Transcript Unit 3 – Ecosystems


Ecology

the study of how organisms interact with
each other and with the non-living things in
their environment

Stewardship

involves taking personal responsibility for the
management and care for something, ex. the
environment
 the environment includes all living and non-living
things that exist on earth

Natural environment must be used in a
sustainable way

Sustainability refers to the ability of populations of
plants, animals, and other living organisms to
continue to interact and reproduce indefinitely
 Biodiversity (the number of different types of organisms)
must be preserved

READ the article “MAMMAL EXTINCTION
RISK RISES”


answer the attached questions
DISCUSSION:
 How
does human impact affect wildlife?
 What examples do you see in your community or in
your experience of human impact on living things?
 How does this article illustrate the importance of
stewardship?


A system, made up of interacting biotic
and abiotic components or parts, that
interact as a whole to accomplish a task
For Example
 a beehive is a system that depends on all the
individual bees’ interactions (worker bee builds
the hive, drone bee mates with the queen,
queen bee produces eggs)
Brainpop video

Components of ecosystems:

Biotic factors
 Organisms such as animals, plants, fungi, bacteria and
algae (all require oxygen to live)

Abiotic factors
 Everything else on earth that doesn’t require oxygen to
live
ex. Rocks, air, water

Interactions of biotic and abiotic elements
help self-regulate

Ecosystems have communities which consist of
different species that live and interact with an
area
 A species is a group of similar organisms in an
ecosystem

All species have a habitat and a niche
the habitat is the physical space (place)
where an organism lives, ex. forest, pond
 the niche involves an organism’s typical
daily life/routine

 ex. Grey squirrels collect nuts and other seeds,
they are hunted by foxes and owls, try to be active
throughout the day, and live and nest in trees

Ecosystems can be as small as a drop of
water or as large as an ocean

BUT, size doesn’t matter, just sustainability
 Also ecosystems can exist within other ones and
interact with each other

Biomes

Are large geographical regions that contain
similar ecosystems

Types of Biomes:


1. Terrestrial
 Are defined by the type of plant growth
 ex. Deciduous forest biome – have trees that
lose their leaves in winter
2. Aquatic
 Can be water with high salt concentration,
referred to as marine
 Or can be water with low salt concentration,
referred to as fresh water

These biomes combine to form a
biosphere

A biosphere includes water, land, and air; i.e.
where life exists
 very thin layer around the earth

Components of the Biosphere:

1.
Atmosphere
 Layer of gases
 Water vapour and CO2 absorb sunlight and warm the
planet
 Lower atmosphere contains O2 while the upper
atmosphere contains ozone – O3
 Ozone helps protect us from the sun’s ultraviolet
radiation

2.
Lithosphere
 earth’s solid outer layer, ex. soil
 extends 100 km from the surface

3.
Hydrosphere
 all the water on the earth
 97 % salt water, 3 % fresh water





Biosphere: locations
around earth (3 layers)
Ecosystem: interaction of
biotic and abiotic factors
Community: different
populations living and
interacting together in the
same area
Population: individuals of
the same species that live in
the same area
Individual/Species: single
organism
1. What is ecology?
2. Name 2 large ecosystems and 2 small ecosystems.
3. Which of the following are considered to be an ecosystem? Explain your
reasoning.
 Backyard pond
 All cats in your neighbourhood
 Tree
 Schoolyard
4. Classify the following as either biotic or abiotic features: temperature,
bacteria, wind, sunlight, dead leaves, mosquitoes, sand, milk, hair, ice,
plastic, empty snail shell.
5. “Human activities change only the biotic features of an ecosystem” Is
this statement true or false? Explain why or why not.
6. Would you consider a large city to be a population or a community?
Explain your choice.
7.What is the difference between a biotic and an abiotic component of an
ecosystem?
8. What are the three components that support the biosphere?
9. You interact with abiotic and biotic parts of your environment every
day.
a) List 5 abiotic factors in your environment