Biology
Ecology
Biomes and
Relationships
What are the Characteristics of Life?
Biotic – living components of an ecosystem
Abiotic – Nonliving component of an ecosystem
All things living have
the following specific
properties:
•Cellular organization
•Metabolism
•Homeostasis
•Respond to their
Environment
•Reproduction
•Heredity
Other
animals
281,000
Fungi
69,000
Prokaryotes
4,800
Insects
751,000
Plants
248,400
Protists
57,700
Known species
1,412,000
About 1.4 million species have been identified, but estimates of number of
species range from 3.6 million to 100 million
Activity
Ecosystem Organization Overview
Biosphere- Zone of earth where life is found.
Sometimes called the ecosphere
Ecosystems- Community of different species
interacting with one another and with the chemical
and physical factors making up its nonliving
environment
Communities- Populations of all species living and
interacting in an area at a particular time
Populations- Group of individual organisms of the
same species living in a particular area
Organisms Any form of life (species)- group of
organisms that resemble one another in
appearance, behavior, chemical makeup and
processes, and genetic structure.
Ecosystem
Components
The major components of
ecosystems are abiotic
(nonliving) water, air,
nutrients, solar energy, and
biotic (living) plants,
animals, and microbes.
Niche – How organisms
interact with each other
within a community. An
organism role in the
ecosystem
Habitat is the place
where a population or an
individual organism
usually lives
Climate
Long-term average weather
patterns 30-1 million years
It is determined by
Average
Precipitation
and
Average
Temperature
Influence by
Latitude
Altitude
Ocean
Currents
That affects
Where organisms
Live (Habitat)
How Organisms
Live (Niche)
What organisms
eat (energy flow)
Temperature Controls
Factors that influence ecosystem
Major Biomes and the Role of Climate
The amount of energy
received and
topography of a region
determines climate.
Terrestrial parts of the
biosphere are classified
as biomes, areas such
as deserts, forests, and
grasslands.
Temperature, precipitation and topography
(abiotic factors) determine the vegetation (plants)
and the animals they will support
Aquatic life zones
describe the many
different areas found in
a water environment,
such as freshwater or
marine life zones (coral
reefs, coastal estuaries,
deep ocean).
Biomes of the World
Polar
Temperate
Tropic of
Cancer
Equator
Tropics
Tropic of
Capricorn
Arctic tundra (polar grasslands)
Desert
Boreal forest (taiga), evergreen coniferous
forest (e.g., montane coniferous forest)
Tropical rain forest,
tropical evergreen forest
Semidesert,
arid grassland
Mountains
(complex zonation)
Temperate deciduous forest
Tropical deciduous forest
Ice
Temperate grassland
Tropical scrub forest
Dry woodlands and
shrublands (chaparral)
Tropical savanna,
thorn forest
Forests
Tropical Rainforest
Deciduous Forest
Taiga
Grassland
Tundra
Desert
Unique
Environments
Mountains
Ice Worlds
Caves
Aquatic Life Zones-Marine and freshwater portions of the biosphere. Examples include
freshwater life zones (such as lakes and streams) and ocean or marine life zones
Sun
Sea level
50
Euphotic Zone
100
Estuarine
Zone
Continental
shelf
200
500
Bathyal Zone
1,000
1,500
Marine Life Zones:
Shallow seas
Photosynthesis
0
Twilight
Open Sea
Depth in
meters
Abyssal Zone
2,000
3,000
Open Ocean
4,000
5,000
10,000
Darkness
High tide
Low tide
Coastal Zone
Freshwater Life Zones
Freshwater life zones contain less than 1% by volume of salt. These zones
include standing (lentic) bodies such as lakes, ponds, and wetlands and flowing
(lotic) systems such as streams and rivers.
Lentic bodies
Standing water Lakes
are large natural
bodies of standing
water found in
depressions.
Rainfall, melting snow,
and stream
drainage feed lakes.
Lakes generally consist
of four distinct
zones depending on
depth and distance
from shore
Major Characteristics of Freshwater Stream and Rivers
The source zone is narrow
and fast moving. It dissolves
large amounts of oxygen from
air and most plants are
attached to rocks. Light is
available, but is not very
productive.
Flowing Freshwater Systems
Three aquatic life zones, each with different conditions can
be identified along stream flow.
The transition zone forms
wider, deeper streams that
flow down gentler slopes. The
water is warmer, with more
nutrients and supports more
producers, but has slightly
lower dissolved oxygen.
The floodplain zone has
wider, deeper rivers. Water
temperature is warmer, less
dissolved oxygen is present,
and flow is slower.
Freshwater Life Zones
Wetlands
Types:
Marshes: dominated by grasses and reeds few trees
Swamps: dominated by trees and shrubs
Prairie Potholes: depressions carved out by glaciers
Floodplain: which receive excess water during heavy rains and floods
Tundra: receive excess water during the artic summer
Seasonal: Are wetland are only soggy for a short time of the year
Importance of wetlands
Inland wetlands cover the land for a part of all of
each year. Wetlands include swamps, marshes,
prairie potholes, floodplains, and arctic tundra in
summer.
Scientists also use soil composition and plant life
to define whether a particular area is a wetland.
Wetlands provide a number of free ecological
services such as filtering toxic wastes/pollutants,
absorbing/storing excess water from storms, and
providing habitats for a variety of species.
Relationships
Predator / Prey
Symbiotic Relationships
A relationship in which two species live
closely together
Mutualism
Commensalism
Parasitism
Symbiotic Species Interactions:
Mutualism (+/+)
Pollination mutualism
Insects
Nutritional mutualism
Hermit crabs and Anemones
Gut inhabitant mutualism
Cellulose digesting protozoa
Parasitism (+/-)
Parasite – organisms feeding on or in
another species
Host – organisms fed on by parasites
External parasites
Internal parasites
Commensalism (+/0)
Species interaction that benefits
one and has little or no effect on
the other.
Example: Small plants growing
in shade of larger plants or
Hermit crab and Rag worm
Lifecycle of a Parasite
The head of the
tapeworm is called a
scolex, and is equipped
with hooks and suckers
which are used for
attaching to the intestinal
wall of the host. Adult
tapeworms, some
reaching a length of 15
feet, are parasites in the
guts of animals and
absorb nutrients across
their body surface. The
structures behind the
head are called
proglottids.
Species Interactions – Predation / prey
Prey Acquisition
Example: Killer Whales
Predator Avoidance
Camouflage
Span worm
Deceptive
Behavior
Wandering leaf insect
Deceptive
Look
Chemical
Warfare
Predator / prey relationships –
Tundra
Savannah
Ocean
Hind wings of Io moth
resemble eyes of a
much larger animal
Poison dart frog
Mimicry
Bombardier beetle
Hunting and Escaping
When touched, the
snake caterpillar
changes shape to look
like the head of a snake
Foul-tasting monarch
Butterfly
Viceroy butterfly mimics
monarch butterfly
Predator Avoidance - Camouflage
American
Bittern
(Botaurus
lentiginosus)
camouflaged,
Florida.
Flatfish on sand, showing ability to blend with
background. Protective coloration and
camouflage.
Crab Spider camouflaged on a
Woodland Sunflower.
Predator Avoidance Mimics
Ant Mimic
Spider
(Castianeira
variata) with
ant.
Moth
(Eupterotidae)
mimicking a
chewed leaf.
Viceroy (top) and Monarch
(below) Butterflies. Mullerian
mimicry.
Predator Avoidance Chemical Warfare and
Warning Coloration
Three-Striped
Poison Frog
(Epipedobates
trivittatus),
Tambopata
River, Peru.
Monarch caterpillar (Danas
plexippus) on Milkweed.
Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus
fulvius), Florida.
Ecology – Key Terms
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Ecology
Abiotic
Biotic
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Habitat
Niche
Predator
Prey
Symbiosis
Commensalism
Parasitism
Mutualism
Organism
Biosphere
Organizing key terms:
Living v. nonliving
Organization
Relationships
Biotic (living)
Biosphere
Symbiosis:
Mutualism (+/+)
Commensalism
(+/0)
Parasitism (+/-)
Abiotic (nonliving)
Ecosystem
Community
Predator
Prey
Population
Organism
(species)
Habitat
(location)
Niche
(role / job)