Download Interactions and Energy Supply in Ecosystems

Interactions and
Energy Supply in
Ecosystems
SNC1P
Friday September 12th, 2014
Learning Check
• Think back to the first few classes and complete the questions
below:
• What is Ecology?
• Ecology is a branch of science that studies the relationship
between living things and the environment.
• What is an Ecosystem?
• An ecosystem is a system that is made up of all the interacting
biotic and abiotic parts of a certain place
Two Types of Ecosystems
1.
Terrestrial
•
•
2.
An ecosystem that is based mostly or totally on land.
Examples: desert, forest, tundra
Aquatic
•
•
An ecosystem that is based mostly or totally in water
Examples: pond, lake, river, ocean
Learning Check
• What are some similarities and differences between an
aquatic and a terrestrial ecosystem?
• This picture shows an ecosystem that includes both an aquatic and
terrestrial ecosystem. Identify 3 interactions in the land ecosystem
and 3 interactions in the water ecosystem. Finally, identify three
interactions that involve both the land and water ecosystems
• Ecosystems are about connections
• Ecosystems are made up of biotic and abiotic parts that
interact
• Interactions between terrestrial ecosystems and aquatic
ecosystems help keep all ecosystems healthy
How do interactions supply
energy to ecosystems?
• No matter what you eat each day, your food choices always
have one main thing in common. Each and every food item
carried with it some of the Sun (the Sun’s energy to be
precise). The energy you depend on to sustain your life is
stored in the food you eat.
Photosynthesis
• A process in the cells of plants, algae and some bacteria that
converts light energy from the Sun into stored chemical
energy.
• Write an equation for photosynthesis
(hint: what it uses and what it produces)
Cellular Respiration
• A process in the cells of most organisms that converts the
energy stored in chemical compounds into usable energy
• Write an equation for Cellular Respiration
Interactions of Cell Respiration
and Photosynthesis
Food and Feeding in
Ecosystems
• Define the following:
• Producers
• Any living thing that gets the energy it needs by making its
own food
• Consumers
• Any living thing that gets the energy it needs by eating
producers or other consumers
• Decomposers
• An organism that obtains energy by consuming dead plant and
animal matter
The Nutrient Cycle
• The pattern of continual use and re-use of a nutrient
• What is a nutrient?
• Any substance that a living thing needs to sustain its life
Learning Check
1. What role do decomposers play in nutrient cycles?
2. Explain what is meant by the statement “you and all other
living tings owe your lives to decomposers”.
3. The living things that decompose dead organisms link the
biotic and abiotic parts of ecosystems. How do they do this?