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Ecology Notes
Ecology
The scientific study of the interactions between ___________ and their _______________.
The environment includes abiotic and biotic factors.
Abiotic factors – non-living things in an environment.
Examples: soil, ____________, _____________, air, rainfall and temperature.
Biotic factors – any ___________ (or once living) thing in an environment.
Examples: plants, animals
Biomes
A Biome is identified by its particular average
and
characterized by its
.
We recognize 7 main Biomes:
Temperate Forest, Tropical Rainforest, Tundra, Savanna, Desert, Taiga, Grassland
, and
Levels of Organization
From simple to complex:
Individual
(student)
<
Population
th
(9 graders)
<
____________
(all students & staff)
<
Ecosystem
<
(ORHS / biotic & abiotic)
____________
(CISD high schools)
<
Biosphere
A population is a _________ ____ _______________ that belong to the same species.
A community is a _________ ____ _______________ that live together in an area.
An ecosystem is a collection of _________ ____ _______________ factors in an area.
Niches
Ecological niche – is the sum total of the organism’s use of the ____________ and
________________ resources in its environment. To put it another way the role played by an organism
in a community (like its behavior, what it eats, and what eats it). Each species has its own unique niche.
The Sun
The sun provides __________ for all life on earth. Food chains and webs begin with the sun.
Producers
Producers are organisms that make (or produce!) their own food. They do not need to eat (or consume!)
nutrients from another source. Think plants!
Producers are ______________ – Organisms that capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and
use it to produce food.
Auto – Self
Troph – Nourishment
Get it??
______________ – use light energy. (Light is the main source of energy for life.)
______________ – use chemical energy
Consumers
Consumers must eat (or consume!) other organisms in order to stay alive.
Consumers are ______________ - Organisms that depend on other organisms for energy and food.
______________: Eat only plants
Primary Consumers – Primary means 1st. This is the first organism in the
food chain to EAT. Deer are Primary Consumers.
______________: Eat plants and animals
Usually Secondary or Tertiary consumers, may be Primary. Think foxes!
______________: Eat animals
Usually secondary or tertiary consumers. Lions are carnivorous.
______________: Breaks down organic matter.
Can be anywhere on the food chain. They eat dead and decaying organisms!
YUM! Think mushrooms growing on a decaying tree.
______________: Scavenger.
Doesn’t break down organic matter, just straight up eats dead stuff.
Vultures are scavengers.
Trophic Levels
A trophic level is a step in a food chain or food web.
Troph means nourishment (FOOD!) – so Trophic Level 1 begins with the first food source (PRODUCERS!)
Food Chains and Webs
Food Chain Example
A snake eats a frog that has eaten an insect that has eaten a blade of grass. What level consumer is the
snake? _____________________ On which Trophic Level does the snake belong? _______________
Food Webs
Food webs are made up of many _______________________food chains.
Energy Flows through Food Chains:
Energy flows through an ecosystem in __________ direction,
from the _____________ to autotrophs (producers) and then
to various ___________ (consumers).
ORHS Biology 2016
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The arrow shows where the energy goes!!
The arrows always point from the organism being eaten to the organism that eats it.
GRASS
Ecological pyramids
COW
Grass gives energy to the cow.
1. Pyramid of numbers: show ____________________ organisms there are at each trophic level. The
most organisms are always on the bottom of the pyramid. (There are more plants than herbivores,
more herbivores than carnivores, etc!)
2. Pyramids of biomass: show the _________________of each organism in each trophic level. The
largest is always at the bottom of the pyramid (Producers!)
3. Pyramid of energy: show how __________________is passed on from one trophic level to the next.
The most energy is always at the bottom of the pyramid (Producers get energy directly from the sun!)
Law of Conservation of Energy in Food Webs
Only about __________ of the energy stored in the organisms at one trophic level passes to the organisms
in the next level.
Of the _______________ not passed on:
1. Some energy is lost as ____________________ and some is lost in waste.
2. The rest is used in _________________________ like: respiration, reproduction, metabolism of food.
This is why you hardly ever get food chains with more than 5 trophic levels. There is not enough
____________ to support more.
Community Interactions
Competition, predation, and various forms of symbiosis, can powerfully affect an ecosystem.
________________ – when organisms attempt to use a resource at the same place and the same time.
Example: ___________________________________________________________________________
________________ – when one organism captures and feeds on another organism.
Example: ___________________________________________________________________________
Symbiotic Relationships
In a symbiotic relationship at least one of the organisms directly benefits from its close association with
the other organism. There are three types of symbiosis: (Draw the faces)
1. Mutualism 2. Commensalism 3. Parasitism -
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Factors that Population Growth:
Limiting Factors - A factor present in an environment that
a process, particularly the
, abundance or distribution of a population of organisms in an ecosystem.
•
Food,
Carrying Capacity - the
indefinitely.
, Disease, etc.
size of the species that the environment can sustain
Ecological Succession
Ecological Succession is defined as the series of ____________ _____________ that occur in a
community _______ ________.
It can be slow and gradual changes or a sudden change. It can also be the result of natural factors or
due to human influence. There are _____ types of succession:
______________ Succession – Succession that occurs on surfaces where no soil exists.
For example, formation of islands following a volcanic eruption.
______________ Succession – Changes that affect an existing community without removing the soil.
An example would be the burning and reforestation following a wildfire.
ORHS Biology 2016
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