Transcript Chapter 3 Ecology  Is the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their physical environment.

Chapter 3
Ecology
 Is the scientific study of interactions among organisms
and between organisms and their physical
environment.
What’s in a biosphere?
 All life on Earth and all parts of the Earth
 Land, water, air, atmosphere
 Humans
 Bacteria
 Trees
 Whales
 Mold spores
Ecology and Economics!
 Humans live within the biosphere
 Humans depend on ecological processes to provide
essentials, such as food and drinkable water
 Food and drinkable water can be bought and sold or
traded
Species
 Group of similar organisms that can breed and
produce fertile offspring
Population
 Group of individuals that belong to the same species
and live in the same area
Community
 An assemblage of different populations that live
together in a defined area
Ecosystem
 All the organisms that live in a place, together with
their physical environment
Biome
 Group of ecosystems that share similar climates and
typical organisms
Biosphere
 Our entire planet!
 All the organisms and physical environments
Biotic Factors
 Any living part of the environment with which an
organism might interact
 Ex.




Animals
Plants
Bacteria
Fungi
Abiotic Factors
 Any nonliving part of the environment
 Ex.







Sunlight
Heat
Precipitation
Humidity
Wind
Water currents
Soil
Artificial Environments????
 An ecologist might use an artificial environment in a
lab so that only ONE variable is changed and they can
control which variable is being tested.
Ecologists have a hard job….
 This is because many ecological events occur over long
periods of time or over such large distances they are
difficult to study directly.
Models
 Models are created through the use of mathematical
formulas based on data collected through observation
and experimentation.
 These models are then used to make predictions
Autotrophs
 During photosynthesis, autotrophs capture light
energy from the sun and use it to convert carbon
dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) into oxygen (O2) and
sugars (C6H12O6).plant
What if there’s no sunlight????
 Organisms will survive using a process called
chemosynthesis
 When chemical energy used to produce carbohydrates
 Chemical energy:

Carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and oxygen
Consumers
 Organisms that acquire energy from other organisms
Herbivore
 Obtain energy and nutrients by eating plant leaves,
fruits, seeds, or roots
Carnivore
 Obtain energy and nutrients by eating other animals
Omnivore
 Obtain energy and nutrients by eating plant leaves,
fruits, seeds, or roots and also other animals
Detritivore
 Feed on detritus particles by chewing or grinding them
into even smaller particles
Decomposer
 “Feed” by chemically breaking down organic matter
 The decay caused by decomposers is part of the
process that produces detritus---small pieces of dead
and decaying plant and animal remains.
Scavenger
 Consumes the carcasses of dead animals but does not
typically kill them itself
Food Chain
 Series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by
eating and being eaten
 Phytoplankton: floating algae are the base of every food
chain

These are producers
Food Web
 Network of all the food chains in an ecosystem
 Very complex
Energy Flow in a Food Chain
Visual Analogy
 Energy: represented by blocks
 Decomposer: breaks down the dead matter
 Primary Producer: Uses energy to build new things
True or False????????
 Primary consumers always make up the first trophic level
in a food web?
 Ecological pyramids show the relative amount of energy or
matter contained within each trophic level in a given food
chain
 On average, about 50 percent of the energy available within
one trophic level is transferred to the next trophic level.
 The more levels that exist between a producer and a given
consumer, the larger the percentage of the original energy
from producers is available to the consumer
Producers
 Algae
 Marsh grass
First-Level Consumer
 Zooplankton
 Grasshopper
 Ribbed mussel
Second-level Consumer
 Shrew
 Plankton-eating fish
Third-level Consumer
 Marsh hawk
Energy Pyramid
Types of Pyramids
 A pyramid of biomass illustrates the relative amount of
living organic matter available at each trophic level in
an ecosystem.
 A pyramid of numbers shows the relative numbers of
individual organisms at the trophic levels in an
ecosystem.
 A pyramid of ecology shows the relative amounts of
energy available at the trophic levels of a food chain or
food web.
What elements make up the body?
 95% of the body in most organisms is composed of:
 Oxygen
 Carbon
 Hydrogen
 Nitrogen
Matter
 Is recycled in the ecosystem
 This is different than energy flow which is a one-way
flow
Chemical and Physical Processes
 Chemical and physical processes include the
formation of clouds, precipitation, action of lightning,
and the flow of running water
Earth is a Closed System
 WHY???????
Get a Textbook
 Open to page 81. We will now answer pgs. 40-43
together in class using the textbook. You must stay on
what page you find each answer and I will be calling on
you for answers at random!
Vocabulary!
 Complete pg. 44 in your workbook for a quiz grade!