Environmental Science
Chapter 4 Lecture Notes
Studying Ecosystems
Chapter 4 Targets
1. I can define ecosystem and what makes
it a system.
2. I can distinguish between the biotic and
abiotic factors in an ecosystem.
3. I can list and describe the levels of
ecological organization.
4. I can list 5 characteristics that all living
things must have.
5. I can describe how a population differs from
a species.
6. I can explain how habitats are important for
organisms and how they differ from a niche.
Defining an Ecosystem



___________________: ____________ between
communities of organisms and their ___________
environment
 -EXAMPLES: oak forest, coral reef
-Ecosystems do not have ___________________
and they do NOT need to be _______________!
-Things move from one ecosystem to another
 -Pollen can blow from a forest into a field
 -Soil can wash from a mountain into a lake
 -Birds migrate from state to state
T1
Components of an Ecosystem


Ecosystems need five components:
 1. _______________
 2. _______________
 3. _______________
 4. _______________
 5. _______________
If one part is destroyed or changes, the entire
system will be affected.
T2
Biotic and Abiotic Factors

Biotic factors: ______________
organisms or ________________
associated with them:
 1. ____________
 2. ____________
 3. ____________
 4. ____________


5. Examples from Microhabitat lab?
Abiotic factors: _______________
factors in the environment
which ____________ ecosystems:
 1. ___________
 2. ___________
 3. ___________
 4. ___________

5. Examples from Microhabitat
lab?
T2
Let’s imagine . . .


Close your eyes and visualize an ecosystem
Think about what you might see, hear, or
smell
Comprehension Check
Make a table with 2 columns. Label the columns as biotic and abiotic. You
will have 30 seconds to list as many biotic and abiotic factors seen in a
marine ecosystem. Make sure to write each in the correct column.
Levels of Ecological
Organization
Biome
T3
Organisms
Organisms: ___________________ that
carry out _______ life
processes/characteristics
 Name 5 characteristics all organisms
share.
 ___________: groups of closely related
organisms that can mate to produce
 ___________________

T4
Populations

Populations: groups of __________
species that ________________ in a
specific area and _____________
T3/T5
Communities
Communities: groups of ___________
that ________________________and
 ____________ with each other.
 (any examples from the movie?)

T3
Biomes

Biomes:
T3
Biosphere

Biosphere:
T3
Habitat vs. Niche


Habitat: _________ where an organism usually lives
 -have specific characteristics that organisms living
there need to survive
 -if any of these factors change, the habitat changes
(what would happen to the organisms living there?)
Niche: the _______ an organism plays in its habitat
 -____________

-____________

-____________

-____________
T6
Comprehension Check
What is the term for the area where
organisms live together with their
physical environment?
A. biome
B. biosphere
C. ecosystem
D. population
Chapter 4 Targets
7. I can explain the concept of adaptation.
8. I can describe the steps by which a
population of insects becomes resistant to
pesticide.
Adaptations

Adaptation: _______ of becoming better
able to survive in an environment.

-___________________

-_______________

-_______________
T7
Evolution of Resistance

-Resistance: _______ to ___________ a
chemical


-An organism may be resistant to a chemical
when it has a _________ allowing it to break
down the chemical into harmless substances.
-Humans _____________ the evolution of
____________ populations by trying to
control pests and bacteria with chemicals
T7
Pesticide Resistance




1. Pesticide sprayed on corn to kill
insect, may kill ________insects,
but those surviving may have a
_________ protecting them from
the pesticide.
2. Surviving insects pass resistant
gene to _____________.
3. Each time corn is sprayed,
more ____________ insects enter
population.
4. Eventually ____________
population will be resistant,
making the pesticide __________.
T8
Pesticide Resistance
T8
Comprehension Check
What inherited trait increases an
organism’s chance of survival and
reproduction in a certain environment?
A. adaptation
B. characteristic
C. evolution
D. resistance
Chapter 4 Targets
9. I can name the six kingdoms of organisms
and identify two characteristics of each.
10. I can explain the importance of bacteria and
fungi in the environment.
11. I can describe the importance of fungi in the
environment.
12. I can describe how angiosperms and
animals depend on each other.
13. I can explain why insects are such
successful animals (see movie)
The Diversity of Living Things




-Six Kingdoms of organisms classified by:
 -________________________________
 -________________________________
 -________________________________
EXAMPLES:
-Cells of animals, plants, fungi, and protists all
contain a nucleus.
-Cells of bacteria, fungi, and plants all have cell
walls.
T9
The Kingdoms of Life
T9
Kingdoms Eubacteria and
Archaebacteria

-Bacteria: small; ________________; usually
with ________________


-Two main kingdoms of bacteria:



-Unlike all other organisms, bacteria do
______________________
-Archaebacteria
-Eubacteria (most common bacteria)
-Bacteria live in every habitat on Earth, from hot
springs to bodies of animals
T10
Bacteria and the Environment

Important roles in ecosystems:
 1. _____________________
 2. ________________ nutrients, such as
nitrogen and phosphorus
 3. ____________ nitrogen from air into form
plants can use.
 4. Allow organisms to get certain ____________
from food.
 -Escherichia coli (E. coli) found in intestines of
humans /other animals helps digest food and
release vitamins
T10
Kingdom Fungi

-Fungus: have _________, ____________,
and no ______________
 -A mushroom is the reproductive structure
of a fungus. The rest of the fungus is an
underground network of fibers that absorb
food from decaying organisms in the soil.
T9
Fungi and the Environment

-Get food by ____________________
to break down dead biotic matter, and
then _____________ the nutrients.
-Like bacteria, play important role in
__________________ bodies of dead
organisms
T11
Kingdom Protista
-Protists: most are _________ organisms
 -Most important protists are algae. WHY?
-Main source of __________ in most
ocean and freshwater ecosystems.

T9
Plant Kingdom
 -Plants:
______________,
make ___________ using sun’s
energy, have ____________
T9
2 Major Groups of Plants
-Gymnosperms: plants whose seeds
are not ________________
 -Conifers (pine trees) are gymnosperms
with cones
 -Much of our lumber and paper comes
form gymnosperms.
 Angiosperms: _____________ plants that
produce seeds within _____________. Most
land plants are angiosperms.

T9
Kingdom Animalia
-___________ make their own food,
_____________ food
 -No ____________________
 -__________________ during at least
one stage in their life

T9
Angiosperms and Animals


Most land animals depend on flowering
plants (angiosperms):
 -Most ___________ (wheat, rice, beans,
oranges, and lettuce) comes from
flowering plants
 -_________ materials and fibers (oak and
cotton) come from flowering plants
Most flowering plants depend on_________:

-Animals like insects and bats pollinate flowering
plants
T12
Comprehension Check
What are the six kingdoms of life?
A. Archaebacteria, Eubacteria, Fungi, Protists,
Plants, Animals
B. Eubacteria, Fungi, Protists, Plants, Land Animals,
Marine Animals
C. Bacteria, Fungi, Plant-like Protists, Animal-like
Protists, Plants, Animals
D. Bacteria, Fungi, Protists, Flowering Plants, Nonflowering Plants, Animals