What is an ecosystem?

 All the living (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) parts of an

environment as well as the interactions among them
 Ecosystems may be aquatic (water) or terrestrial (land).
 Interactions may include:
- producers (obtain energy by making their own
food; plants -photosynthesis)
- consumers (obtain energy by consuming their
food)
- decomposers ( get energy by breaking down dead
organisms and the wastes of living things); bacteria,
fungi (mold, mushrooms,etc) , some worms, termites,
some beetles, etc.
 Abiotic & Biotic Factors
 Abiotic Factors Biotic Factors

(nonliving) (living)
- Food
- water - shelter
- grass
- sunlight - soil
- trees
- rocks - nutrients
- animals, insects,
- oxygen/air, nitrogen
- temperature/climate - plants
- space, salinity, pH - bacteria, fungi
- http://www.arkive.org/fungi//
 Worms, termites,
fungi (mold, mushrooms, etc.)

In the diagram,
1.What are the decomposers? Producers? Consumers?
2.What organisms are competing for the same abiotic resources?
3.What is the source of energy that drives or sustains the ecosystem?
Arrows are pointing in the direction of what is being consumed.
(The greatest
amount of energy
is available at the
producer level.)

(With producers and consumers, 90 % of the energy available at each level is

consumed/lost to the environment. Only 10% move up to the next trophic level.
 The sun provides energy
To sustain producers
which are the foundation
of all ecosystems.

Consumers

Only 10% of the energy moves

Produce food through up to the next trophic level.
photosynthesis

http://www.brainpop.com/games/foodchaingame/ “Food Chain Game”

If removed from the food web, which organism (s) would have the greatest impact on the overall food web? Explain.
Can you think of a situation where an organism
could be both a primary and secondary
consumer? (not shown on this food web)

1. What are the producers? primary consumers? secondary consumers? tertiary consumer?
2. What organisms are competing for the same abiotic and biotic resources?
Food Web Analysis Use the diagram to respond to each of
the following.

1.Identify the decomposer. What are the

benefits of decomposers?

2. What other decomposers may be in

every ecosystem but are not shown
on this diagram?

3. Identify the primary consumers.

Show what is being consumed.

4. Identify the tertiary consumer for

each food chain. What does this
consumer eat?

5. Is this a terrestrial or aquatic food

web? Explain.

6. What happens when two or more

organisms coexist in the same niche?

7.Draw an overlapping terrestrial/aquatic

Some worms are primary
food chain using at least one of the
consumers and others (in soil)
are decomposers.)
organisms shown on the diagram. Add
an organism not on this food web.
From Atoms to Biosphere
Ecosystem Organization
Organism (single one of species)
Mushrooms Polar Bears Snakes

Coyotes Prairie Dogs Elephants

4 Populations (same species)
 Elk Population  Cacti Population

 Elephant Population  Gorilla Population

 Communities (many populations)
What communities are present in each of these ecosystems?
Marine (aquatic) Ecosystem Freshwater & Terrestrial Ecosystems

Terrestrial Ecosystem Aquatic (estuary) Ecosystems

 Ecosystems make up the biosphere.

Earth is the only planet on which life exists. It consists of three components Lithosphere
(Land), Hydrosphere (Water) and Atmosphere (Air). The life supporting zone of the
earth where atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere meet, interact and make life possible,
is known as biosphere.
 An Arctic Food Web Activity

1. What overlapping aquatic/terrestrial food

chains are there in this ecosystem?
2. What population, if removed, would have the
greatest impact on the overall food web?
3. If the water was highly contaminated, what
organism/population would have the highest
level of contamination?
4. Which organism contributes dissolved
oxygen to the water?
5. Which organisms may compete for the same
food source(s)?
 How would the removal of algae from this arctic
food web affect both the biotic and abiotic factors?

Abiotic Factors Affected Biotic Factors Affected

-dissolved oxygen decreases - animal plankton pop.
-nutrients may go up or down decreases
-more CO2 in water - silverside pop. decrease
-water may be more turbid -beluga whale pop. decrease
-temp. may change -cod pop. Decreases
-bacteria increase & use up
dissolved oxygen
**Every population is directly or
indirectly affected
 Biodiversity
A variety of species exist in all ecosystems.

What are examples of biodiversity in our

area?
- plant biodiversity
- insect biodiversity
- animal biodiversity
- fungi biodiversity
- bacteria biodiversity
 Limiting Factor

- environmental factors that limit

population sizes in a particular ecosystem
 Population Density

- the number of people/organisms living per

unit of an area (e.g. per square mile); the
number of people relative to the space
occupied by them

_ how full an area is: the concentration of

people or things within an area in relation
to its size
Population Density: measures the number of
individual organisms living in a defined space

High Population Density

China’s Qingdao Huiquan Beach

 Density – Dependent Factors

Competition
- food
- habitat/space
- water
- sunlight
- mating (Concerns relate to genetic mutations, and the number of
individuals competing for a mate.)

Spread of Disease: Overcrowding increases the possibility of diseases

being spread in a population.

Predation: Overcrowding interferes with the natural predator/prey

relationship in an ecosystem.

Parasitism: Overcrowding increases the possibility of parasites being

spread.
 Density-independent Factors

 Limiting factors that occur regardless of how

large the population is and reduce the size of
all populations in the area; mostly abiotic

- weather changes
- temperature changes
- human activities (pollution, urban sprawl, etc.)
- natural disasters (volcanoes, fires, etc.)
Urban Sprawl

How may this affect:

 water quality
(surface and ground)
 habitats

 soil quality

 air quality

 noise pollution
 Limiting Factors in an Ecosystem
 Density-dependent Factors
- operate more strongly on large
populations and disease
- triggered by increases in population
density (crowding)

* Competition for food, water, shelter & space

* Predation
* Parasitism
* Disease
A change in an abiotic or biotic factor
may:

- decrease the size of a population if it

cannot acclimate/adapt to or migrate
from the change.

- increase the size of a population if that

change enhances its ability to survive,
fluorish or reproduce.
Disruptions to Ecosystems: The Human Factor
 Disturbances to Physical (abiotic) or
Biological (biotic) Components of Ecosystems
 Disruptions lead to shifts in all populations. This changes the
biodiversity of an ecosystem.

 What disruptions may occur leading to a change in the

physical (nonliving/abiotic) components in an
ecosystem?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddlrGkeOzsI Lake Peigneur disaster 9:54

1.What affect did this disaster have on the aquatic ecosystems? Terrestrial?
2.What affect did this disaster have on the terrestrial ecosystems?
** Include both biotic and abiotic factors when answering these two questions.
3. How would this disaster lead to possible “population shifts”? Be specific.
 Disruptions to Physical
(nonliving/abiotic) Components
* Volcanic eruptions * Pollution
* Hurricanes * Clear cutting
* Fires * Floods
* Drought * Nuclear Bomb
* Habitat depletion (human and natural)
- i.e. urban sprawl
How could these events change nutrients,
water, light, salinity, shelter, soil, temperature,
climate, etc. in an ecosystem?
 Disruptions to Biological
(living/biotic) Components
* Volcanic eruptions * Pollution (land & water)
* Hurricanes * Urban Sprawl
* Fires * Clear Cutting
* Drought * Introduction of exotic
** Overharvesting (non native) species
* Habitat depletion (human and natural)
How could these events change the biological
(living/biotic) components in an ecosystem?
 Preventing Overharvesting
 Hunting seasons - Laws (ownership)
 Laws against poaching - Size limitations
 Limit on Numbers - Organizations
 License required - Size/types of nets
 Specific places - Limits on gender
 Wildlife Reserves/National Parks
 Tagging/Monitoring Programs (remote sensing)
 Breeding Programs
 Identification of Endangered Species
How may volcanoes disrupt ecosystems?

 Producers?

 Consumers?

 Biotic Factors?

 Abiotic Factors?

“The Eruption of Mt. Saint Helen”

 Impact of Clear Cutting
What are the impacts on biotic and abiotic factors?
Impact of Introducing Exotic Species: Kudzu
Kudzu is a serious invasive plant in the United States. It has been spreading in
the southern U.S. at the rate of 150,000 acres (61,000 ha) annually, "easily
outpacing the use of herbicide spraying and mowing, as well increasing the
costs of these controls by $6 million annually.“ Its introduction has produced
devastating environmental consequences. What do you think?
 Impact of Introducing Exotic Species:
Burmese python in Florida
This snake was found in the Everglades National Park, measuring 17 feet, 7 inches
and over 165 pounds. She was pregnant with 87eggs. There is believed to be
thousands thriving in the moist, hot climate of the Everglades perhaps released years
ago by pet owners or from pet shops during Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Local
ordinances prohibit the import of these reptiles and allow them to be hunted.

How may this snake disrupt the natural food webs?

 The Effect of the Brown Tree Snake in Guam

_ What led to the dramatic loss of birds on Guam? Sometime in the mid to late 1940s, brown tree snakes were
introduced to the island probably by hitching a ride on a cargo ship after World War II. Because there aren’t
many large predators on Guam, the snakes quickly took over the island. By the 1980s the birds were wiped
out save for two colonies that continue to exist on a military base. To this day the snakes are still around
(one of the attempts to control them involved dropping Tylenol-laced mice from airplanes).

_ What happens to spiders when you remove birds from a tropical island? The researchers found that during
the dry season Guam had 2.3 times more spider webs than neighboring islands that still have birds. During
the wet season the number of webs was a whopping 40 times higher on Guam. And the spider webs on
Guam were much larger—50% larger—than those on the other islands.  

_ Removing birds from the equation likely changed the Guam spider population in many ways including some
(or all) of these scenarios: (1) since birds weren’t around to eat the spiders the spider population grew, (2)
the spiders no longer had to compete with the birds to eat insects so more spiders survived and were able to
reproduce, (3) the spiders didn’t have to keep spinning new webs because the birds weren’t there to mess
them up anymore, so they built larger webs and put more energy into reproduction.
 China’s Qingdao Huiquan Beach
Low Population Density
Compare this picture to the previous one. If these were animals,
 How may the spread of disease and parasites be affected by the
population densities?
 How may competition for food, water, space and shelter be affected?
 W

 What is the relationship between the hare population and the lynx population?
 What role does competition play in this predator/prey relationship?
 Why is competition important in an ecosystem?
 Ecosystem Poster Project
* Design a poster that includes each of the
following:
 Producers Abiotic Factors
 Consumers Biotic Factors
 Decomposers Communities
 Populations Organisms
 Aquatic Ecosystem Terrestrial Ecosystem
 Overlapping Food Chains (Food Web)

* All of the above must be labeled and

illustrated.
Relationships Within Ecosystems:
-Coexistence and cooperation
-Competition (predator/prey)
-Parasitism
 Fungi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-kQ_I6aSAA “introduction to Fungi” 15:25
1. Eukaryotic (multicellular), nonphotosynthetic organisms
2. Most are multicellular heterotrophs (consume food); unicellular ones
include yeasts, molds, and mildews
3. Reproduction:
- most reproduce both sexually and asexually (producing spores)
providing adaptive advantage;
- with a favorable environment, rapid asexual reproduction
ensures an increased spread of species;
- during environmental stress, sexual reproduction ensures
genetic recombination increasing the likelihood that offspring
will be better adapted to the new environmental conditions.
4. May attack tissues of living plants and animals causing disease;
food sources may also be affected creating competition between
humans and fungi
5.Mold spores (airborne) can cause allergies in humans
6.Are decomposers (break down organic matter)