Living Environment Homework / Mr. Gil
Name
Family: ______
Due Date: Friday, January 16, 2015.
Ecology: Studying Our Living Planet
1. What is ecology?
2. What does the biosphere contain?
3. List the levels of organization in ecosystems?
Use the diagram to answer Questions 4–5
1
4. List 5 biotic and 5 abiotic components from the diagram.
5. Explain the relationship between ecosystems and biomes.
Biotic and Abiotic Factors
6. Use the terms in the box to fill in the Venn diagram. List parts of the environment that
consist of biotic factors, abiotic factors, and some components that are a mixture of both.
air
animals
bacteria
heat
mushrooms
plants
precipitation
soil
sunlight
Both
Biotic
Factors
Abiotic
Factors
Ecological Methods
7. Why might an ecologist set up an artificial environment in a laboratory?
8. Why are many ecological phenomena difficult to study?
9. Why do ecologists make models?
3.2 Energy, Producers, and Consumers
Primary Producers
1. What do autotrophs do during photosynthesis?
2
2. Can some organisms survive without energy from the sun? Explain your answer.
3. Can organisms create their own energy? Explain your answer.
Consumers
4. Complete the table about types of heterotrophs.
Types of Heterotrophs
Type
Definition
Examples
Herbivore
cows, rabbits
Heterotroph that eats animals
humans, bears, pigs
Omnivore
Detritivore
Decomposer
Heterotroph that consumes the carcasses of
dead animals but does not typically kill them
itself
5. What is a consumer?
6. How would you categorize a consumer that usually catches and eats prey, but also eats
dead animal carcasses?
Match the term with its definition.
Term
Definition
1. nutrient
2. chemosynthesis
3. consumer
4. ecosystem
5. photosynthesis
6. ecology
7. primary producer
8. biosphere
A. all the organisms in one area and their physical
environment
B. a process in which producers use chemical energy to
make carbohydrates
C. an organism that feeds on other organisms
D. a chemical substance that an organism needs to
survive
E. an organism that uses chemical or light energy to
produce its own food supply
F.
the study of the biosphere
G.
the portion of Earth and its atmosphere that contains
organisms
H. a process in which producers use light energy to make
carbohydrates.
Symbiotic Relationships
For each of the following symbiotic relationships state if they are mutualism,
commensalism, or parasitism. Explain why.
Barnacle/Whale
Barnacles create home sites by attaching themselves to whales.
Honey Guide Bird/Badger
Honey guide birds alert and direct badgers to bee hives. The badgers then
expose the hives and feed on the honey first. Then the honey guide birds eat.
Remora/Shark
Remoras attach themselves to a shark’s body. They then travel with the shark
and feed on the left over scraps from the shark’s meals.
Cowbird/Buffalo
As buffalos walk through grass, insects become active and are seen and eaten
by cowbirds.
.
Cuckoo/Warbler
A cuckoo may lay its eggs in a warbler’s nest. The cuckoo’s young will displace
the warbler’s young and will be raised by the warbler.
Wrasse Fish/ Black Sea Bass
Wrasse fish feed on the parasites found on the black sea bass’s body.
Hermit crab/Snail shell
Hermit crabs live in shells made and then abandoned by snails.
Yucca Plant/Yucca Moth
Yucca flowers are pollinated by yucca moths. The moths lay their eggs in the
flowers where the larvae hatch and eat some of the developing seeds.
Ostrich/Gazelle
Ostriches and gazelles feed next to each other. They both watch for predators
and alert each other to danger. Since the visual abilities of the two species are
different, they each can identify threats the other animal would not as readily see.
Mistletoe/Spruce Tree
Mistletoe extracts water and nutrients from the spruce tree to the trees detriment.
Bee/Maribou Stork
The stork uses its saw-like bill to cut up the dead animals it eats. As a result, the
dead animal carcass is accessible to some bees for food and egg laying.
Mouse/Flea
A flea feeds on a mouse’s blood to the mouse’s detriment.
Oxpecker/Rhinoceros
Oxpeckers feed on the ticks found on a rhinoceros.
Silverfish/Army Ants
Silverfish live and hunt with army ants. They share the prey.
Deer/Tick
Ticks feed on deer blood to the deer’s detriment.