INTRODUCTION

ECOLOGY

KEYWORDS

Ecology ecosystempioneer speciesBiosphere biotic factor climax communitySpecies abiotic factor biomePopulation niche autotrophCommunity ecological succession

heterotroph

ECOLOGY

Study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment German biologist

Ernst Haeckel coined the term

RECALL HBO

What are levels under the HBO?How does energy flow from one level to

another?

BIOMES

A. Land Biomes 1. Tundra 2. Taiga 3. Temperate deciduous forest 4. Grassland 5. Tropical rainforest 6. Desert

B. Aquatic Biomes 1. Freshwater 2. Marine 3. Estuary

BIOMES

Have the same climate and similar dominant community Interplay between the abiotic and biotic factors

Ecological niche

The role or job of an organism in its environment As simple as producer or consumer Keystone species or sentinel species

Ecological succession

- the sequence of communities that develops in an area from the initial stages of colonization until a stable climax community is achieved

Primary succession

Colonization of an area devoid of soil by pioneer species/plant life (algae/lichen) that can lead to a climax community Climax community-

steady-state reached by organisms through an ecological succession

Secondary succession

Is due to an event that resulted in the revegetation of an area that already has an established community Fire Volcanic eruption

Ecological Succession

Is present in terrestrial and aquatic environment

Flow of energy

Recall: trophic levels- producers, consumersFeeding relationships: food chains, food websEcological pyramids

Energy Biomass numbers

Energy pyramid

No limit in the trophic level in a food chainBUT, energy decreases once it is passed from

one level to another due to life processes10% is transferred from level to another

Biomass pyramid

Biomass- the amount of living tissue within a given trophic level

Biomass pyramid- amount of potential food available for each trophic level in an ecosystem

Can be an inverted pyramid such as in the case of the rain forest

Pyramid of numbers

Amount or number of organisms at each trophic level not always represent a pyramid such as in a

rainforest

Cycles of Matter

Energy has a one-way flow, matter is recycled Recycling happens through the biogeochemical cycles

Water Carbon Nitrogen Phosphorous

Disruptions in the compartments

Nutrient limitation

Primary productivity- rate at which organic matter is created by producers

Limiting nutrient- a nutrient that limits the productivity of an ecosystem NPK

An aquatic environment is considered a nutrient poor ecosystem compared to land

H2O Cycle

Carbon and Oxygen Cycle

Nitrogen Cycle

Phosphorous Cycle

Algal Bloom and Eutrophication

Niche

Full range of physical and biological conditions an organism lives and the way the organism uses these conditions Biotic- place in the food chain Abiotic- temperature, moisture range for survival

Community interactions

Competition Competitive exclusion principle

PredationSymbiosis- any relationship in which two

species live closely together Mutualism Commensalism Parasitism – sometimes considered as predation

Competitive exclusion principle