AG-WL-3
What’s the difference?
What’s the difference?
• What do the pliers look like?
• How do the pliers work?
• Which pliers would you want to use
in a given situation?
What’s the difference?
• Ecosystems are similar.
• They are described by:
• What does it look like?
• How does it function?
• What value does it have?
What is Ecology?
• Study of how living things exist in the
environment
• Environment consists of living
organisms, non-living things, climate,
air, water, and land
• Explains the roles of organisms in
nature
• Ecologist – a person that studies
ecology
What is an ecosystem?
• A community of living and nonliving things interacting within
their environment
• Interactions within an ecosystem
are numerous and complex
What is an ecosystem?
• Biotic
• All living things such as plants, animals, and
micro-organisms
• Abiotic
• Non-living parts of an environment
• Organisms cannot survive without abiotic
factors
• Examples: energy, water, nutrients, and soil
What is an ecosystem?
• Ecosystems have no particular size
• Dependent on flora and fauna
• Flora – plant life
• Fauna – animal life
• Communities are interdependent (they
depend on each other for survival)
• Community is a group of organisms
living in relative harmony
How are ecosystems
organized?
Biosphere
Biomes
Ecology
Ecosystems
Communities
Populations
Species
How are ecosystems
organized?
• Biosphere: largest of all ecosystems
• Biomes: Regional ecosystems
• Ecosystems are composed of
communities
• Communities encompass populations
• Groups of organisms form populations
What are the major components
of an ecosystem?
• Soil
• Mixture of weathered rock, minerals, organic
matter, and living organisms
• Provide nutrients, water, and growing media
• Atmosphere
• Provides organisms with carbon dioxide for
photosynthesis and oxygen for respiration
What are the major
components of ecosystems?
• Solar Radiation
• Used to heat the atmosphere and
to evaporate and transpire water
• Sunlight is necessary for
photosynthesis
What are the major
components of ecosystems?
• Water
• Medium by which mineral nutrients
are translocated in plants
• Necessary for leaf turgidity and
photosynthetic chemical reactions
• 6CO2 + 6H2O + Solar Energy =
C6H12O6 + 6O2
What are the major
components of ecosystems?
• Organisms
• Three categories of organisms
• Producers (Autotrophs)
• Consumers (Heterotrophs)
• Decomposers or Detrivores
What are the major
components of ecosystems?
• Producers
• Convert energy into food,
generally plants
• Decomposers or Detrivores
• Degrade organic material
What are the major
components of ecosystems?
• Consumers
• Animals, feed on producers
• Primary: herbivores (eats plants)
• Secondary: carnivores (eats meat)
• Tertiary: eats secondary
consumers
What types of species are
found in ecosystems?
• Native species
• Normally live and thrive in an
ecosystem
• Immigrant species
• Migrates into an ecosystem, may
be introduced by humans
What types of species are
found in ecosystems?
• Exotic species
• An organism that is not native to
an environment, but has been
introduced from another location
• Often the species of focus by
researchers and managers
What types of species are
found in ecosystems?
• Invasive species
• Non-native species of plants or
animals that out-compete native
species in a specific habitat
• Alters natural composition of
ecosystems
What types of species are
found in ecosystems?
• Indicator species
• Serves as early warning that ecosystem
is degrading
• Keystone species
• Significant role affecting many
organisms in an ecosystem
• Examples: bumblebee, longleaf pine,
beaver, gopher, tortoise
How do species interact
in an ecosystem?
• Interspecific competition
• Competition between species for resources
• Predation
• Predator feeds on prey
• Mutualism
• Both participating species benefit
• Commensalism
• One species benefit, while other organisms
are not affected
What is biodiversity?
Variation of organisms within a
given ecosystem or biome
What are three types of
biodiversity?
• Genetic diversity – variability in genetic
material
• Small populations breeding results in narrow
diversity
• Large populations breeding results in greater
diversity
• Isolating populations to areas limits diversity
• Genetic deformities are more prevalent
when diversity is low
What is biodiversity?
• Species diversity – variety and
number of different species that
share an environment
• Available food supply impacts species
diversity
• Warmer climates often have greater
diversity than cooler climates
What is biodiversity?
• Environment diversity – variety
of species in biological
communities and their
interaction with non-living
elements
How is biodiversity
lost?
• Habitat loss and fragmentation
• Invasive Species
• Pollution
• Climate Change
How diverse is Georgia?
• Home to 69 terrestrial animals
• 370 species of birds
• 163 species of reptiles and amphibians
• 219 native fish species
• Approximately 4,200 aquatic species
insects
• 98 mollusks species
• More than 3,600 native wild plants
Basic Ecological Principles:
Understanding How the
System Works
http://www.clemson.edu/extension/natura
l_resources/wildlife/publications/pdfs/fs5_
basic_ecological_principles.pdf