Chapter 4: Ecosystems and Communities

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Chapter 4Ecosystems and Communities

• 4.1 Role of Climate
• 4.2 Ecosystems
• 4.3 Biomes
• 4.4 Aquatic Biomes

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4.1
What Shapes an Ecosystem
biotic
abiotic
niche
habitat
symbiosis
mutualism
commensalism
parasitism
example
example
example
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4.2-4.4
Adaptation
Tolerance
Succession
Limiting factor
Secondary succession
Primary succession
Microclimate
Climate
Pioneer Species
Biomes
Terrestrial biomes
Climax community
Aquatic biome
Fresh water ecosystem
Estuary
Marine Biome
Flowing H2O
Wetland
Photic zone
Standing H2O
Phytoplankton
Aphotic zone
Plankton
Zooplankton
Intertidal zone
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4.3
Biomes (Terrestrial)
permafrost
Tundra
Describe each biome
Taiga
Desert
Temperate Grasslands
Temperate Forest
Tropical Rain Forest
Temperate Woodland and Shrubland
Northwestern Coniferous Forest
Tropical Dry Forest
Tropical Savanna
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Organisms and their Environment

• Abiotic Factors Anything that is part of an
  organisms environment, and is not living.
• Ex. Wind, Water, Sand, Soil.
• Biotic Factors Anything that is part of an
  organisms environment, and is living.
• Ex. Trees, Other Organisms.

http//www.theragens.com/photos/Turkey_Vulture_Pho
tos.htm
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Organisms and their Environment

• Habitat The place where an organism lives out
  its life.
• Habitats can change, or even disappear.
• Niche The role and position a species has in its
  environment.
• Includes how it gets food, how it survives, and
  how it reproduces.

http//www.locatelli1.net/thema/picture.php?refbr
e021lgen
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Organisms and their Environment

• Living Relationships
• Whats it called when organisms live near and
  interact regularly with each other?
• The answer Symbiosis
• There are many different types of symbiotic
  relationships.
• See p. 46

Ex Bee and Flower
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Organisms and their Environment

• Commensalism a symbiotic relationship in which
  one species benefits and the other is unaffected.
• Ex. Spanish moss.
• Mutualism a symbiotic relationship in which both
  species involved benefit.
• Ex. Ants and acacia trees,
• teeth cleaner birds or fish.

http//www.acclaimimages.com/_gallery/_pages/0010-
0301-2004-5140.html
http//waynesword.palomar.edu/acacia.htm
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Organisms and their Environment

• Parasitism A symbiotic relationship in which one
  species benefits and the other is harmed.
• Ex. Ticks, Tapeworms, Tree fungus

http//www.micrographia.com/specbiol/helmint/platy
hel/cest0100.htm
http//www.ent.iastate.edu/imagegallery/ticks/isca
pm.html
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Organisms and their Environment

• Commensalism o
• Mutualism
• Parasitism -

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Communities

• Review A community is a group of interacting
  populations.
• Review An ecosystem is a group of species
  interacting with one another AND with their
  environment (abiotic factors).
• Note So far we have thought of these populations
  and communities as animals- but what happens
  with plants?

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Communities

• Tolerance The ability of an organism to
  withstand changes in abiotic or biotic factors
  around them.
• Ex. Many plants have a tolerance for shade, but
  those that dont will surely die without the
  proper amount of sunlight.
• Ex. Many animals that live in warm climates have
  a tolerance for coldness, while others will die
  after just one cold night.

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Communities

• Succession natural changes and the replacement
  of different species in the communities of an
  ecosystem.
• Read p. 68 Succession Changes over time.
• Succession occurs in different stages and can
  often take decades, centuries, or even thousands
  of years.
• Plants most important organisms when talking
  about succession.

Example Old Field Succession
http//bioweb.wku.edu/faculty/Ameier/oldfield1.htm
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Communities

• Primary Succession The first arrival of
  communities of organisms in a formerly lifeless
  area.
• Pioneer Species The very first species to
  colonize a lifeless area.
• Colonization Moving from a familiar habitat to a
  new unfamiliar area.

Example of a pioneer species Marram grass on
sand dunes
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Communities

• Climax Community A stable community in which
  change does not occur on a regular basis, but can
  happen.
• Ex. A mature forest with large trees, vines,
  grasses, squirrels, chipmunks, mice, etc. could
  be a climax community if there are no new species
  showing up and no extinctions.
• Simply put nothing coming, nothing going!

http//gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_national_for
est/nc/hik_kilm.htm
Example Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest
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Communities

• Secondary Succession The changes in a community
  that occur when a natural or unnatural disaster
  destroys most of the individuals in a community.
  These same species of animal and plant then
  return to their habitats.
• Ex. A fire
• Ex. A farmer stripping and abandoning his fields
• Ex. A volcano erupts ash and debris

http//build.tripod.lycos.com/imagebrowser/photos/
Landscapes/Volcanic_Eruptions/categories1.html
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Communities

• Succession
• Primary Secondary
• Barren Soil
• Ex. Lichen Ex. Grasses
• Begins on Rock, Begins After Disaster
• Sand, etc.
• Pioneer Species Previous Species

http//www.planetware.com/photos/TZA/TZA100.HTM
http//www.threeleaf.com/stock-photography/picture
-view.htm?idzr2vhwgejvreturnPagepictures005.htm
returnTextPlants
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Aquatic Biomes

• Biome A large group of ecosystems that share the
  same type of climax community.
• Ex. Many will be given throughout the chapter.
• Microclimate the climate in a small area that
  differs from the climate around that area
• Ex Streets in San Francisco

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Aquatic Biomes

• Marine Biomes biomes that are found in salt
  water are marine biomes.
• Photic Zone The portion of the marine biome that
  is shallow enough for light to penetrate.
• Main resource for food is plankton, which are
  small organisms that include small plants and
  tiny baby marine animals.
• Aphotic Zone Deeper water in the marine
  environment that never receives sunlight.
• Food falls from above.

http//www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nwep6c.htm
http//www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nwep6c.htm
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Aquatic Biomes

• Estuary Anywhere where a river joins the ocean
  and fresh water tends to mix with salt water.
• The salinity of the water can change depending on
  the tides or on other weather factors.
• This brackish water can often lead far inland up
  the river.
• Detritus Tiny pieces of organic material
• food source for animals at the base of the
  estuary food web.
• Salt Marsh temperate zone estuaries dominated by
  salt tolerant grasses and sea grasses

http//www.fish.washington.edu/naturemapping/water
/2habestu.html
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Aquatic Biomes

• Intertidal Zone The area that is completely
  covered by water at high tide, but exposed at low
  tide.
• Found on beaches, lake shores, river beds, etc.
• Ex. of wildlife living there snails, sea stars
  or starfish. They have suction cups to hold them
  in place when the tide is coming in or going out.

http//www.scubayogi.de/tidepool.html
http//www.maltavista.net/en/list/photo/1775.html
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Aquatic Biomes

• Freshwater Biomes No salt in the water.
• Photic zones usually reach to the bottom of the
  lake.
• With deep lakes, an aphotic zone appears and once
  again no vegetation grows.
• The temperature in freshwater varies greatly, as
  do the types of organisms that live there.

http//io.uwinnipeg.ca/simmons/1116/16biomes.htm
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Terrestrial Biomes

• The amount of rainfall and the average yearly
  temperature determine what type of terrestrial
  biome that you are in.
• See Fig. 3.11 on P. 77

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All the Worlds Major Biomes
Tundra Taiga Desert Grassland Temperate
Forest Tropical Rain Forest
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Tundra Cold, little rainfall.
• Permafrost occurs because the temperature rarely
  reaches above freezing
• Short growing season of plants is a strong
  limiting factor.
• Few large animals
• Horrible, dark winters.
• Preserved Woolly Mammoth found here!

http//www.nature.ca/notebooks/english/woolly.htm
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Taiga A bit warmer than tundra, and a bit more
  rainfall.
• Long, severe winters, short, mild summers.
• Plants have time to grow and develop.
• More large animals than in the tundra
• Many trees
• Called Boreal

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Terrestrial Biomes

• Desert Extremely dry, not always hot.
• Very little vegetation
• One desert in Chile, the Atacama, receives no
  rain fall, EVER!
• Large areas of no life
• Strange adaptations of organisms to tolerate the
  conditions

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Terrestrial Biomes

• Grasslands large communities covered in grasses
  and other similar plants.
• Ususally has dry seasons so that tree life cannot
  be supported.
• Many different animals can live here- large and
  small alike.
• First biome where we start to see a lot of humus
  dead, decaying plant and animal matter which
  helps make up the underlying soil.

http//mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/grasslnd/animals/
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Temperate Forest Medium precipitation,
  noticeable seasons.
• Trees everywhere, and most lose their leaves
  annually.
• Clay found under humus
• Many species of plant and animal, some migrate
  into warmer areas.

http//www.kjsl.com/dave/hummingbirds/hummingbird
s.html
http//staff.washington.edu/timk/wildlife/mammal/s
quirrel/squirrel.html
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Tropical Rain Forest Characterized by intense
  rainfall, many species from all kingdoms, and
  warm climate.
• Located near the equator
• Has different levels within the forests,
  providing many different niches- see p. 86.
• Little humus because dead organisms are
  decomposed quickly
• Being destroyed by humans

http//mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/rforest/animals/
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Tropical Dry Forest
• rainfall is seasonal not year round
• trees drop their leaves during the dry season
• warm year round
• tigers, herbivores
• tall deciduous trees

http//www.bigcatrescue.org/tiger_photos.htm
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Tropical Savanna
• more rain than deserts, less than tropical dry
  forest
• isolated trees and small groups of trees
• frequent fires (lightning)
• tall perennial grasses
• lions, cheetahs, herbivores

http//www.treknature.com/gallery/Europe/Estonia/p
hoto3821.htm
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Temperate Woodland and Shrubland
• semiarid climate
• mix of shrub communities and woodlands
• hot dry summers
• moist winters
• coyotes, foxes, hawks
• woody evergreen shrubs

http//www.treknature.com/gallery/North_America/Un
ited_States/photo11522.htm
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Terrestrial Biomes

• Northwestern Coniferous Forest
• abundant rainfall
• conifers, redwoods, spruce
• called a temperate rainforest
• bears, large herbivores

http//www.treknature.com/search.php?phraseowlty
pesearchGo
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Important Study Tips!

• Community/Population
• Limiting Factors/Tolerance
• Primary/Secondary Succession
• Climax Community/Pioneer Species
• Know Biomes
• Aquatic
• Marine/Estuary/Fresh/Photic/Aphotic
• Terrestrial
• Tundra/Taiga/Desert/Grasslands/Temperate
  Forest/Tropical Rain Forest
• What is Carrying Capacity?

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REFERENCES Lynx Picture http//www.yukonman.com/p
ictures2-8.asp Wolf Picture http//www.fotosearch
.com/COR356/110000/ Old Field Succession
Pictures http//bioweb.wku.edu/faculty/Ameier/old
field1.htm Joyce Kilmer Memorial Photo
http//gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/us_national_for
est/nc/hik_kilm.htm Volcano Picture
http//build.tripod.lycos.com/imagebrowser/photos/
Landscapes/Volcanic_Eruptions/categories1.html Lic
hen Picture http//www.threeleaf.com/stock-photog
raphy/picture-view.htm?idzr2vhwgejvreturnPagepi
ctures005.htmreturnTextPlants Serengeti
Picture http//www.planetware.com/photos/TZA/TZA1
00.HTM Ocean Picture and Fish Picture
http//www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nwep6c.htm Estuar
y Picture http//www.fish.washington.edu/naturema
pping/water/2habestu.html Star Fish Picture
http//www.maltavista.net/en/list/photo/1775.html
Intertidal Picture http//www.scubayogi.de/tidepo
ol.html
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REFERENCES Lake Photo http//io.uwinnipeg.ca/sim
mons/1116/16biomes.htm Woolly Mammoth
http//www.nature.ca/notebooks/english/woolly.htm
Grassland Animals http//mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/gr
asslnd/animals/ Hummingbird Photo
http//www.kjsl.com/dave/hummingbirds/hummingbird
s.html Squirrel Photo http//staff.washington.edu
/timk/wildlife/mammal/squirrel/squirrel.html Rainf
orest Animals http//mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/rfores
t/animals/