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An Introduction To Ecology What is Ecology • Ecology – study of interactions between organisms and environment. • Consists of abiotic (nonliving; i.e. temperature, light, etc) and biotic (living) factors. http://www.apsnet.org/education/illustratedglossary/PhotosE-H/forestdecline.htm Levels of Organization in Ecology • Population – group of individuals of same species living in an area. • Community – all organisms of all species that live in an area. • Ecosystem – above plus abiotic factors. • Biosphere – sum of all ecosystems. http://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch8en/conc8en/img/biosphere.gif Abiotic Factors that effect the Environment • Distribution affected by temperature, water, sunlight, wind, and rocks and soil. • Type of each will determine what can live there. http://www.your-healthy-gardens.com/images/SoilTypes1.jpg Abiotic factors continued • Temperature and water are biggest factors. • Biomes – major types of ecosystems. • Determined by proximity to equator, closeness to ocean, mountains, etc. http://z.about.com/d/geography/1/0/V/A/equator.jpg Aquatic biomes • 2 types – marine and freshwater. • Stratified vertically – photic zone (light) – lots of animal and plant diversity and aphotic zone (little light). • Bottom of aquatic is benthos – food is detritus that falls from above. Free swimming zone lots of fish. Most Diversity of organisms because of the light. Bottom species like snails, catfish and clams…NO light http://www.geo.arizona.edu/Antevs/nats104/00lect17lakeutrophic.jpg • Freshwater – close to shore – littoral zone. • Open water – limnetic zone. • ALakes classified by nutrients – 1eutrophic – shallow and nutrientrich; oligotrophic – deeper and nutrient-poor. Too much phosphorus leads to algae blooms called eutrophication. Oligotrophic lake http://kentsimmons.uwinnipeg.ca/16cm05/1116/50-19b-Eutrophic.jpg Eutrophic lake http://www.spatial.maine.edu/~snoox/images/eutrophic_lake.jpg Marine Estuary on a coral reef * • BWetlands – area covered with water; supports plants. • CEstuaries – area where freshwater meets ocean. • Intertidal zone – land meets water. • DCoral reefs – dominated by coral. Wetlands http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/assets/images/Wetlands.jpg Estuary http://www.cop.noaa.gov/images/estuaries.jpg Coral Reef http://212.84.179.117/i/Coral%20Reef.jpg Ocean Biome Land Features • EOceanic pelagic biome – away from shore. • Abyssal zone – lowest part of • Benthos; deep-sea hydrothermal vents help chemoautotrophic organisms. Abyssal zone http://206.110.20.50/web/schuh/students/jonathan/Monsters/MonstersofthDeep/seaslug.JPG Terrestrial “LAND” biomes • Defined vertically from the canopy at top to the permafrost at the bottom. • ATropical forest – little light reaches ground because of deep canopy. • Rainfall determines life in area. Tropical Forest In Madagascar http://www.hort.cornell.edu/mudge/bneimark/SC%202.jpg Terrestial Biomes cont. • Savanna – scattered trees and grasses. • Fire helps increase diversity. • Has rainy season. • Temperate grassland – seasonal drought, fires prevent tree growth. • Most used for farming. Savanna http://www.plantzafrica.com/vegetation/vegimages/savanna3.jpg Grasslands http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Laboratory/Biome/Images/picgrassland.jpg Terrestrial Biomes cont. • DDeserts – sparse rain, some are cold. • Plants have structures to allow survival (i.e. water storage, alternative forms of photosynthesis) • EChaparral – evergreen shrub; long, hot, dry summers with fires. Desert http://pangea.stanford.edu/~hsiao/desert.jpg Chaparral http://www.cpluhna.nau.edu/images/semiaridgrasslands92rw.jpg Abiotic factors of specific biomes • FTemperate deciduous forest – small mammals, leaves fall during autumn. • GConiferous forest – cone-bearing trees, trees have needles. • HTundra – permafrost covers ground, low diversity. Deciduous forest http://www.ccet.ua.edu/hhmi/images/Autumn.JPG Coniferous forest http://www3.newberry.org/k12maps/module_07/images/coniferous.jpg Tundra http://photojunkie.ca/photoblog/tundra.jpg http://www.hesd.k12.ca.us/resource/biomes/Biome%20map.gif Biomes around the World • SUCCESSION = How The Land Changes Pioneer Species: Over Time. lichens- grow on rocks moss- grow on trees Over hundreds to thousands of years, the barren rock is changed by pioneer species like bacteria, lichen and mosses to form soil. As seeds are dispersed by the wind, water and deposited by animal fur or digestion, the small non-flowering plants eventually grow into flowers, shrubs, small trees and finally into areas with more diversity changes the species in the area. • Primary Succession – volcanoes and Glaciers build-up new land, islands, or mountains. • Succession continued: • Secondary Sucession – an established land is disturbed or removed by natural or man-made processes such as fire, floods, mowing a field, hurricanes, tornadoes, clear-cutting a forest called FRAGMENTATION. • Succession continued: • Climax Community – balance within an ecosystem Organism Relationships (Symbiosis) •Sym= together Bio = life sis = process “the process of living together” •Relationships between living things: 1.Commensalism – organisms live together with very little interaction. Sometimes, one organism may help the other to survive but benefit is not returned. For example: Wilderbeast in Africa are protected by zebra heards. It makes it harder for a lion to isolate and kill a wilderbeest. • Organism Relationships continued • Mutualism – when the survival of the organism depends upon another organism. Both species help each other to survive. Each organism has a role: protection, free ride, a warning device, cleaning parasites, free food, gets water, and etc. • Organism Relationships continued • Parasitism- when one organism actively benefits from the harm of a host organism. • Host – the carrier organism • Parasites may use nutrients or drink blood from other organisms, use a host for part of a life cycle, control a life function of the organism, use the host as a home and etc.