Transcript Interactions between organisms and the abiotic environment

THE ECOSYSTEM
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Ecosystems 1
Explain the concept of an
ecosystem and how
ecosystems are
interlinked to form one
biosphere
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The Ecosystem Model
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Australian Desert
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Biotic
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PLANTS (PRODUCERS) - Spinifex triodea
 ANIMALS (CONSUMERS) - termites
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Biotic
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ANIMALS
Spinifex Hopping
Mouse (Notomys
alexis) The
Spinifex Hopping
Mouse is a true
rodent as its
common name
suggests. It is
most commonly
found in red
sandy habitats,
usually with a
ground cover of
spinifex.
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Biotic
The Spinifex Pigeon is named after the spinifex
that grows low along the ground. The pigeons
peck
and eat it as partC Morritt
of their daily diet.
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Varanus giganteus
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Abiotic components
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Large diurnal
temperature range
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FIRE
Abiotic components
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Slope of the
ground
Aspect
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Wind
direction
Sun/shade
Abiotic components
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Soil
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Minerals
pH
Rainfall
Interactions
between
organisms and the
abiotic
environment
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Sheep
hooves and
soil
compaction
and erosion
Interactions
between
organisms and
the abiotic
environment
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Plant roots
remove soil
nutrients
Soil provides
anchorage for
roots
Interactions between organisms
and the abiotic environment
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Roots
bind
sand
Interactions between
organisms and the abiotic
environment
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Environmental Factors - Cloud
Early morning mist/cloud
on mountain augments
rainfall during relatively dry
winters: altitude ca. 1100
metres.
Tinaroo Range,
Queensland
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Interactions between
organisms and the abiotic
environment
Environmental
Factors -- Fire
Burnt eucalypt
woodland on
sandy soils
Near Perth,
Western Australia
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Interactions between
organisms and the abiotic
environment
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Environmental
Factors -- Windexposure
Salt-air "scald" on
coastal windward side
of crown of Brush
Box, recently exposed
by real estate
development. Closeup of crown
Gold Coast,
Queensland
1960s
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Interactions between
organisms and the abiotic
environment
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Environmental
Factors -- Windexposure
Streamlining on
coastal cliff with
favourable soil
and no human
impacts
Interactions between organisms
and the abiotic environment
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A wombat
den, with
wombat
droppings!
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Interactions between
organisms and the abiotic
environment
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Salinisation
affects
vegetation.
Vegetation
affects salinity
of soil
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Interactions between members
of the same species
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Tasmanian
Devils
compete
for food
Interactions between members
of the same species
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Tasmanian
Devils
compete
for Mates
Interactions between members
of different species
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Honey dew
Possum
feeding on
Banksia
nectar
Pollination
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Interactions between members
of different species
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Honeyeater
on Kangaroo
Paw
Interactions between members
of different species
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Animals -- Seed Dispersal
Germinating rainforest tree seedlings in Cassowary dung
Tully to Mission Beach Road,
Queensland
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Interactions between members
of different species
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Different species of forest bird feed in
different areas of the canopy
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Major Ecosystem Components
Abiotic Components
Water, air,
temperature, soil,
light levels,
precipitation, salinity
Sets tolerance limits
for populations and
communities
Some are limiting
factors that structure
the abundance of
populations
Biotic Components
Producers, consumers,
decomposers
Plants, animals,
bacteria/fungi
Biotic interactions with
biotic components
include predation,
competition, symbiosis,
parasitism,
commensalism etc.
ORGANISM
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One
Kangaroo
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SPECIES
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A group of potentially
interbreeding organisms that can
mate and produce viable, fertile
offspring.
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Macropus rufus
Red kangaroo
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Macropus fuliginosus
Eastern Grey kangaroo
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Macropus giganteus
Western Grey Kangaroo
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POPULATION
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A group of
the same
species
living and
interacting
in the
same
place at
the same
time.
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Community
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Different
populations
living in
association
in the one
place at the
same time.
HABITAT
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The place where
an organism
lives
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NICHE
Different species of forest bird feed in different
areas of the canopy.
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The role of an organism in the ecosystem
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NICHE
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AUTOTROPH
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HETEROTROPH
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DECOMPSERS
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DECOMPOSERS
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Fungus
mycelium
DECOMPSERS
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Bacteria
CONCEPT OF ECOSYSTEM
Biotic
Community
Biotic
Community
Abiotic
Environment
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Biotic
Community
Primary Productivity
The conversion of light
energy to chemical
energy is called “gross
primary production.”
Plants use the energy
captured in
photosynthesis for
maintenance and
growth.
The energy that is
accumulated in plant
biomass is called “net
primary production.”
Primary Productivity
NettPP=GrossPP-respiration rate
GrossPP= RATE at which producers convert
solar energy into chemical energy as biomass
Rate at which producers use photosynthesis to fix
inorganic carbon into the organic carbon of their
tissues
These producers must use some of the total
biomass they produce for their own respiration
NettPP= Rate at which energy for use by
consumers is stored in new biomass
(available to consumers)
Units Kcal/m2/yr or g/m2/yr
How do you measure it?
Most productive vs. least productive
What are the most productive Ecosystems?
Estuaries
Swamps and marshes
Tropical rain forest
Temperate forest
Northern coniferous forest (taiga)
Savanna
Agricultural land
Woodland and shrubland
Temperate grassland
Lakes and streams
Continental shelf
Open ocean
Tundra (arctic and alpine)
Desert scrub
Extreme desert
800
1,600
2,400
3,200
4,000
4,800
5,600
6,400
7,200
Average net primary productivity (kcal/m2/yr)
8,000
8,800
9,600
BIOSPHERE
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ATMOSPHERE
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HYDROSHERE
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Pacific
Ocean
LITHOSPHERE
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ROCKS AND
SOIL
LITHOSPHERE
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ROCKS
AND
SOIL
ECOSPHERE
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BIOSPHERE
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Macropus fuliginosus
Eastern Grey Kangaroo
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