Introduction to ecology

1
Introduction to ecology
2
Ecology defined

• Ecology is the study of the interaction of living
  things and their environment
• All living things are interconnected survival
  of an organism depends upon its interactions
  with other living and nonliving things
• Species impact each other in complex ways because
  they are interdependent

3
Biotic and Abiotic

• We can divide the world into the living, biotic
  and nonliving, abiotic
• Our planet has been shaped by not only the
  abiotic factors but the biotic factors as well

Left side find 3 biotic and 3 abiotic things in
this picture.
4
Levels of organization

• Ecology is organized into 6 levels from largest
  to smallest
• Biosphere
• Biome
• Ecosystem
• Community
• Population
• Organism

5
Biosphere

• All life on Earth and everything that impacts
  life on Earth
• Living things change the environment and visa
  versa
• Living things are part of the water cycle, and
  the cycling of many nutrients that are vital to
  life
• Without trees it would not rain as much in the
  rain forest, without worms, fungi, and insects
  there would be no soil

6
Biomes

• Regions of the world with the same climate and
  types of organism
• There are 10 major land biomes and salt water and
  fresh water biomes.

7
Ecosystems communities

• Ecosystems includes all the living and
  nonliving things that interact in a particular
  area
• For example a pond ecosystem includes the waters
  temperature, pH, salinity, and everything that
  lives in it
• Communities are the living things that interact
  with each other in a region it does NOT include
  abiotic factors

8
Population

• Individuals of the same species that interact
  with each other, they share/ compete for
  resources

9
Summary paragraph

1. What is the difference between and ecosystem and
   a community?
2. Give an example of interconnectedness.
3. Contrast abiotic and biotic.
4. Given an example of a population