Transcript Ch 19 : Introduction to Ecology

Ch 4 : Introduction to Ecology
Ecology is the study of INTERACTIONS
between organisms and the living
(biotic) and nonliving (abiotic)
components of their environments.
 Observations, data collection,
explanation of trends and patterns.
 Many/all areas of science
– Taxonomy, biochemistry, cell type, etc.
Hunter
– Gatherer
societies 10,000 –
12,000 y.a.
Agricultural
societies
impact on Earth
Today’s
exploding
population
> 6 billion
Ecology Related Issues
Think “ecosystem services” …. What service
does each area do ? What job does it have ?
Is it able to efficiently do that job? What is
the overall impact?
1. Use of water, energy, food, space and other
resources.
2. Disposal of waste is also a big issue
3. Mass extinctions – species are currently
disappearing faster than dinosaurs
4. Thinning Ozone layer – related to CFC’s and
pollution. Increases UV radiation
5. Green house gasses are increasing –
creating global warming.
Ecosystem Services

Resources that are produced by natural
and artificial ecosystems…. Food we eat,
oxygen we breathe, water we drink…….
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Purification of water and air
Preservation of soil and renewal of soil fertility
Prevention of drought and flood
Regulation of climate
Maintenance of biodiversity (food, cover,
pollination)
– Movement and cycling of nutrients (H2O, C, N,
etc)
– Detoxification and decomposition of wastes
– Aesthetic beauty !
Biosphere : layer of Earth that
supports life roughly 13 miles thick (
7 miles into atmosphere and 7 miles
down into the oceans !!!)
 Ecosystems: All of the living
organisms and the nonliving
environment in a particular place

– Biotic (all the living and once-living
things)
– Abiotic (physical features)
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Biomes : large regions of the globe
defined by similar climate and
vegetation
 Communities:
All the living
organisms that interact in a
given area
 Population: All the members of a
given species in a defined area
 Species: Organisms that are
genetically similar enough to
breed in nature and produce
viable offspring.
– Measure of biodiversity = variety of
living organisms in a given area
– D, K, P, C, O, F, G, Species (Scientific name)
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Biotic factors:
– living and once-living
components in the
environment
- plants, animals, bacteria
fungi and protista

Abiotic factors :
– nonliving components
in the environment; things
Like wind, temperature
precipitation, sunlight
Succession
Change in an area’s physical features over
time – new species are now better suited
or less suited. Species themselves also
change physical features. (needles from
pine trees make the soil under the tree
more acidic – different plants like acidic
soil)
 Primary succession – start from scratch
 Secondary succession – change leads to
more change leads to more change
 Equilibrium
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Pioneer species  changes  climax community
Energy Flow
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Trophic levels….food chains and food webs
– 10 % rule (Energy pyramid)
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What else is the material and energy used for?
GO TO SOCRATIVE APP and answer ….. 701439
– Producers
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Plants
Protista like algae
– Consumers
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Herbivores
Omnivores
Carnivores
Scavengers
Decomposers
Detritivores : eat detritus or ‘waste’ – crayfish chewing on
dead fish is different than bacteria or fungi chemically
digesting dead fish.
Practice Web: Meadow
 Construct
the following food chains,
they will overlap to create a Meadow
Food Web
 Identify (color code) all the
herbivores, carnivores, omnivores
and detritivores in the food web
when you are finished
1. Red
fox feed on raccoons, crayfishes,
grasshoppers, red clover, meadow voles and gray
squirrels
2. Red clover is eaten by grasshoppers,
muskrats, red foxes and meadow voles
3. Meadow voles, gray squirrels and raccoons all
eat parts of white oak trees
4. Crayfishes feed on algae and detritus and they
are eaten by muskrats and red foxes
5. Raccoons feed on muskrats, meadow voles,
gray squirrels and white oak trees.
Socrative quiz continued (701439) ….
Give the complete classification
(D, K, P, C, O, F, G, sp and scientific name)
of your assigned organism