Transcript Chapter 3: The Biosphere - Avon Community School Corporation

Chapter 2: Principles of Ecology
BIOLOGY I
Section 1: Organisms and Their Relationships
 Ecology – the scientific study of interactions
between living organisms and their
environment
 Environment includes:

Physical surroundings, climate, interactions with other living
organisms
 Ecology also includes the study of the biosphere
 Biosphere – the portions of the planet in
which life exists

For example: Land, water, air, or space
Biotic and Abiotic Factors
 Organisms living within ecosystems are influenced
by a wide range of environmental factors.
 There are two types of factors:


Biotic
Abiotic
 Together, these factors determine:
 The survival and growth of an organism/species.
 The success of an ecosystem
What are They?
 Biotic factors
 Factors that are LIVING! (Bio = life!)
 For example: plants, animals, bacteria, fungi
 Abiotic factors
 Those factors that are NONLIVING! (A = not!)
 Often related to climate and weather
 For example: temperature, sunlight, wind, soil, precipitation,
humidity, pressure
Levels of Organization
 Remember the cellular levels of organization??
 Cell  Tissue  Organ  Organ System  Individual
 There are 6 levels of ecological organization:
 1. Individual
 2. Population
 3. Community
 4. Ecosystem
 5. Biome
 6. Biosphere
How Do I Remember Those?
 Remember “My Very Educated Mother Just Served
Us Nine Pizzas?”

Used by many to remember the planets
 Use this to remember the 6 levels of ecological
organization:


In Paris cows eat buttered bread.
I = individual, p = population, c = community, e = ecosystem,
b = biome, b = biosphere
RA Activity
 Each group will be assigned one of the levels of organization.
 Group 1 – Individual/Organism
 Group 2 – Population
 Group 3 – Community
 Group 4 – Ecosystem
 Group 5 – Biome
 Group 6 – Biosphere
 Your group will become the expert on your assigned level and
then make a poster explaining YOUR LEVEL ONLY!
 We will do a gallery walk to learn about the levels; take notes
as you tour the posters (a tree map would be a great way to
organize your notes for this!)
 Homework – create your own diagram showing each of the
ecological levels of organization
More About the Levels
 Level One: Individual – an organism
 Characteristics of an individual or living thing:
 Have cells
 Sense and respond to change
 Reproduce
 Have DNA
 Use energy
 Grow and develop
 Examples: human, giraffe, daisy, tree
Levels, Continued
 Level Two: Population – a group of individuals
of the same species living in the same
geographic area

For example: humans in Avon, snapping turtles in a pond, deer
in a certain forest
Levels, Continued
 Level Three: Community – different
populations that live together in the same
geographic area

For example: All animals that live in Avon (mice, rabbits, dogs,
cats, humans)
 Level Four: Ecosystem – a collection of
communities in an area plus the abiotic
factors


Includes living and nonliving components
For example: Pond (H2O, fish, turtles, bacteria, plants)
Levels, Continued
 Level Five: Biome – a group of ecosystems that
have the same climate and communities
present

For example: Indiana, Midwest Region, Desert
 Level Six: Biosphere – the portion of the Earth
in which all life exists
 Ecosystems
Habitats
 A habitat is an area where an organism lives!
 Include biotic and abiotic factors
 For example: Turtle’s habitat
 Abiotic factors: water, temperature, sun, mud/dirt
 Biotic factors: fish, other turtles, bacteria, plants
Niches (rhymes with witches)
 A niche is the role an organism plays in an
ecosystem
 Includes a full range of biotic/abiotic factors
 Such as:





Living environment – Where in an ecosystem does that
specific species live?
Eating – What does it eat? How does it obtain food?
Reproduction – How many mates are available? When is
mating season?
Climate – Are there changes in temperature? Humidity?
Competition – With what do I have to compete for mates,
food, and space?
Community Interactions
 Organisms in a community must interact with each
other to obtain food, space, mates, etc.
 There are three types of community interactions:



Competition
Predation
Symbiosis
Competition
 Competition is when organisms of the same
or different species attempt to use an
ecological resource at the same time.


A resource is any necessity of life.
For example: water, light, food, space
 Examples of competition include:
 Two crocodiles competing for a place to lay eggs
 Three female songbirds competing for a male mate
 Geese and ducks competing for a nest around a retention pond
Predation
 Predation is an interaction in which one
organism captures and feeds upon another
 There are TWO organisms present

Predator – the organism that is KILLING and EATING


For example: tiger, anaconda, lion
Prey – the organism being eaten

For example: rabbit, mouse, antelope
PREDATOR: SLY FOX
PREY: POOR LITTLE
RABBIT
RA Activity
 On pages 39 and 40 in your Zebra text, read all 3
types of symbiotic relationships .

Quickly summarize ALL 3 relationships on your CH 2
Notes Packet
 Listen for EXAMPLES OF EACH in the “Magic
School Bus” video as you do your worksheet.

Magic School Bus Symbiosis
 Using the info from the video, your text, and your
table partner, do a Think Aloud and summarize
the three types of symbiosis at the bottom of your
video worksheet.
Symbiosis
 Symbiosis is any relationship in which two
species live closely together
 There are THREE types of symbiosis:

Mutualism – both organisms benefit


Commensalism – one organism benefits, the other is
neither harmed nor helped


For example: Flowers and insects
For example: Birds on rhino/antelope’s backs; sharks and ramora
fish; whales and barnacles
Parasitism – one organism hurts, the other benefits

For example: Tick and humans; fleas and dogs
Mutualism
Parasitism
Commensalism
Commensalism
Section 2: Flow of Energy in an Ecosystem
 All living things need energy to power every little
thing they do; the flow of energy through an
ecosystem is VERY important!
 Things to think about:



Where does the energy for life processes come from?
How does energy flow through living systems?
How efficient is the transfer of energy among organisms in an
ecosystem?
Producers
 Producers are organisms that produce their
own food

They often use sunlight /special pigments to produce food
 Also known as autotrophs
 Auto = self; troph = feeder
 For example: plants and algae
 Producers rely on two types of energy to make food:
 1) Sunlight
2) Other chemicals (chemotrophs)
Sunlight & Chemicals
 Sunlight
 Photosynthesis – when plants use sunlight, water, and carbon
dioxide to make food
 For example: Plants and algae
 Other chemicals
 Chemosynthesis – when bacteria use other chemicals to
produce food because they don’t have a source of sunlight
 Generally use methane or hydrogen gas
 For example: bacteria at the bottom of the ocean
Consumers
 Consumers are organisms that can’t produce
their own food
 Also known as heterotrophs
 For example: Any animal (human, mouse, elephant)
 Consumers rely on energy from the sun
INDIRECTLY


They will often eat autotrophs to obtain food/energy
They often also eat other heterotrophs to obtain food/energy
Consumers, Continued
 There are 5 types of consumers.
 1. Herbivores – animals that only eat plant
material

For example: rabbits, cows, most insects
 2. Carnivores – animals that only eat
meat/animals

For example: hawks, tigers, snakes
Consumers, Continued
 3. Omnivores – animals that eat both plants
and animals

For example: Humans, black bears, crows
 4. Insectivores – these eat only insects
 For example: Most reptiles and amphibians (turtles, frogs,
salamanders, etc.)
Consumers, Continued
 5. Decomposers/detritivores – eat dead
and/or rotting material

For example: Bacteria, fungi, earthworms, snails, and mites
Trophic Levels
 Each step in a food chain or food web is
called a trophic level.
 1st Level: ALWAYS producers
 2nd, 3rd, and 4th levels: ALWAYS consumers

2nd level is always an herbivore – they eat plants/producers
from level 1
 First consumer = primary consumer
 Second consumer = secondary consumer
 Third consumer = tertiary consumer
 Fourth consumer = quaternary consumer
Trophic Level Examples
 Food Chain:
 Flower  Caterpillar 
Frog  Snake  Owl
 Flower = producer
 Caterpillar = primary
consumer
 Frog = secondary
consumer
 Snake = tertiary
consumer
 Owl = quaternary
consumer
Food Chains
 A food chain is a series of steps in which
organisms transfer energy by eating (and
being eaten).
 Food chains show a one-way flow of energy.
 They use arrows to indicate the direction of energy
flow.
 For example: grass  rabbit  snake  owl
Food Chain
Food Web
 A food web is a network of
complex food chain interactions.
 Links all food chains in an ecosystem
 More complex portrayal of energy flow
 Shows all possible food chains
 Fig. 14, pg. 43
Food Web
More Examples
Ecological Pyramids
 An ecological pyramid is a diagram that
shows the approximate amounts of
energy/matter contained within each trophic
level in a food chain or web.
 The amount of energy/matter will ALWAYS decrease
as you go UP the pyramid.
 There are three types of ecological pyramids:



1. Energy
2. Biomass
3. Numbers
Energy Pyramids
 Energy pyramids show how much energy is
transferred to each trophic level.
 For example: grass  rabbit  owl
 How much energy does the rabbit gets when it eats
the grass? How about when the owl eats the rabbit?

Only 10% of the energy moves on to the next level!
The rest of the energy is eliminated as heat.

For example: Grass (100%)  Rabbit (10%)  Owl (1%)

Biomass Pyramid
 A biomass pyramid shows how much
biomass there is at each level.

Biomass is the amount of living tissue within a given
trophic level.
 Biomass is usually expressed in grams (g) or
kilograms (kg) per meter2
 The greatest amount of biomass is at the bottom of
the pyramid.
Numbers Pyramid
 A numbers pyramid shows how many
individuals are at each trophic level.
 For example: blades of grass  # of rabbits  # of
owls (per acre)
 The greatest number of individuals is at the bottom
of the pyramid!
Section 3: Cycling of Matter
 Recycling in the Biosphere
 Energy flows ONE-WAY!
 From: the Sun  producer  primary consumer  secondary
consumer  tertiary consumer
 Matter has a cyclical (circular) flow
 What kind of matter can flow in a cycle?
 Elements, chemical compounds
 For example: water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus
 The biogeochemical cycle is a cycle which
passes matter through an ecosystem.

For example: Water cycle, nitrogen cycle
Recycling in the Biosphere
 A nutrient that is scarce or cycles very slowly
is called a limiting nutrient.
 The limiting nutrients limit an ecosystem’s
productivity/success.

For example: Space, water, nutrients, sunlight
 Farmers often add nutrients to the soil (through the
use of fertilizers) to make sure nutrients do not limit
production of crops.
Water Cycle
 All living things require water to survive
 Water moves through the biosphere using the water
cycle
 Parts of the Water Cycle






Liquid  Gas (evaporation, etc.)
Gas  Liquid (condensation)
Solid  Liquid (melting)
Liquid  Solid (freezing)
Movement of water on land (runoff, infiltration, percolation)
***Fig. 17 p. 46
Water Cycle
 LIQUID  GAS
 Occurs when water enters the atmosphere and
changes from liquid form to gaseous form (water
vapor)

3 types
1. Evaporation – water leaving any water body (puddle,
pond, lake, etc.)
 2. Transpiration – water leaving plants (from the leaves)
 3. Perspiration – water leaving animals (through the
skin/pores)

Water Cycle
GAS  LIQUID
 This occurs when water leaves the atmosphere to fall
to the ground or other bodies of water
 Called condensation


Gas molecules become so compacted (because there are SO
many of them in the clouds) that they combine to become
liquid
Then the liquid falls as precipitation

For example: Rain, sleet, snow, or hail
Water Cycle
OTHER WATER MOVEMENTS
 3 types
 1. Runoff
Water that drains or flows, water not absorbed by soil.
 Why? Because the soil/ground is saturated with water.


2. Infiltration


When water is absorbed into the topsoil of the ground
3. Percolation
A small amount of water will reach the depths of the ground
 This water becomes ground water (which can be used in wells,
etc.)
 Water Cycle Video Clip

Nitrogen Cycle
 All living organisms require nitrogen to make amino
acids (amino acids are used to make proteins)
 N2 (nitrogen gas) makes of 78% of atmospheric gases

Oxygen makes up only about 20%
 Nitrogen- fixing bacteria are essential to the nitrogen
cycle

Helps to transform nitrogen into a useable form
Found in plant roots and in the soil

Nitrogen Cycle Video Clip

Carbon Cycle
 Carbon is the key ingredient for all living tissues
 There are 4 processes that move carbon:

1. Biological processes


2. Geological processes


For example: erosion, volcanic activity
3. Mixed processes


For example: photosynthesis, cellular respiration, decomposition
For example: burial and decomposition of organisms
4. Human activities
For example: mining, deforestation, burning fossil fuels
 Carbon Cycle Video Clip
 ***Fig. 18, page 47
 Carbon Cycle BrainPop

Phosphorus Cycle
 Read with your partner and do a Think Aloud about
the Phosphorus Cycle on page 49 in the Zebra book
 Take notes about all important parts! (Figure 21)
 What do you notice about this cycle compared to the
other three we’ve discussed?