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Explain energy flow and nutrient cycling through ecosystems (eg food chain, food web)
- energy flow is the passage of energy through components of the ecosystem, ecosystems gain and lose energy, flows from bottom to the top of trophic pyramid, about 10% of the energy reaches the next level
- nutrient cycling involves the transfer of materials within an ecosystem, nutrients are cycled and recycled, the supply of chemical elements is limited
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Explain matter transfer (biogeochemical cycles) in ecosystems
- producers incorporate chemicals from the abiotic reservoir into organic compounds
- consumers feed on the producers, incorporating some of the chemicals into their own bodies
- both producers and consumers release some chemicals back into the environment in waste products
- decomposers break down the complex organic molecules in detritus, the products of this metabolism are inorganic molecules that replenish the abiotic reservoir
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Distinguish between abiotic and biotic factors in an ecosystem
- biotic factors - all of the organisms in the area, living component of the environment
- abiotic factors - the environment's nonliving component and include chemical and physical factors
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Compare the roles of photosynthesis and respiration in an ecosystem
- photosynthesis - produces glucose, which plants and animals use as sources of energy
- respiration - harvests energy that is stored in sugars and other organic molecules
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Describe interrelationships within and among ecosystems (eg predator/prey)
- parasitism: harms one species while benefiting the other
- commensalism: one organism benefits without harming the other
- mutualism: benefits both species
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Identify and explain factors that affect population types and size (eg competition for resources, niche, habitats, species and population interactions, abiotic factors)
- competition for resources - organisms compete for a limited amount of resources
- niche - how population responds to distribution of resources and competitors
- habitats - area inhabited by a particular population, limiting in size and resources
- abiotic factors - space, availability of water, temperature
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