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Ecology Revisited Slide 2 Ecology Vocabulary Producers/Autotrophs-make their own food Slide 3 Ecology Vocabulary Primary Consumer/First Level Consumer: Herbivore-plant eater, heterotroph Slide 4 Ecology Vocabulary Secondary/Tertiary Consumer (2 nd or 3 rd Level Consumer): Carnivore-meat eater Slide 5 Ecology Vocabulary Secondary of Tertiary Consumer: Omnivore-both plants and animals Slide 6 Ecology Vocabulary Scavenger-doesnt kill own food, eats carrion (dead bodies/road kill) Slide 7 Ecology Vocabulary Detritivores-feed on detritus (parts of dead organisms, wastes) Slide 8 Ecology Vocabulary Decomposer-recycles nutrients by breaking down wastes Slide 9 Ecology-Definition Study of how organisms interact with one another (biotic) and nonliving environment (abiotic-water, nutrients, air, etc) Slide 10 Level of Ecological Organization 1. Organisms-any form of life Cells are the basic unit of life Prokaryotic-no nuclear bound DNA (ex. Bacteria) Eukaryotic-distinct nucleus and membrane-bound organelles Slide 11 Species Species can mate and produce fertile offspring 3.6-100 million estimated species on earth (mostly insects) 1.8 million species identified Each year approx. 10,000 new species identified per year Slide 12 Not a Species Liger Slide 13 Level of Ecological Organization 2. Population-consists of a group of interacting individuals of the same species Slide 14 Level of Ecological Organization 3. Community-made up of populations of different species occupying a particular place Slide 15 Level of Ecological Organization 4. Ecosystem-community of different species interacting with one another AND the abiotic environment Slide 16 Energy Flow Through An Ecosystem Food chain: how energy and nutrients move from one organism to another Leaf caterpillar robin hawk ****arrows show the direction of energy flow! Slide 17 Trophic (Feeding) Levels a) first level -- producers b) second level-primary consumers c) third levelsecondary consumers d)fourth level tertiary consumers Slide 18 Food Web Interconnected food chains/better representation of the ecosystem Slide 19 Biomass Dry weight of all organic matter contained in its organisms (chemical energy stored in biomass is transferred in food chains/food webs Slide 20 Ecological Efficiency At each level approximately only 10% of energy is transferred What law of thermodynamics?? 90% is lost as heat Slide 21 Ecological Efficiency Energy pyramid: pictorial of amount of energy at each level Slide 22 Ecological Efficiency Explains why there are few top predators Explains why the earth would support more people: GrainHuman Versus Grainsteerhuman Slide 23 Pyramid of Numbers Temperate Forest Summer-a few large producers support many small primary consumers Slide 24 Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) Rate at which producers use photosynthesis to make more plant material (biomass) Slide 25 Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) Highest in: tropical rainforest littoral zone Slide 26 Net Primary Productivity (NPP) Amount of biomass left over after producers grow, respirate, reproduce, etc. Biomass that is available for consumers NPP is a limiting factor (any abiotic factor that limits the growth of a species-can be too much or too little of something) Slide 27 Biodiversity (renewable resource) Genetic diversity-variety of genetic make- up among individuals of a species Slide 28 Biodiversity (renewable resource) Species diversity-variety of species found in different habitats on the planet Slide 29 Biodiversity (renewable resource) Ecological diversity-variety of biological communities such as coral reefs, forests, wetlands, deserts, etc Slide 30 Biodiversity (renewable resource) Functional diversity-biological and chemical processes or functions such as energy flow and matter cycling needed for survival. Slide 31 Abiotic Environment Physical and chemical factors that influence organisms on land (terrestrial) ecosystems and aquatic ecosystems Slide 32 Abiotic Environment Terrestrial ecosystems (key factors) Sunlight Temperature Precipitation Wind Latitude (distance from equator) Altitude (distance above sea level) Fire frequency soil Slide 33 Abiotic Environment Aquatic ecosystems (key factors) **salinity** Light penetration Water currents Dissolved nutrients Suspended solids Slide 34 Range of Tolerance populations can only exist in certain range of physical/chemical properties Slide 35 Law of Tolerance The existence, abundance, and distributions, of a species in an ecosystem are determined by whether the levels of one or more physical or chemical factors fall within the range of tolerance for that species Slide 36 Law of Tolerance Most individuals are least tolerant during juvenile or reproductive stages Slide 37 Law of Tolerance Highly tolerant species can live in a wide variety of habitats with a wide variety of physical properties Slide 38 Final Vocab Habitat-a place where an organism lives Niche-the role an organism plays in its environment Habitat versus niche is like where an organism lives versus what it does for a living