LQ1

• Ecology


  A branch of biology that examines ecosystems and relations between living organisms and the natural environment
• Ecosystem (Ecological System)


  A functional unit comprising all the organisms in a particular place interacting with one another and with their physical environment and interconnected by an ongoing flow of energy and a cycling of materials
• Environment


  All living and nonliving things that occur naturally on Earth, including biotic and abiotic factors that surround an organism
• Levels of Organization

  • Individual/Species
  • Population
  • Community
  • Ecosphere
• Individual/Species


  A single plant, animal, or organism
• Population


  A group of individuals of same species that occupy a given area
• Community


  The interacting population of different species
• Ecosphere


  All earth's ecosystems
• Biome


  A distinct ecological community of plants and animals living together in a particular climate
• Examples of Biomes

  • Rainforest
  • Taiga
  • Tundra
  • Desert
  • Grassland
  • Temperate Deciduous Forest
• Layers of the Atmosphere

  • Troposphere
  • Stratosphere
  • Mesosphere
  • Thermosphere
  • Ionosphere
  • Exosphere
• Troposphere


  Starts at Earth's surface and extends to 8 - 14.5 kilometers high, most dense layer, almost all weather is in this layer
• Stratosphere


  Starts just above the troposphere and extends to 50 kilometers high, the ozone layer is in this layer
• Mesosphere


  Starts just above the stratosphere and extends to 85 kilometers high, meteors burn up in this layer
• Thermosphere


  Starts just above the mesosphere and extends to 600 kilometers high, aurora and satellites occur in this layer
• Ionosphere


  Abundant layer of electrons and ionized atoms and molecules, stretches from about 48 meters above the surface to the edge of space at about 965 kilometers, makes radio communications possible
• Exosphere


  The upper limit of our atmosphere, extends from the top of the thermosphere up to 10,000 kilometers
• Lithosphere


  Rocky outer part of the Earth, made up of the brittle crust and the top part of the upper mantle, coolest and most rigid part of the Earth
• Hydrosphere


  Includes all gaseous, liquid and solid forms of water of the Earth, the earth is often referred to as the blue planet because the blue ocean covers nearly 71% of Earth's surface
• Biosphere


  All living things in the planet, zone of life on Earth, also known as ecosphere in ecology, a functional concept which emphasizes the interrelationship between all living organisms and their environment on planetary scale
• Critical Zone Concept


  Conceived in 1998, aims to represent the importance of system science in integrating the research of the four spheres by studying the linkages, feedbacks, and processes that occurred in the past, present and future
• Ecosystem


  The interacting system made up of all the living and nonliving components in the physically defined space
• Biotic Components


  • Producers
  • Consumers
  • Decomposers
• Producers


  Plants (autotrophs) - produce their own food from inorganic compounds via photosynthesis
• Consumers


  Organisms (heterotrophs) - cannot synthesize their own food, food must be obtained from other organisms either by feeding on plants or other organisms (Herbivores, Carnivores, Omnivores)
• Classification of Consumers


  • Primary Consumers - Herbivores
  • Secondary Consumers - feed on primary consumers
  • Tertiary Consumers - feed on secondary consumers
• Decomposers


  Break down the remains of dead animals and plants, releases substances that can be used by other members of the ecosystem
• Abiotic


  Physical and chemical environment (water, air, nutrients, solar energy)
• Biophysical feedback mechanisms exist in ecosystems between biotic and abiotic components to regulate and sustain processes that are not just local but also regional and global
• Interactions Among Organisms

  • Predation
  • Commensalism
  • Mutualism
  • Parasitism
  • Competition
• Earth is considered as a closed system with flow of energy from the sun
• All ecosystems are open systems, energy and matter are exchanged with their surroundings
• Energy is absorbed by plants and biomass is formed, the energy flows to the consumer when they eat the plants
• 10 percent rule


  Only about 10 percent of the energy stored as biomass is passed from one trophic level to the next, this limits the number of levels an ecosystem can support
• Food Chains

  • Grazing Food Chains - the source of energy is plant biomass
  • Detritus Food Chains - the source of energy is dead organic matter
• Food Web


  Set of interconnected food chains by which energy and materials circulate within an ecosystem
• Plants eaten by herbivores would be excreted later by the consumer, carnivores help recycle the minerals in the bodies of herbivores, scavengers consume the carcasses transferring some minerals to them, the minerals in plants are returned to the soil by the bacteria and fungi that consume fecal matter, some minerals escape and end up in the ocean
• Ecosystem Services


  • Provisioning Services
  • Regulating Services
  • Cultural Services
  • Supporting Services
• Provisioning Services


  Products obtained from ecosystems, such as genetic resource, food and fiber, and freshwater
• Regulating Services


  Benefits obtained from the regulation of ecosystem services, such as regulation of climate, pest control, and waste decomposition