Animal Ecology

Introduction
BIOMES AND HABITAT SELECTION

It is nearly impossible to discern exactly where one kind of habitat ends and another begins,
since ecosystems change gradually as one moves higher or lower in altitude or latitude. At
the same time however, most species are found in specific types of environments,
characterized by their differences in temperature, humidity, seasonal patterns and location.
Most of these distinct regions or biomes, can be named for the kind of vegetation that grow
there, but all have organisms that evolved adaptations allowing them to survive in those
particular biomes.

Biome is large, relatively distinct terrestrial region with a similar climate soil, plants, and animals,
regardless of where it occurs in the world.Location of each biome is primarily determined by
temperature (varies with both latitude and elevation), precipitation. Biomes can also be defined by
winds, rapid temperature changes, fires, floods, etc.

Learning Objectives:

1. Students will be able to analyze the roles of organisms as part of interconnected food webs,
populations, communities, and ecosystems.
2. Students will be able to assess survival needs and interactions between organisms and the
environment.
3. Students will be able to assess the requirements for sustaining healthy local ecosystems.

TERRESTRIAL BIOMES

Taiga (Coniferous forest)

The taiga is consist of dense forest made up of coniferous, or
cone bearing trees such as pine, spruces, fir and hemlock.
There is often little to no undergrowth in these cool forests,
since the canopy of conifers is thick enough to block mist
sunlight from reaching the forest floor. A blanket of fallen
pine needles cover a thin, poorly fertilized soil, which is made
acidic by the slowly decomposing pine needles. At the same
time, however, these forests receive a great deal of sunlight
which allows the coniferous to grow tall quickly
Figure 1. A forest of the cold, subarctic region
 Desert
Desert are the driest of all biomes with very little rain,
limiting the kinds of vegetation that can grow there. Plants
that do grow there need to be able to store water in their
leaves and stems effectively for a long period of time.

Figure 2. A barren area of landscape where little

precipitation occurs

Tundra
Sometimes called as the frozen dessert, this biome is easily
distinguished by its long , harsh winters that leave vast areas
of Earth’s northernmost latitudes dark for up to 10 months
of the year. In terms of biodiversity, the tundra has fewer
species of animals than other biomes. The tundra is best
known for its characteristic permafrost.

Figure 3. Treeless plain noted for its frost-

molded landscapes

Chaparral (Mediterranean Shrub land)

Found in coastal areas which have long, hot summers
and short, rainy winters. This biome is characterized
by its abundance of fire-resistant plants. Organisms
that live in the chaparral include those that forage for
seeds and larger scavengers as well as certain birds of
prey that can easily hunt for these smaller creatures
when they are exposed among short shrubs.

Figure 4. A heathland plant community found primarily

in the US state of California
Savanna
Savanna biome is similar in many ways to the
chaparral with its often sparse covering of short trees
and lots of shrubs. But the savanna is mainly a
grassland biome, covering a vast areas of the tropics
and subtropics in South America, Africa and
Australia with dense, tall grass and scattered trees.

Figure 5. A mixed woodland grassland ecosystem

characterized by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced

Temperate Grasslands
Temperate grasslands have both hot, dry seasons, and
cool, somewhat rainy seasons. Grassland also have
periodic fires that wipe out vast areas and allows fast-
growing, fire-resistant plants to recolonize within
days. Large razing mammals are common and this
prevents vegetation larger than shrubs from taking
hold. Countless small animals and invertebrates also
live in or on the grounds of temperate grasslands,
consuming vast amounts of dead animal and plant
material and recycling organic compounds into
nutrient-rich soil
Figure 6. A biome characterized by a dominance of grasses

Tropical forest
This biomes exists in much of the world where temperature
and day length are fairly stable throughout the year.
Temperatures are warm and mild (80˚F) and the sun shines
for almost 12 hours each day
In contrast to the warm tropical deciduous forests,
temperate forests experience all four seasons, winter
through fall. Trees growing in temperate forests are
characterized by growing cycles that cause them to lose
their leaves in the colder, drier winters and to regrow them
in the warmer, moister spring and summer months.
Figure 7. A forest found in areas with high
regular rainfall
AQUATIC BIOMES
FRESHWATER BIOMES

STANDING WATER: Lakes and Ponds

Light penetrates the regions of a lake to differing degrees.
The shallow, nutrient-rich shoreline is part of the photic zone,
where light is sufficient for photosynthesis. Rooted plants and
phytoplankton thrive along the shore providing food and
shelter for invertebrates fishes, amphibians and other animals

Figure 8. A pool of water of any size that does

not flow.

RUNNING WATER: Rivers

A river carries water and sediment from land toward
the ocean, providing moisture and habitat to aquatic
and terrestrial organisms. At the headwaters, the
water is clear, the stream channel is narrow and the
current may be swift. Turbulence mixes air with
water, so water is rich in oxygen.

Figure 9. A stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea

MARINE BIOMES

Open Ocean
Both light and nutrients are abundant in the
shallow waters above the continental shelf,
supporting high primary productivity and extensive
marine food webs. Beyond the continental shelf, the
open ocean’s photic zone houses phytoplankton.

Figure 10. The sunlit top layer of the ocean beyond the
continental shelves
Estuary
An estuary is an area where the fresh
water meets the salty ocean. Organisms that can
withstand these extremes receive nutrients from
both river and tides. It therefore houses the some
of the world’s productive ecosystems.

Figure 11. the tidal mouth of a large river, where the tide meets
the stream

Intertidal zone
Along the coastlines, the intertidal zone is the area
between the high tide and low tide marks. This region is
alternately exposed and covered with water as tide falls
and rises. Constantly shifting sands mean that few
producers can take root on the beach, but ocean water
constantly supply organic matter that feeds organisms.

Figure 12. The area that is above water at

low tide and under water at high tide

Coral reef
Coral reefs border tropical coastlines where the
water is clear and sediment-free. These vast
underwater structures of calcium carbonate are
built by coral animals. Coral reefs among the
most diverse ecosystems on Earth thousands of
species of plants and animals live in the cracks
and crevices of coral reefs.Corals are predators
that use stinging tentacles to capture small
animals, such as zooplankton, that float or swim
close to the reef
Figure 12. Coral reefs built by colonies of tiny
animals found in marine water that contain few nutrients
ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION

Occasionally, communities of organisms are completely restructured by environmental disturbances that

result either in the creation of a new landscape where life has not previously existed or in the sweeping
away of an existing community’s flora and fauna. This case is known as the primary succession and the
second case is called secondary succession.

Primary Succession
It is the gradual change of new and lifeless areas of land into thriving ecosystems as various plant
life and other colonizing organisms arrive. The first plants to take hold include small hardy plants such as
lichens, mosses, and grasses. The first organisms to thrive may be insects, small birds and some reptiles.
Larger organisms will follow if these smaller ones are successful. It may take many attempts for life to gain
a strong foothold. It occurs not only in volcanic islands but also in places where a previously uninhabited
area becomes habitable.

Secondary Succession
Secondary Succession is the rebuilding of a community of organisms that has been destroyed by a
natural disaster of by human interference. This typically occurs after a forest fire, volcanic eruption, or
flood, and it results in the formation of a new community. The end community will generally differ from
the community that existed before the disaster because of the various factors that affect the process of
succession.

Figure 13.a. An example of primary succession

Figure 13.b. Secondary Succession

INTERSPECIFIC RELATIONSHIPS- COMMUNITY INTERACTIONS

All of the interactions that exist between organisms of different species in an ecosystem fall into a category
of symbiosis, a word meaning “to live together”. These relationships include competition, parasitism,
commensalism, and mutualism.

Competition
Competition can arise in several ways and manifest
itself when species physically fight to gain access to
resources (interference competition), or when simply
compete by consuming the same resources (exploitative
competition)

Figure 14. Lions competing for a resources

 Parasitism
In this form of predation, on organism lives on or within
another organism in order to derive energy and nutrients
for itself. In this type of interaction, a parasite is
strengthened and the host is harmed.

Figure 15. A mosquito sucking a blood

Commensalism
Commensals are organisms that interact in a way resulting
in one organism benefiting from the relationship, while
the other neither benefits nor harmed.
In a commensal relationship one species benefits while the
other remains unaffected. The commensal organism may
depend on its host for food, shelter, support, or
transportation.
Figure 16. Shark and lamprey showing
commensalism

Mutualism
An interaction between two species that benefits
both of them is called a mutualism. Mutualistic
interactions can be just as integral to the
organization of biological communities; in some
cases, they are among the most important elements
of the community structure.

Figure 17. A bee sucking a nectar from the flower

manifesting mutualism

COMMUNITY STRUCTURE AND DIVERSITY

As the number of species in an ecosystem increases and the population size of each species grows, the
greater the number of symbiotic interactions are possible and the more complex the ecosystems will be. It
is important to note that the number of organism types in an ecosystem is very different from the number
of organisms of each species in a ecosystem, yet both factors are important in considering the complexity
and diversity of a given community within an ecosystem.
FOOD WEBS AND PRODUCTIVITY
All ecosystems are comprised of three basic “classes” of organisms: producers which can harness light
(photosynthetic autotrophs) or chemical energy (chemosynthetic autotrophs) and turn it into sugars and
biomolecules; consumers, (primary, secondary and tertiary) which take energy built by the producers and
use it to grow and reproduce; and decomposers, (also known as saprophytes or detritivores) a type of
consumer which are responsible for breaking down the bodies and cells of dead producers and consumers.
Although an ecosystem may be able to function with only producers and decomposers, it is the vast array
of consumers that have evolved in every ecosystem which has helped to fill Earth with its extensive
biodiversity.

ENERGY FLOW IN COMMUNITIES

The term food chain is often used to describe a community, depicting a simple linear relationship between
a series of species, with one eating the other. The different levels in the food chain are called trophic levels.
A more realistic depiction of relationships within a community is a food web, in which every population
interacts not only with one other population but with several other population
The greater the number of potential interactions in a community food web, the more stable systems will be,
and the more able it will be to withstand and rebound from external pressures such as disease or weather

Figure 18. A food web that shows the transfer of energy within the ecosystem

Each trophic level in the food web contains different quantities of stored chemical energy in the populations
in contains. When consumers eat producers, and secondary consumers eat primary consumer, some energy
is lost in each transfer from one level to another.
As producers get energy from the sun, not all of the energy is converted into stored energy in chemical
bonds. Some energy is lost at that level to the metabolic needs of organisms. Plants consume some of the
energy they produced in respiration to support their own metabolic activities. The total chemical energy
generated by the consumers in a given area is that ecosystem’s gross primary productivity, and the total
productivity with losses from respiration and other energy used by plants subtracted is the net primary
productivity
Only about 10% of the stored chemical energy is present
in the next higher trophic level at every stage, although
this number is very approximate and depend greatly on
the habitat and the organisms involved. The energy
contained in a community can be visualized as a pyramid.
Although the efficiency of energy transfer between levels
can differ greatly, the pyramid will always have the most
energy in the producer level, with less in each level of
consumers.

Figure 19. The transfer of energy in an ecosystem

Activity

1. List examples of adaptations of dessert and polar animals to the climate of their respective
biomes.
2. How can the poor soil of the tropical rainforest support such diverse and abundant life?
3. What are some ways in which people influence succession in ecosystems?
4. Describe the trophic levels in a typical ecosystem. Discuss the flow of energy through the
ecosystem, the relationship between the different trophic levels, and the factors that limit the
number of trophic levels.
Referrences:

https://www.google.com.ph/search?

ocean.si.edu/corals-and-coral-reefs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intertidal_zone

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/estuary.html

Hoefnagels, Marielle,2016. General Biology Books I and II, (Hoefnagels, 2016) Communities and
Ecosystem,p.378-380
Animal
Ecology
Prepared by: Kysia G. Perono

MAST-1202