The study of relationships among organisms and between organisms and their environments
Ecology
How is life interacting with living things (biotic factors and abiotic factors)
Biotic-living organisms-related
Abiotic-non living organism (sunlight and air)
It is studying a bigger system that is complex
Levels of ecology
Organisms
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Biosphere
Evolution
A process by which populations change over time
Population ecology
Centered on factors influencing population structure and process where a population is a group of individuals of a single species inhabiting a defined area
Biosphere
What role does concentration of atmosphere CO2 play in the regulation of global temperature
Meta ecosystem, all ecosystems enclosed (the whole earth)
Encompasses the entire Earth, including all living organisms and their interactions with the atmosphere
Ecosystem
How does fire affect nutrient availability in grassland ecosystems
All the living and NONliving things in the area (abiotic factors)
Focus on the flow of energy and recycling of nutrients
Community
What factors influence the number of large mammal species living together in African grasslands?
All the living things that live in the area (different organisms and all the life)
Focus on the interactions between population and how there interactions shape the community
Individuals
The most basic level of ecological organization, focusing on a single organism
Examines the life processes, adaptations, and behaviors of the individual organism
Individual
One organism and is also one type of organism (e.g., human, cat, moose, tree)
Population
A group of individuals that belong to the same species
Are geographically based, living in a particular area
Communities
Are made up of all the populations of different species in a given area
It involves multiple populations of all the different species in the given area and how these species interact with each other
Ecosystems
Not only looking at the populations and species in the given area but also the physical environment and non-living or abiotic conditions, and not just what they are, but how they impact the organisms
Abiotic Components
Climate
Soil
Geology and Topography
Water
Sunlight
Biotic components
Producers
Consumers
Herbivores
Carnivores
Omnivores
Detritivores
Decomposers
Trophic levels
These represent the hierarchical levels within a food chain or food web. The primary producers occupy the first trophic level, followed by herbivores (primary consumers), carnivores (Secondary consumers) and so on
Food chain
Food chains depict the linear transfer of energy and nutrient from one organism to another in an ecosystem
Ecosystem
Includes all the living organisms in an area and all the non-living things that affects it
Ecosystem
A group of organisms interacting among themselves and with environment
Abiotic and biotic organisms are interdependent/ interelated with one another
Components of ecosystem
Biotic
Abiotic
Biotic
The living organisms or living members in an ecosystem collectively form its community
Abiotic
The non-living chemical and physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the functioning of ecosystems
Ecology
The scientific study of the interactions between different organisms and between organisms and their environment or surroundings
Levels of ecological organization
Species
Population
Communities
Ecosystem
Species
Individual living things
Population
Many of the SAME Kinds of species that live in the same area and compete for food, mates, water, and space
Community
Many groups of populations that interact in an area
Community examples
A forest: population of trees, mushrooms, and birds