Ecology

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Ecology
Ecology the study of how living things interact
with their physical environment

• To be used with Ecology Guided Notes
• Gaccione/BakkaBelleville High School

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Ecological Organization

• Organism
• A living thing
• Anything that possesses all of the
  characteristics of life

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Ecological Organization

• Species a group of organisms that can
• mate produce a fertile offspring

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Ecological Organization

• Population all the members of the same species
  that live in certain place at a certain time.

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Ecological Organization

• Community a collection of interacting
• populations in an area

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Ecological Organization

• Ecosystem includes all of the organisms the
  non-living environment.
• community members
• in the ecosystem
• must interact to
• maintain a balance.

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Ecological Organization

• Biosphere the portion of the earth where all
  life exists. A 13 mile band that surrounds the
  earth.
• 6-7 miles into the atmosphere 6-7 miles deep
  into the ocean.
• Composed of many complex ecosystems.
• Put in order
• (small to large)
• community
• population
• biosphere
• organism
• ecosystem

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Ecosystems

• An ecosystem is self-sustaining if
• A constant source of energy
• is supplied.
• Living things use this energy and
• convert into organic molecules
• A cycling of materials between
• organisms and their environment

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Resources

• Organisms with similar needs may compete with
  each other for resources like
• Food
• Space
• Water
• Air
• Shelter

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Limiting Factors

• Limiting Factor
• anything that makes it more difficult for a
  species to live, grow, or reproduce in its
  environment
• Determines the types of organisms that exist in
  that environment

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Acclimation when organisms acclimate to changes

• Range of Tolerance the ability of an organism to
  withstand changes in their environment.

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Abiotic Factors

• Abiotic factors nonliving factors which affect
  the ability of organisms to survive and reproduce
• Examples
• 1. intensity of light
• 2. range of temperatures
• 3. amount of moisture
• 4. soil or rock type
• 5. availability of inorganic substances
• 6. supply of gases such as oxygen, carbon
• dioxide, and nitrogen
• 7. pH

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Examples of Abiotic Factors

• What abiotic factors limit
• vegetation at higher altitudes?
• lack of soil
• a low annual temperature
• strong winds
• steepness of the grade

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Examples of Abiotic Factors

• What abiotic factors allow rainbow trout to love
  mountain streams?
• the amount of dissolved oxygen due to current
• water temperature
• no pollution
• pH of 7
• shelter
• river bottom for reproduction

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Examples of Abiotic Factors

• What abiotic factors limit the organisms that can
  live there?
• temperature
• sunlight
• lack of water
• winds
• shelter/shade

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Biotic Factors

• Biotic factors living factors which affect the
  ability of organisms to survive and reproduce
• Examples
• other organisms, such as a predator, food source
• Can an abiotic factor such as RAIN affect many
  biotic factors?
• Rain - ________ - ________ - _________

grass
mole
eagle
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Nutritional Relationships

• Two types Autotrophs Heterotrophs
• Autotrophs organisms that synthesize their own
  food from inorganic molecules
• Plants that contain
• photosynthetic pigments,
• such as chlorophyll.

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Nutritional Relationships

• Two types Autotrophs Heterotroph
• Heterotrophs can NOT synthesize their own food
  and are dependent on other organisms for their
  food

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Types of Heterotrophs

• Saprophytes include those heterotrophic plants,
  fungi, and bacteria which live on dead matter 
  (a.k.a. decomposers or detritivores)

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Types of Heterotrophs

• Herbivores plant-eating animals

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Types of Heterotrophs

• Omnivores
• consume both
• plants and meat

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Types of Heterotrophs

• Carnivores meat-eating animals

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Types of Carnivores

• Predators animals which kill and
• consume their other animals (prey)
• Prey animals which are killed by predators

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More Predator/Prey Relationships
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Types of Carnivores

• Scavengers those animals that feed on other
• animals that they have not killed
• Examples crows vultures hyenas

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Which is the Predator?
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Symbiotic Relationships

• Symbiosis living together with another organism
  in close association
• Types of symbiosis
• Commensalism
• Mutualism
• Parasitism

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Types of Symbiosis

• Commensalism one organism is benefited and the
  other is unharmed (,0)
• Example barnacles on whales, orchids on tropical
  trees

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Types of Symbiosis

• Mutualism both organisms benefit from the
  association (,)
• Example Nile crocodile opening its mouth to
• permit the Egyptian plover to feed on
• any leeches attached to its gums.

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Types of Symbiosis

• Parasitism one organism benefits at the expense
  of the host (,-)
• Example tapeworm and heartworm in dogs
  athlete's foot fungus on humans
• leech sucking blood from host

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Symbiosis
Mutualism
Parasitism
Commensalism
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Energy Flow in an Ecosystem

• Food chain a single pathway of feeding
  relationships among organisms that involves the
  transfer of energy.

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Food Webs

• Food web Interrelated food chains in a community
• Most organisms may be
• consumed by more
• than one species

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Trophic Levels
An organisms position in a sequence of energy
transfers
Fourth trophic
Third trophic
Second trophic
First trophic level
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Energy Transfer

• There is a decrease in the overall energy as you
  move up in trophic levels.
• There is much more energy in the producer level
  in a food web than at the consumer levels
• Approximately 10 of ingested nutrients is passed
  on to the next trophic level to build new tissue

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Energy Flow, continued

• Why is the of energy passed on to the next
  trophic level so low?
• No transfer of energy 100, therefore some energy
  is lost in the form of heat
• Some animals escape from being eaten just die.
  Their energy in their bodies do not pass to a
  higher energy level.
• Some animal parts can not be eaten.
• Cougar eats deer, can not extract energy from
  antlers, hooves or hair.

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Biomass amount of organic matter
producers primary consumers   secondary
consumers tertiary consumers
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Terrestrial Energy Pyramid
Eagles
Snakes
Mice
Green Plants
Complete the Energy Pyramid using these
organisms Eagles, Green Plants, Mice, and Snakes
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Succession

• Succession a gradual process of change and
  replacement of populations in a community.
• Succession occurs when the environment is
  altered.
• These changes cause species to replace others,
  resulting in long-term gradual changes in
  ecosystems
• Ecosystems tend to change until a climax
  community is formed.

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Primary Succession

• The development of plant communities in an area
  that has never supported life.
• examples bare rock, lava flow or glaciers.

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Primary Succession - in a Pond
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The Start of Primary Succession

• Pioneer organisms the first organisms to inhabit
  a given location
• (example lichens on bare rock)
• Breaks down rock into soil
• Establish conditions under
• which more advanced
• organisms can live.

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Primary Succession Example

• Adirondack Bog Succession
• 1. water plants at pond edge
• 2. sedges and sediments begin to fill pond
• 3. sphagnum moss and bog shrubs fill pond 
  (cranberries)
• 4. black spruce and larch
• 5. birches, maple, or fir

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Secondary Succession

• is the change of species that follows disruption
  of an existing community
• created by natural disasters or human activity
• Occurs in areas that previously contained life
  and SOIL!!!
• forest fire at Yellowstone National Park.

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Secondary Succession Example

• If the BHS football field is not mowed, would it
  be primary or secondary succession?

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Primary or Secondary Succession?Primary on rock
Secondary on soil.
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Climax Community

• Climax community a community that has reach a
  stable state.
• populations remain stable and
• exist in balance with each other
• and their environment
• ecosystems may reach a
• point of stability that can last for
• hundreds or thousands of years

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Climax Community

• A climax community persists until a catastrophic
  change alters or destroys a major biotic or
  abiotic resource
• (ex. forest fires, abandoned farmlands, floods,
  areas where the topsoil has been removed)
• After the original climax community has been
  destroyed, the damaged ecosystem is likely to
  recover in stages that eventually result in a
  stable system similar to the original one.

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Biomes

• Biome a large region characterized by a specific
  type of climate certain plant and animal
  communities.
• A certain biome may exist in more than one
  location on earth.
• Biomes are terrestrial (dry) or aquatic (wet)
• Dependent on
• Temperature
• Solar radiation
• Precipitation

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Terrestrial Biomes

• Terrestrial Biomes
• In general, six land biomes
• Characterized by climax vegetation
• Have characteristic flora (plants) and fauna
  (animals)

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Terrestrial Biomes Tundra

• Climax flora treeless. lichens, mosses, grasses
• Climax fauna caribou, snowy owl
• Characteristics
• long extremely cold winters
• permanently frozen subsoil called permafrost
• Location
• Continuous belt around N America, Europe Asia

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Terrestrial Biomes Taiga

• Climax flora conifers
• or evergreen trees
• Climax fauna moose, black bear, squirrels
• Characteristics
• long, severe winters
• Location
• south of the tundra north of temperate forest

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Terrestrial Biomes Temperate-Deciduous Forest

• Climax flora trees that shed leaves
• Climax fauna gray squirrel, fox, deer
• Characteristics moderate precipitation, cold
  winters, warm summers
• Location
• South of taiga

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Terrestrial Biomes Tropical Forest

• Climax flora many species of broad-leaved plants
• Climax fauna snake, monkey, and leopard
• Characteristics heavy rainfall(300 inches/year),
  constant warmth
• Biodiversity
• The size of 2 football fields may have 300
  species of trees
• Location
• Near the equator

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Terrestrial Biomes Grasslands

• Climax flora grasses
• Climax fauna prairie dog, bison, usually herd
  animals.
• Characteristics rainfall and temperature vary
  greatly, strong winds
• Grasslands also known as prairies, steppes,
  savannas pampas.
• Location interior of continents

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Terrestrial Biomes Desert

• Climax flora drought-resistant shrubs and plants
• Climax fauna kangaroo rat, lizard
• Characteristics sparse rainfall (9 inches/year).
• Extreme temperature. Hot days cool nights.
• Temperatures may have a 50 degree drop.

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Aquatic Biomes

• Aquatic Biomes the largest ecosystems on Earth
• 70 of Earths surface is covered by water
• Water is the principal medium for life
• More stable then terrestrial biomes
• Moisture not a limiting factor
• Temperature changes are not as great

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2 Types of Aquatic Biomes

• Marine Biomes salt water biomes
• Most stable aquatic environment
• Habitat for large number of diverse organisms
• Freshwater Biomes ponds, lakes, rivers
  wetlands
• Will fill in due to seasonal die-back and
  erosion
• Eventually terminate in a terrestrial climax
  community

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Freshwater Biomes

• 2 Types of Lakes
• 1. Eutrophic -rich in organic matter
  vegetation
• Murky water
• Bacteria feed on decomposing matter
• uses up all the oxygen, killing all life.
• 2. Oligotrophic -little organic matter
  vegetation
• Clear water.

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Freshwater Biomes

• Wetlands aka swamps marshes
• an area of land that is covered by water for a
• certain amount of time during the year.
• Why are wetlands so important?
• filters out pollutants
• controls flooding
• stopover for migratory birds
• recreational

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Zone of Photosynthesis

• Plant production occurs at the edges of land
  masses
• No light penetrates the deeper regions of aquatic
  biomes

Aphotic
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Competition

• Competition occurs when two different species or
  organisms living in the same environment
  (habitat) utilize the same limited resources
• Examples
• food, water, space, light, oxygen, and minerals.
• The more similar the requirements of the
  organisms involved, the more intense the
  competition.

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Organisms in Ecosystem

• Habitat
• A place where an organism lives out its life. It
  is an organisms home, their address.
• Niche
• - The organism's role in the community. How
• an organism meets its need for food,
  shelter,
• how it survives reproduces.
  Interactions
• with biotic abiotic factors.

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Material Cycles

• Material Cycles
• In a self-sustaining ecosystem, materials must be
  recycled among the organisms and the abiotic
  environment.
• The same materials can be reused.
• Examples of Cycles
• Water
• Carbon-Oxygen
• Nitrogen

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Water Cycle

• Water Cycle involves the processes of
• Photosynthesis
• Transpiration
• Evaporation and condensation
• Respiration
• Excretion

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Water Cycle
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Carbon-Oxygen Cycles

• Carbon-Oxygen Cycle
• involves the processes of
• Respiration
• Photosynthesis

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Carbon-Oxygen Cycle
oxygen
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Nitrogen Cycle

• Nitrogen Cycle
• Organisms must have nitrogen to produce proteins
  and amino acids
• Living things cannot use nitrogen gas in the air
• Life is possible due to nitrogen-fixation
• Nitrogen Fixation Nitrogen gas is converted to
  ammonia

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Nitrogen Fixers

• Legumes peas and beans contain nitrogen-fixing
  bacteria in their roots
• Clover and alfalfa are other examples of nitrogen
  fixers

Bean Plant
Alfalfa
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Nitrogen Cycle
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Biodiversity

• Evolutionary processes have resulted in a
  diversity of organisms and a diversity of roles
  in ecosystems.
• Biodiversity the differences in living things in
  an ecosystem
• Increased biodiversity increases the stability
• of an ecosystem.
• 2. Increased biodiversity increases the chance
  that at least some living things will survive in
  the face of large changes in the environment

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What are some other reasons biodiversity is
valuable?

1. Biodiversity ensures the availability of a rich
   variety of genetic material that may lead to
   future agricultural or medical discoveries with
   significant value to humans. 
2. Biodiversity adds aesthetic qualities to the
   environment

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Monoculture

• Monoculture planting one species over a huge
  area
• Why?
• Leaves an area more vulnerable to predation or
  disease

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GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY VALUE
A map showingthe distributionof some of
themost highly valuedterrestrial
biodiversityworld-wide (mammals,reptiles,
amphibians andseed plants), with red forhigh
biodiversity andblue for low biodiversity
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High Biodiversity vs. Low Biodiversity