Ecosystems AND Environments

What is an organism An organism is any living thing

What does an organism need from their environment? Food Water Shelter Ability to grow Ability to reproduce

Habitat An environment that provides what an organism needs (food, water, shelter, ability to grow, ability to reproduce) is called a habitat.

Can their be more than 1 habitat in the same area There can be more than one habitat in a single area For example A mushroom lives in damp soil A salamander lives on the forest floor A woodpecker lives in a nest in a tree trunk

Why can there be more than 1 habitat in the same area? There can be many habitats in one area because different organisms require different resources to live An organism cannot live where those requirements are not A hermit crab cannot live in the prarie

Living and Non-living All organisms interact with the living and non-living parts of their habitat Living parts is called BIOTIC factors Bio means life Non-living parts are called ABIOTIC factors A means without or not when at the start of a word

LEVELES OF ORGANIZATION

What are the levels of organization Levels of organization start with an atom molecule and end with view of planet earth Atom Species Cell Population Tissue Community Organ Ecosystem Organ System Organism

Levels of Organization vocabulary Atom = basic unit of a chemical element Cell = smallest unit of life Tissue = a group of specialized cells performing the same job Organ = collection of tissues joined in a unit to do a common function Organ System = group of organs that work together to perform a certain task Organism = living entity composed of several organ systems that work together to achieve a common goal

Species = group of organisms that are physically similar and mate with each other to reproduce Population = all the members of one species in a particular area Community = different populations living together in one area Ecosystem = a community along with all of the abiotic factors in an area Biosphere = all of the Earths ecosystems (view from space of the earth)

ADAPTING TO THE ENVIRONMENT

Natural Selection Characteristics that makes and individual better suited into its environment Individuals best suited survive Organisms pass those traits down to their offspring Those offspring reproduce

What does natural selection result in? It results in adaptions These adaptions are behaviors and physical characteristics that allow organisms to live successfully in the environment

What is a niche? A niche is the role of an organism in its environment Type of food an organism eats How an organism gets its food Which other organisms use the organism as food When an organism knows when and how to reproduce How the organism gets its shelter How it interacts with other organisms How an organism avoids danger

Niche of a rattlesnake It lives on the ground It preys on small animals and lizards It uses oxygen and releases carbon dioxide It is prey for a hawk

Niche vs Habitat Habitat is where an organism lives Niche is how an organisms lives in its habitat

INTERACTIONS AMONG ORGANISMS

3 major interactions Competition Predation Symbiosis

Competition The struggle between organisms to survive as they attempt to use the same limited resources Every ecosystem has limited food, water and shelter. Organisms that survive have adaptions that enable them to reduce competition.

Predation The interaction in which one organism kills another for food Predator – Prey relationship Predator = animal that does the killing Prey = animal that is killed

Predation has a major effect on population When death rates exceeds birth rates in a population, the size of the population decreases If there is a large number of predators the population of their prey decreases But a decrease in the number of prey results in less food for the predator Without adequate food supply the population of the predators starts to decline So populations of predators and prey rise and fall in related cycles

Predator Adaptions Runs fast in a short time Tentacles with poisonous substances Sticky goo on plants leafs to catch insects Seeing in the dark Hunting without seeing – using hearing

Prey Adaptions Chemical defense Physical defense Smells to scare of predators Physical defense Mimicry False coloring Warning colors Camouflage Protective covering

Symbiosis The relationship between 2 species Mutualism Commensalism Parasitism

Mutualism Both organisms benefit from each other

Commensalism 1 organism benefits and 1 organism is not helped or harmed

Parasitism 1 organism is living on or in another and is harming it

FLOW OF ENERGY IN AN ECOSYSTEM

Each organism in an ecosystem fills the energy in an environment Producer = organism that can make its own food (usually comes from the sun) Consumer = organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms Herbivore = consumer that eats only plants Carnivore = consumer that eats only animals Scavenger = carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms Omnivore = consumer that eats both plants and animals Decomposer = organisms that breaks down wastes and dead organisms (natures recyclers)

Movement of energy through the ecosystem Food chain Food web

Food Chain Series in which one organism eats another

Food Web Consists of overlapping food chains

Energy Pyramid Shows how energy moves from one level to the next The most energy is available at the producer level of the pyramid As you move up the pyramid each level has less energy than the level below Only 10% of the energy is transferred to the next level

CHANGES IN COMMUNITIES

Primary succession No soil exists No organisms exist Ex. An island is formed from volcanic eruptions

Secondary succession Occurs following a disturbance An ecosystem already existed once Ex. An area where there was a tornado, fire or hurricane

This ends the exciting topics relating to the ecosystem and environment