UNIT NOTES-ECOLOGY
ECOLOGY
________________ is the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment.
The biosphere contains combined portions of the planet that include: _____________,
______________, and ________________.
LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION
The levels of organization that ecologists study include: ____________, ____________,
_____________, ______________, and ________________.
1. A _______________ is a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring.
2. ________________ are groups of individuals that belong to the same ____________ and live in the same area.
3. ________________ are assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined area.
4. An _____________ is a collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place.
5. A ______________ is a group of ecosystems that have the same climate and similar dominant communities.
6. The highest level of organization is the _______________ itself.

UNIT NOTES-ECOLOGY
METHODS TO STUDY ECOLOGY
1. _____________________: The first step in asking questions.
2. _____________________: Can be used to test hypotheses.
3. _____________________: Ecologists make these to gain insight.
PRODUCERS
______________ is the main energy source for life on Earth.
Some organisms rely on the energy stored in ________________________________.
_____________________ capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use that energy to produce food.
Because they make their own food, autotrophs are called _________________.
During ___________________, some autotrophs use light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and carbohydrates.
Autotrophs that can produce food in the absence of light perform a process called
__________________.
CONSUMERS
Organisms that rely on other organisms for their energy and food supply are called
_______________.
Heterotrophs are called _____________.
Types of heterotrophs:
1.
________________ eat plants.
2.
________________ eat animals.
3.
________________ eat both plants and animals.
4.
________________ feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter.
5.
________________ (bacteria and fungi) break down organic matter.
FEEDING RELATIONSHIPS
A ________________ is a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten.
A ________________ links all the food chains in an ecosystem together.

UNIT NOTES-ECOLOGY
Each step in the food chain or food web is called a __________ __________.

______________ make up the first level.

______________ make up the second, third, or higher trophic levels.
ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS
An ____________________ is a diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level in a food chain or food web.
Three types of pyramids:
1.
____________________—shows the amount of energy available at each trophic level.
2.
____________________—shows the total amount of living tissue within a given level.
3.
____________________—shows the number of organisms at each trophic level.
BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS
_______________ include all the living things in which an organism might interact.
Physical, or nonliving, factors that shape ecosystems are called _______________.

_____________, _________________, ______________, ________,
____________________________, _____________, and _________________.
The area where an organism lives is called its ______________.
A ________ is the full range of physical and biological conditions in which an organism lives and the way the organism uses the condition.
COMMUNITY INTERACTIONS
_________________ occurs when organisms of the same or different species attempt to use a resource in the same place at the same time.
An interaction where one organism captures and feeds on another organism is called
_______________. The organism that does the killing and eating is the ____________. The food organism is the ____________.
Any relationship in which two species live closely together is called _______________.

_________________—both species benefit from the relationship.

_______________—one member benefits and the other is not helped or harmed.

_________________—one member lives on or inside another organism and harms it.

UNIT NOTES-ECOLOGY
LIMITING FACTORS
A ________________ is a factor that causes population growth to decrease.
______________________________: A limiting factor that depends on population size.
Density-dependent limiting factors include:
1.
_________________—Organisms compete for food, water space, and sunlight.
2.
_________________—Takes place within a predator-prey relationship
3.
_________________—They live in or on an organism. They limit population growth.
4.
_________________—They limit population growth.
_______________________________: affect all populations, regardless of the population size
Examples of density-independent limiting factors:
1.
_________________________
2.
_________________________
3.
_________________________
4.
_________________________