PCC Dual Enrollment

Ecology Unit 1 Review

Ferguson
Fall 2014
Fig. 3-2, p. 51
Communities
Subatomic Particles
Atoms
Molecules
Protoplasm
Cells
Tissues
Organs
Organ systems
Organisms
Populations
Populations
Communities
Ecosystems
Biosphere
Earth
Planets
Solar systems
Galaxies
Universe
Organisms
Realm of ecology
Ecosystems
Biosphere
Fig. 3-3, p. 52
Insects
751,000
Other animals
281,000
Fungi
69,000
Prokaryotes
4,800
Plants
248,400
Protists
57,700
Known species
1,412,000
Populations
A population is a
group of interacting
individuals of the
same species
occupying a specific
area.
The space an
individual or
population normally
occupies is its habitat.
Figure 3-4
THE EARTHS LIFE SUPPORT
SYSTEMS
The biosphere
consists of several
physical layers that
contain:
Air
Water
Soil
Minerals
Life
Figure 3-6
Biosphere
Atmosphere
Membrane of air around the planet.
Stratosphere
Lower portion contains ozone to filter out most of
the suns harmful UV radiation.
Hydrosphere
All the earths water: liquid, ice, water vapor
Lithosphere
The earths crust and upper mantle.
What Sustains Life on Earth?
Solar energy,
the cycling of
matter, and
gravity sustain
the earths life.
Figure 3-7
Fig. 3-8, p. 55
Absorbed
by ozone
Visible
Light
Absorbed
by the
earth
Greenhouse
effect
UV radiation
Solar
radiation
Energy in = Energy out
Reflected by
atmosphere (34% )
Radiated by
atmosphere
as heat (66%)
Heat radiated
by the earth
Heat
Troposphere
Lower Stratosphere
(ozone layer)
ECOSYSTEM COMPONENTS
Life exists on land systems called biomes
and in freshwater and ocean aquatic life
zones.
Figure 3-9
Fig. 3-9, p. 56
100125 cm (4050 in.)
Coastal
mountain
ranges
Sierra
Nevada
Mountains
Great
American
Desert
Coastal chaparral
and scrub
Coniferous
forest
Desert
Coniferous
forest
Prairie
grassland
Deciduous
forest
1,500 m (5,000 ft.)
3,000 m (10,000 ft.)
4,600 m (15,000 ft.)
Average annual precipitation
Mississippi
River Valley
Appalachian
Mountains
Great
Plains
Rocky
Mountains
below 25 cm (010 in.)
2550 cm (1020 in.)
5075 cm (2030 in.)
75100 cm (3040 in.)
Nonliving and Living Components of
Ecosystems
Ecosystems consist of nonliving (abiotic) and
living (biotic) components.
Figure 3-10
Fig. 3-10, p. 57
Sun
Oxygen
(O
2
)
Carbon dioxide (CO
2
)
Secondary consumer
(fox)
Soil decomposers
Primary
consumer
(rabbit)
Precipitation
Falling leaves
and twigs
Producer
Producers
Water
Factors That Limit Population Growth
Availability of matter and energy resources
can limit the number of organisms in a
population.
Figure 3-11
Factors That Limit Population Growth
The physical
conditions of the
environment can
limit the
distribution of a
species.
Figure 3-12
Producers: Basic Source of All Food
Most producers capture sunlight to produce
carbohydrates by photosynthesis:

Producers: Basic Source of All Food
Chemosynthesis:
Some organisms such as deep ocean bacteria
draw energy from hydrothermal vents and
produce carbohydrates from hydrogen sulfide
(H
2
S) gas .
Consumers: Eating and Recycling to
Survive
Consumers (heterotrophs) get their food by
eating or breaking down all or parts of other
organisms or their remains.
Herbivores
Primary consumers that eat producers
Carnivores
Primary consumers eat primary consumers
Third and higher level consumers: carnivores that eat
carnivores.
Omnivores
Feed on both plant and animals.
Decomposers and Detrivores
Decomposers: Recycle nutrients in ecosystems.
Detrivores: Insects or other scavengers that feed
on wastes or dead bodies.
Figure 3-13
Fig. 3-13, p. 61
Scavengers
Powder broken down by decomposers
into plant nutrients in soil
Bark beetle
engraving
Decomposers
Long-
horned
beetle
holes
Carpenter
ant
galleries
Termite
and
carpenter
ant work
Dry rot
fungus
Wood
reduced
to
powder
Mushroom
Time
progression
Aerobic and Anaerobic Respiration:
Getting Energy for Survival
Organisms break down carbohydrates and
other organic compounds in their cells to
obtain the energy they need.
This is usually done through aerobic
respiration.
The opposite of photosynthesis
Two Secrets of Survival: Energy Flow
and Matter Recycle
An ecosystem
survives by a
combination of
energy flow and
matter recycling.
Figure 3-14
Fig. 3-14, p. 61
Abiotic chemicals
(carbon dioxide,
oxygen, nitrogen,
minerals)
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Solar
energy
Consumers
(herbivores,
carnivores)
Producers
(plants)
Decomposers
(bacteria, fungi)
BIODIVERSITY
Figure 3-15
Biodiversity Loss and Species
Extinction: Remember HIPPO
H for habitat destruction and degradation
I for invasive species
P for pollution
P for human population growth
O for overexploitation
Why Should We Care About
Biodiversity?
Biodiversity provides us with:
Natural Resources (food water, wood, energy,
and medicines)
Natural Services (air and water purification, soil
fertility, waste disposal, pest control)
Aesthetic pleasure
ENERGY FLOW IN ECOSYSTEMS
Food chains and webs show how eaters, the
eaten, and the decomposed are connected to
one another in an ecosystem.
Figure 3-17
Fig. 3-17, p. 64
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat Heat
Heat
Detritivores
(decomposers and detritus feeders)
First Trophic
Level
Second Trophic
Level
Third Trophic
Level
Fourth Trophic
Level
Solar
energy
Producers
(plants)
Primary
consumers
(herbivores)
Secondary
consumers
(carnivores)
Tertiary
consumers
(top carnivores)
Food Webs
Trophic levels are
interconnected
within a more
complicated food
web.
Figure 3-18
Fig. 3-18, p. 65
Humans

Blue whale Sperm whale
Crabeater
seal
Elephant
seal
Killer whale
Leopard
seal
Adelie
penguins
Emperor
penguin
Petrel Fish
Squid
Carnivorous plankton
Krill Herbivorous
plankton
Phytoplankton
Energy Flow in an Ecosystem: Losing
Energy in Food Chains and Webs
In accordance with the 2
nd
law of
thermodynamics, there is a decrease in the
amount of energy available to each
succeeding organism in a food chain or web.

Energy Flow in an Ecosystem: Losing
Energy in Food Chains and Webs
Ecological
efficiency:
percentage of
useable energy
transferred as
biomass from
one trophic level
to the next.
Figure 3-19
Fig. 3-19, p. 66
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Heat
Decomposers
Tertiary
consumers
(human)
Producers
(phytoplankton)
Secondary
consumers
(perch)
Primary
consumers
(zooplankton)
10
100
1,000
10,000
Usable energy
Available at
Each tropic level
(in kilocalories)
MATTER CYCLING IN
ECOSYSTEMS
Nutrient Cycles: Global Recycling
Global Cycles recycle nutrients through the
earths air, land, water, and living organisms.
Nutrients are the elements and compounds that
organisms need to live, grow, and reproduce.
Biogeochemical cycles move these substances
through air, water, soil, rock and living
organisms.