Ecology and the biosphere

the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment, interaction determine the distribution and abundance of organisms

studies how an organism's structure, physiology and (for animals) behaviors meet environmental challenges

is a group of individuals of the same species living in an area

is a group of populations of different species in an area

deals with the whole array of interacting species in an area

is a community of organisms in an area and the physical factors with which they interact

emphasizes energy flow and chemical cycling amongst the various biotic (living) and abiotic (nonliving) components

is a mosaic of connected ecosystems

deals with arrays of ecosystems and how that are arranged in a geographic region

the global ecosystem, the sum of all the planet's ecosystems

examines the influence of energy and materials on organisms across the biosphere

is the movement of individuals away from centers of high population density or from their area or origin, contributes to global distribution of organisms

include organisms that are intentionally or accidently relocated from their original distribution, they can disrupt the communities or ecosystems which they have been introduced

• 0^oC
• 75^oC

by expending energy (shivering)

are the major ecological associations that occupy the broad geographic regions if land or water, varying combinations of biotic and abiotic factors determine the nature of biomes

@ 4^oC

in oceans and most lakes this temperature boundary separates the warm upper layer and cold deeper water

• -many lakes undergo a semiannual mixing of their waters
• -mixes oxygenated water from the surface with nutrient rich water from the bottom

is nutrient poor and oxygen rich

nutrient rich and depleted of oxygen if ice covered in winter

is shallow and well-lighted and has lots of rooted and floating aquatic plants

habitat with water some of the time and water saturated soil plants

current

• -estuaries are the transition area between river and sea
• -salinity varies with the rise and fall of the tides
• -nutrient rich and highly productive

• -an intertidal zone is periodically submerged and exposed by the tides
• -organisms in this area are challenged by variations in temperature, salinity, and waves
• -many animals of rocky intertidal environments have adaptations to attach to the hard substrate

• -the oceanic pelagic biome is a vast realm of open blue water, constantly mixed by wind driven currents,
• -covers 70% of earths surface
• -phytoplankton and zooplankton are the dominant species, also found are free swimming animals

• -formed from the calcium carbonate skeletons of corals
• -corals require a solid substrate for attachment
• -unicellular algae live within the tissues of the corals and form mutualistic relationships that provide the corals with organic molecules

• -the benthic zone is the seafloor
• -organisms in the very deep benthic, or abyssal zone, are adapted to continuous cold and extremely high water pressure
• -unique organisms are associated with deep-sea hydrothermal vents of volcanic origin on mid-oceanic ridges: here the autotrophs are chemoautrophic prokaryotes

the relationship between species in a community (ie. competition, preditation, herbivory, symbiosis)

relationships in a species

species compete for a resource in short supply

local elimination of a competing species (2 species competing can not co-exist)

species' use of biotic and abiotic resources

when there are one or more significant differences in their niches

differentiation of ecological niches, enabling similar species to co-exist in a community

realized niche

a tendency for characteristics to be more divergent in sympatric populations of 2 species than in allopatric populations of the same 2 species

most abundant or highest biomass

total mass of all individual species in a population (no H2O)

introduced to a new environment by humans, lack predators/disease

exert strong control on a community by their ecological niche, not necessarily abundant in a community

cause physical changes in the environment that affect community structure, some foundation species act as facilitators that have positive effects in the survival and reproduction of some other species in the community

the sequence of community and ecosystem changes after a disturbance

occurs when no soil exists when succession begins

begins in an area where soil remains after a disturbance

energy flows through and matter cycles within

gross primary production. Total primary production in an ecosystem.

Net primary production. It is GPP minus energy used by primary producers for respiration. Only NPP is available to consumers.

97%

2%

1%

evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, and movement through surface and ground water

photosynthesis, respiration, volcanoes, burning of fossil fuels

78%

• NH3=>NH4=>NO2=>NO3
• -organic nitrogen is decomposed to NH4+ by ammonification, and NH4+ is decomposed to NO3- by nitrification
• -denitrification converts NO3- back to N2

Phosphate (PO₄^3-)