Ch . 11- The Ecology Of Organisms And Populations

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ecology

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study of the interactions between organisms and their environments
-organismal, population, community, ecosystem

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abiotic

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Consists of nonliving chemical and physical factors

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biotic

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nonliving factors

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the environment

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abiotic and biotic

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Natural history

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as a “discovery science” remains fundamental to ecology

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ecological experiment

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Testing a hypothesis regarding growth of algae in lakes

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Organismal ecology

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evo. adaptations that allow organisms to meet challenges by their abiotic environments
-interaction bw abiotic and biotic

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population ecology

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-Is concerned with populations, groups of individuals of the same species living in the same area
-Concentrates mainly on factors that affect population density and growth
-study of pop in certain area and time

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community ecology

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Is concerned with communities, assemblages of populations of different species
Focuses on how interactions between species affect community structure and organization

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communities

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assemblages of populations of different species

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ecosystem ecology

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Is concerned with ecosystems, which include all the abiotic factors in addition to the community of species in a certain area
Focuses on energy flow and the cycling of chemicals among the various abiotic and biotic factors

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ecosystem

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Is concerned with ecosystems, which include all the abiotic factors in addition to the community of species in a certain area

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biosphere

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Is the global ecosystem

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global distribution patterms

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Reflect regional differences in climate and other abiotic factors
- every place has dif climate, living things, etc.

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near equator

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hot, sunny

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cold area

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small ears

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habitats

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Are environmental situations in which organisms live
Reveal patchiness on an even smaller scale

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sunlight

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-solar energy
-Availability of sunlight affects aquatic and terrestrial environments

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water

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-Aquatic organisms may face problems with water balance
-For terrestrial organisms, the main water problem is drying out

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temperature

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Is an important abiotic factor because of its effect on metabolism

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wind

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Some organisms depend on nutrients blown to them by wind
Organisms such as plants depend on wind to disperse pollen and seeds
Can also affect the pattern of a plant’s growth

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rocks and soils

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-Soil variation contributes to the patchiness we see in terrestrial landscapes
-In streams and rivers, the composition of the soil can affect water chemistry

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catastrophic disturbance

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Can devastate biological communities

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after disturbance

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An area is recolonized by organisms or repopulated by survivors
The structure of the community undergoes a succession of changes during the rebound

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Rebound-

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when its grown again, after that destruction

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Evolutionary adaptation

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through natural selection results from the interaction of organisms with their environments
- holes in bones of birds for flight
-scales on reptiles to conserve water

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adaptation

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Physiological
Anatomical
Behavioral

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physiological responses

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In mechanisms of temperature regulation, responses by organisms occur quickly
-ex- sweat because of heat

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acclimation

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Is a physiological response that is longer term

Is related to the range of environmental conditions a species naturally experiences
-ex-stay in mountain- red cheeks, RBC

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among vertebrates

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Birds and mammals can tolerate the greatest temperature extremes because they are endotherms
Reptiles are more limited in the climates they can tolerate because they are ectotherms

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Endotherms-

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they can regulate body temp.- warm blodded

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Ectotherm-

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cannot regulate body temp- cold blooded

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anatomical response

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Many organisms respond to environmental challenge with some type of change in body shape or anatomy
- tail in human (vestigal organ)

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vestigal organ

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no use

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behavioral response

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In contrast to plants, most animals can respond to an unfavorable change in the environment by moving to a new location

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population density

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Is the number of individuals of a species per unit of area or volume

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how do we measure pop density

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In some cases, population densities are estimated by indirect indicators, such as number of bird nests or rodent burrows
-mark recapture method

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patterns of dispersion

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the way individuals are spaced within the pop's geographic range

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clumped pattern

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individuals aggregate in patches

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uniform pattern

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results from interactions among the individuals of a pop

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random pattern

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spaced in a patternless, unpredictable way

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The exponential growth model

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Describes the rate of expansion of a population under ideal, unregulated conditions..
-The Ideal of an Unlimited Environment
- J shaped
-rate of pop expansion under idea, unregulated conditions
- rate of pop growth depends on # of indiv in pop

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The Logistic Growth Model:

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The Reality of a Limited Environment
-population may grow exponentially for a while, but eventually one or more environmental factors will limit its growth
-Population-limiting factors restrict population growth..
- S shaped curve
-depend on food supply

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carrying capacity

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Is the number of individuals in a population that the environment can just maintain with no net increase or decrease..