Parts of the
Ecosystem
ECOSYSTEMS
An ECOSYSTEM must provide what
an organism needs to survive, or the
organism must move, adapt, or die.
To stay alive, organisms need
4 things:




Energy (food)
Water
Oxygen
Living space
An Organism and Its Environment
Habitat: Place where organism lives which
is determined by climate and adaptations.
LIVING THINGS AND THEIR
ENVIRONMENT
Environment– all the living and nonliving
things with which an organism interacts.
All the living and nonliving things in an environment
are interconnected. If one factor is affected
another factor is thrown off balance. Nature is
always trying to stay in balance.
What is Ecology?
 Study of the
interactions between
organisms and
their environment
ECOSYSTEMS
•The living parts of an ecosystem are
called BIOTIC factors
•Examples: trees, plants, flowers,
insects, animals
ECOSYSTEMS
The non-living things in an
ecosystem are called ABIOTIC
factors
Examples : water, rocks, soil, air,
temperature, wind, carbon
dioxide, nutrients, sunlight
Organization in the
Environment
 Ecologists have arranged the
environment in different levels
Organism
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Biosphere
The 5 Levels:
#1 Organism
 1. An individual is
a single organism.
Ex: an alligator, a human, an oak tree
The 5 Levels:
#2 Population
A population is a group of
individuals of the same
species in the same area.
Ex: group of alligators, herd of deer
The 5 Levels:
#3 Community
A community consists of all of the
populations of different species that live
and interact in an area.
The 5 Levels:
#4 Ecosystem
An ecosystem is made up of a community of
organisms and its abiotic environment
The 5 Levels:
Level #5 Biosphere
The biosphere
is the part of
Earth where life
exists
ENVIRONMENTAL
ORGANIZATION
 Biosphere - the entire Earth
 Animals & plants adapt to best survive
in the conditions of each Earth
region. These regions are called the
biomes.
Salt Marsh Ecosystem
 Organism- egret, Seaside sparrow, Periwinkle
snail, oyster, Laughing gull
 Population- Laughing gull, Codgrass
 Community- Sparrows eat the crabs, algae
grows on grass, snail uses grass as shelter
and protection
 Ecosystem- how does temp., precipitation, soil
affect the organisms?, river brings in nitrogen
which helps the algae grow
 Biosphere- where all life lives
Biotic and Abiotic Factors
 Biotic: Laughing gulls, seaside sparrow,
codgrass, snail, algae, jellyfish (any of
the animals or plants)
 Abiotic: sunlight, river (water),
temperature, soil, rain (weather),
nutrients from the nitrogen