organisms of the _______________________ that live in a
specific ________________________________
 Level 3: Community: all the organisms of _______________________________ that live in a
habitat and _______________________with one another
 Level 4: Ecosystem: a community of organisms plus their ____________________________
 Level 5: Biome: ecosystems ______________________________ to form larger areas, like
rainforests, _____________________, and grasslands
 Level 5: Biosphere: the part of the earth where _____________________________
Lab 2: Layers Poster
1. Each lab pair will receive an organism.
2. Research the environment of this organism.
3. Draw or print a picture of your environment. Title it, such as swamp.
Layer 1: Cut out your organisms. Illustrate the first environmental level by gluing the organism/s to
the drawing. Label the level.
Layer 2: Illustrate the second level of the environment by gluing the organism/s to the drawing.
Label the level.
Layer 3: Draw other organisms that live in the area around yours. Label the 3rd level of the
environment.
Layer 4: Include or add abiotic elements to your drawing. Label the environmental level.
Layer 5: To what larger biome would your environment belong? Research this topic and write the
biome you would find it in. Label the level on your drawing.
Layer 6: Draw in the clouds above your drawing. Label the environmental level.
Hang your poster in the hallway.
Everything Is Connected Video
List the 10 surprising facts about planet Earth.
Part IV: The Energy Connection
Producers: Organisms that use ______________________________________________________________
 Mostly ________________________ but also ______________________________, bacteria and plankton
 Identify the main producers in the following ecosystems:
Prairie-Forest-Beach—
Consumers: They get the energy of the sun by eating other organisms
 Herbivore: ____________________________________________________
 Carnivore: eats only ________________________________
 Omnivore: Eats ________________________ plants and animals
Give examples of each type of consumer from our local community.
Herbivore______________________________________
Carnivore______________________________________
Omnivore______________________________________ (other than human)
Scavengers: Omnivores that eat _________________________________
Decomposers: Organisms that _________________________________ dead organisms; for example, bacteria
and fungi
Decomposers are important because they are nature’s _______________________________________. They
clean up the ____________________________________. Without them, _______________________________________
_________________________________________________________.
Using the information on the Energy Connection, fill in the blanks to complete the analogies.
1. A herbivore is to a consumer as a student is to a __________________________________.
2. A decomposer is to the environment as a garbage man is to a _________________________________.
3. Energy flow is to _____________________________________ as the foundation is to a building.
Food Chains and Food Webs
Food chain: the ______________________________________________________ through various stages as a result of
the ____________________________________ of a series of organisms; follows one line of predation
Food Web: a diagram that shows the _______________________________________ between all organisms in an
entire ___________________________________.
Using the power point link Maggie’s Science Connection: Energy Transfer or the one on
BandwidthOregon.com complete the lesson in your notes.
1. Why does a food chain always start with a
producer?
2. Why are all herbivores primary consumers,
but not all primary consumers are herbivores?
3. What is the definition of a food chain?
4. What is the definition of a food web?
5. How do plants, algae and cyanobacteria make their own food?
6. Define primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary consumers.
7. Why are there fewer organisms (less biomass) at the top of the trophic pyramid than at the
bottom?
8. Why are scavengers not considered decomposers?
9. Research: Where are decomposers found on a food pyramid? Why?
10.
If a cheetah regularly eats gazelle, impalas, rabbits and other grazing animals, what
trophic level does it typically occupy?
11.
Using the food web illustration in the article, what is the highest trophic level of the fox,
owl and snake?
12.
How much energy is transferred at each level?
13.
Mark energy transfer for each level on the diagram for each level.
14.
Explain the amount of energy that is transferred from level to level in your own words.
Lab 3: Model of a Food Pyramid
1. Brainstorm the producers, herbivores, carnivores and omnivores that live in our area.
Make a list under each category heading.
2. Create a food web showing the relationships between the organisms.
3. Build a model of a Food Pyramid illustrating these trophic levels of life in the coastal
Oregon area: Producers, Primary Consumers, Secondary Consumers, Tertiary
Consumers, and Tertiary Consumers.
4. Label each level. Include the amount of energy transferred at each level.