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Ecology

The document discusses ecosystems and biodiversity. It defines key terms like producers, consumers, autotrophs and describes interactions between organisms like predation, competition and food chains. It also covers nutrient cycling, trophic levels and human impacts on biodiversity.

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Vinisha Khurana
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37 views31 pages

Ecology

The document discusses ecosystems and biodiversity. It defines key terms like producers, consumers, autotrophs and describes interactions between organisms like predation, competition and food chains. It also covers nutrient cycling, trophic levels and human impacts on biodiversity.

Uploaded by

Vinisha Khurana
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Ecosystems and Biodiversity

Ecosystems
• An ecosystem is a structural and functional unit of ecology where the
living organisms interact with each other and the surrounding
environment. In other words, an ecosystem is a chain of interactions
between organisms and their environment.
• The structure of an ecosystem can be split into two main components,
namely:
• Biotic Components
• Abiotic Components
Biotic components refer to all living components in an ecosystem.
Based on nutrition, biotic components can be categorised into
autotrophs, heterotrophs and saprotrophs
Abiotic components are the non-living component of an ecosystem. It
includes air, water, soil, minerals, sunlight, temperature, nutrients, wind,
altitude, turbidity, etc.
• Organisms which can
Autotrophs synthesize their own food
from simple inorganic
substance.
• This process involves
photosynthesis.
• Take light energy from sun
to form organic molecule.
• They are also called
producers – examples:
• Cyanobacteria
• Algae
• Grass
• Trees
• They cannot make their own food
from inorganic matter and obtain
food from other organisms.
Heterotrophs • Heterotrophs are called consumers
• E.g:
• Sheep, fish , insects
Detritivores

Some organisms eat


non-living organic Earthworms, woodlice
matter. Detritivores and found in soil
eat dead leaves, community.
faeces and carcasses.
Saprotrophs

They live in non- living


organic matter, secreting They play important role
digestive enzymes and in the decay of dead
absorbing the products organic matter.
of digestion.
Species

• Members of species have similar physiological and


morphological characteristics
• Have the ability to interbreed and produce fertile offspring
• Have common gene pool.
e.g Canis familiaris
Homo sapiens
Magnifera indica
Communities

A community is a
group of populations Soil community in a
living and interacting forest and fish
with each other in an community in a river.
area.
Interactions in Ecosystems

In ecology the term interaction It can mean one species


can mean one population provide vital substance for
feeding on another or being another, as symbiotic bacteria
eaten. help plant to get nitrogen.

One species gets protection


One species relies on other for
from another, as aphids being
its habitat, as parasites living in
protected by ants from attacks
host body.
by predators.
Interactions Between Organisms
Predation = Predator – Prey relationship
Predation is consumption of one organism by another.
Simply one animal eating other animal.
The one who eats is called predator and the one who is eaten is called prey.
Interactions Between Organisms
Mutualism = two species benefit staying together
Interactions Between Organisms

Parasitism = one species depends on another ( the host ) for nutrition,


sometimes harming the host organism in the process
Interactions Between Organisms
Commensalism
Interactions Between Organisms
Competition = fight for resources
Organisms compete with each other for food, water, space, sunlight, etc.
The one with better adaptations survive.
It is always the survival of the fittest in nature

Competition can be seen between members of the same species


or between organisms of different species

Adaptations are adjustments with advanced features in body of organisms


to survive in a particular climate in an ecosystem
Ecological Terms

The study of the interactions between living organisms and


their environment is called ecology.
The area where an organism lives is called its habitat.
A population is a group of organisms of the same species,
living in the same area at the same time.
A community is all the organisms, of all the different
species, living in the same habitat.
An ecosystem consists of the interactions between the
organisms in a community and their environment.
A niche is the role of the species within an ecosystem
• The sequence by which energy, in the
form of chemical energy in food, passes
Energy Flow from a plant to an animal and then to
other animals, is called a food chain.
Food Webs
• Many different food
chains link to form a food
web.
Producers and consumers
• Every food chain begins with green plants because only they can
capture the energy from sunlight. They are called producers because
they produce the energy-containing organic nutrients that all the
other organisms in the food chain need.
Energy Losses
Trophic levels
• In the pyramid, the area of
each block represents the
number of organisms at that
step in the food chain. Each
level in the pyramid is called a
trophic level.
Producers take simple organic compounds and
convert them into energy rich sugars.

Consumers digest the complex organic


Nutrient compound into simpler building blocks such as
amino acids and sugars.
Cycling in
When consumers die their cells and tissues are
ecosystems broken down by decomposers and minerals are
returned to the soil.
All these process are called nutrient cycling
Nitrogen cycle

• Nitrogen Cycle
is a biogeochemical process
through which nitrogen is
converted into many forms,
consecutively passing from the
atmosphere to the soil to
organism and back into the
atmosphere.
Carbon cycle
Human influences and loss of Biodiversity
• Formative – Students will prepare (individual) charts
Causes of loss of biodiversity
Conservation of Biodiversity
• Protection + Preservation for future

• In-situ conservation (at the site – biosphere reserves, national parks)

• Ex-situ conservation (in zoos, botanical gardens, seed banks, etc)


Plan for conservation of a Forest
Conservation
• Conservation is the process of looking after the natural environment.
Conservation attempts to maintain or increase the biodiversity of an
area.
Conserving forests
• Tropical rainforests have a very high biodiversity
compared with almost anywhere else in the world.
• When tropical rainforests are cut down or burnt,
the habitats of thousands of different species are
destroyed.
• timber is used to build houses and boats, and for
fuel.
• They can provide a sustainable resource
Ways to conserve
forest
• Governments can refuse to grant licences to companies who want to
cut down valuable forests.

Instead of cutting down all the trees in a forest (called clear-felling),


just a small proportion of the trees are cut down. This is called
selective felling.

Many deciduous trees will regrow after they are cut down. Trees can
be cut down to about one metre or less, and then left to regrow.

Education can help to make sure that people understand how important
it is to conserve forests.
Conserving endangered species
Content

Interdependence and interaction between populations

Limiting Factor and growth curve

Pattern of Succession in ecosystem

Effects of natural events and human activities

Analysis of population

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