Ecology

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Ecology

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the study of the relationships between organisms and their environments

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Biotic

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Living Matter

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Abiotic

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Non-living matter

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Ecosystems

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An array of organisms and their physical environment

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Producers

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organisms that convert nonorganic raw materials into organic compounds

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Consumers

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Organism that must consume other organisms to obtain energy

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Photoautotroph’s

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Use the energy of sunlight to produce energy

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Chemoautotrophs

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Use gases and toxins to produce energy (archea bacteria living near sulfur vents)

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Food Web

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A diagram of 3-5 levels used to show the transfer of energy and nutrients with all organisms

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Food Chain

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One organism per level

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Biomes Pyramid

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shows the dry weight of all an ecosystem’s organisms at each tier

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Symbiosis

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any relationships in which two species live close together

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Commensalism (Symbiosis)

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(+/o) When one species benefits and the other is not affected (Cleaning Fish & sharks)

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Mutualism (Symbiosis)

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(+/+) When both species benefit from each other (humans & bacteria)

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Parasitism (Symbiosis)

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(+/-) When one organism lives inside another and harms it (Animals & tapeworms)

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Succession

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Changes in a community over time

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Primary Succession

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A process that occurs when a pioneer species colonize a barren habitat

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Secondary Succession

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The process of a species making a come back after a natural or man-made disturbance

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Pioneer Species

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The first organisms to colonize a region (lichen, algae, fungi – change soil so other things can start to grow)

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Climax Community

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A stable, mature community that undergoes little or no change in species or succession (most diversity)

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Niche

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the sum of an organisms activities and interactions as it acquires and uses resources needed to survive and reproduce

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Fundamental Niche

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A niche that would prevail in the absence of competition or limiting factors

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Realized Niche

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A niche that is dynamic, may shift over time in small or large ways. There is no competition

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Competitive exclusion

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When multiple species require identical resources and can’t coexist (G Gause - paramecium experiment –one killed the other, couldn’t coexist)

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Resource Partitioning

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A subdividing of similar resources that allow competing species to coexist

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Mimicry

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The close resemblance in form, behavior or both between a species

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Keystone Species

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A species that has a dramatic effect on a community (Robert Paine)

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Nitrogen Fixation

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The process of converting nitrogen into organic compounds and putting it into the soil

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Nitrification

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The process of converting ammonia into nitrates or nitrites

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Assimilation

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The conversion of nitrates into usable compounds for plants

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Ammonification

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When organisms die, bacteria and decomposers break down the tissue (nitrogenuos material) releasing ammonia down into the soil

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Greenhouse Effect

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Concentrations of carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrogen oxides, and other pollutants that form a layer around the earth and trap heat within it

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De-nitrification

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Lose nitrogen when bacteria take nitrate/nitrite and turn it back into N2

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Levels of Organization

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Organism -> Population -> Communities -> Ecosystems -> Biospheres

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3 Types of Ecosystems

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1)Terrestrial (Land)
2)Saltwater (Oceans)
3)Freshwater (Ponds, Lakes Streams)

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Primary Matter

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•Carbon (carbohydrates)
•Hydrogen
•Nitrogen
•Oxygen
•Phosphorus
•Sulfur

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3 Pyramids

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1) Numbers (population)
2) Biomass (weight) –big at bottom smaller at top
3) Energy (Energy available)

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Levels of the Food Web

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1)Autotrophs (producers)
2)Primary Consumer
3)Secondary Consumer
4)Decomposer

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Water cycle

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* evaporation
* condensation
* precipitation

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Biological Magnification

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A substance is passed from organisms at one trophic level to those above and become increasingly concentrated in body tissues