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The study of interactions between organisms and
their environment .
Levels of Organization
• Ecologists have organized the
interactions an organism takes part
in into different levels according to
complexity.
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1st Level of Organization
• Organism:
An individual
living thing that is
made of cells,
uses energy,
reproduces,
responds, grows
and develops, etc.
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2nd Level of Organization
• Population:
A group of
organisms, all
of the same
species, which
interbreed and
live in the same
place at the
same time.
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3rd Level of Organization
• Community:
All the
populations of
different
species that live
in the same
place at the
same time.
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4th Level of Organization
• Ecosystem:
Populations of plants
and animals that
interact with each
other in a given area
with the abiotic
components of that
area. (terrestrial
or aquatic)
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ecosystem
community
population
individual
What level of organization?
Individual
Organism
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What level of Organization?
Ecosystem
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What level of Organization?
Community
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What level of Organization?
Population
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Organism- any living thing
Individual- one single organism
Population- organisms of one species living together in the same
place at the same time
Community- populations of different species living in the same
place at the same time
Ecosystem- interaction of organisms and nonliving factors in a
specific area
Biotic- living organisms in an environment
Ex: plants, animals, bacteria
Abiotic- nonliving parts of an environment
Ex: soil, water, temperature, light, wind
Producer- organisms that make their own food, autotrophs
Consumers- organisms that rely on other organisms for food,
heterotrophs
Decomposers- organisms that uses dead material as a food and energy
source and return nutrients to soil, saprophyte
ex: fungus bacteria
Scavenger- organisms that uses dead material as a food and energy
source but do not return nutrient to soil ex: vulture
Food Chain- how energy in food moves through a community
Primary (10) consumer- organism that eats a producer
Secondary (20) consumer- organism that eats a primary consumer
Tertiary (30) consumer- organism that eats a secondary consumer
Food Web- series of food chains that
represent energy flow through
an ecosystem
Adaptation- structures, characteristics, and behaviors that increase
an organisms’ chance of surviving and reproducing in an environment
Structural Adaptation- physical characteristic that increases
survival, ex: hawk’s talons
Behavioral Adaptation- are actions that are used by an organism to
help it survive
Ex; bears hibernate, birds migrate for winter
Climate- average weather in an area, determined by rainfall,
temperature, and sunlight
Biome- large geographical areas that have similar climates and
communities
Habitat- place where an organism lives in a community
Niche- role of a species within a community
Ex; what it eats, how it gets its food, interaction with others
5th Level of Organization
• Biosphere:
The portion
of Earth
that
supports
life.
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