The Ecosystem

Engr. Joseph Kitma III, BSCHE,MSME,SLUBoys’high’89

 What is an ECOSYSTEM?
An ecosystem includes all of the living things (plants, animals
and organisms) in a given area, interacting with each other, and
also with their non-living environments (weather, earth, sun,
soil, climate, atmosphere).
An ecosystem is a grouping of organisms that
interact with each other and their environment in
such a way as to perpetuate the grouping.
A group of organism can only perpetuate itself as
long as a structure is maintained that enables
energy flow and nutrient cycling.
On the basis of this definition of an ecosystem,
ecology can be defined as the study of
ecosystems or the Study of any and all of the
interrelationships among organisms and between
organisms and their environment. An ecologist is
thus a person who studies these relationships.
 Some Terminologies
• Species: a group of living organisms consisting of similar
individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding.

• Abiotic: Physical, or non-living, factors that shape an ecosystem.

These abiotic have a direct influence on living things. Examples
include rocks, climate, pressure, soils, precipitation, sunlight,
winds and humidity.

• Biotic: Living factors such as plants, animals, fungi, protist and

bacteria are all biotic or living factors. Biotic factors depend on
abiotic factors to survive. The kind of biotic factors (living
organisms) in a given area is often as a result of abiotic conditions
of that area.
• Habitat: the area where an organism lives, including
the biotic and abiotic factors that affect it.

• Producers: Organisms such as plants that produce their

own food are called autotrophs. They are called
producers because all the species depend on them.

• Consumers: organisms that cannot make their own

food are called heterotrophs. They are called
consumers because they depend on others.

• Plankton: Microscopic plants and animals that live in

water.
 Organism interactions
• Competition: is an interaction between organisms or
species in which the fitness of one is lowered by the
presence of another.

• Symbiosis: Relationship in which two species live closely

together, usually benefiting from each other. There are
three types of this relationship:
1. Parasitism: parasite benefits, the host is hurt.
2. Commensalism: one species benefits, the
other is neither hurt nor helped.
3. Mutualism: both species benefit

• Predation: one species feeds on another

 Principles of an Ecosystem
• Speciation: Living organisms develop in populations of
unique individuals that are capable of reproducing
viable offspring.

• Diversity: Individual species have evolved unique

differences from one another. This is nature’s way of
developing and testing new and more successful forms
of life. Without diversity in an ecosystem there is less
opportunity for invention, less flexibility to adapt to
changes in the environment. Diversity strengthens the
entire system.
• Habitat: Individual species have adapted to the conditions of
unique niches, territories, watersheds, and climates. A habitat is
shaped by soil, water and air, and by the living organisms
themselves. An ecosystem is host to a great diversity of species
uniquely adapted to overlapping and interdependent habitats.

• Adaptation: Individual species change or adapt physical features

and behaviors to better survive changing conditions in their habitat.
Features and behaviors that are successful allow a particular
organism to survive and reproduce. Features and behaviors that are
not successful means that the organism will not live to reproduce
and so will not pass on its genetic information, a failed experiment.
Just as changes in habitat force adaptations in individual species,
these same adaptations in species will create new changes in
habitat, so little by little the whole system is evolving
interdependently.
• Interdependence: All of life is a web of interactions
and evolving adaptations between species and their
habitats. It is a beautiful and complex choreography of
self-organizing relationships. No species, including
humans, can survive separate from this web.

• Evolution: The interdependent adaptations between

species and habitat create biological change over time.
New forms of life are always emerging, converging and
diverging, pursuing the greatest health and flexibility
for the entire system. What is so magnificent about the
human species is that our special adaptations allow us
to consciously observe the very process we are
embedded in. It’s as if the entire universe has
conspired to create such a being just to look back up on
itself . And perhaps forward as well.
• Distribution: the natural geographic place where
species occur either though migration or emigration.

• Population Density: no. of species per unit of living

space.

• Dominance: the degree to which a species is more

numerous than its competitors.

• Limiting Factors: Environmental factors

 THE CONCEPT OF AN ECOSYSTEM
An ecosystem may be compared to a spaceship designed to maintain astronauts for
long periods of time. Such a self-sustaining spaceship is a theoretical possibility and in
principle, is really quite simple.

A window of the spaceship locates a large glass tank containing microscopic algae. As
the large algae are exposed to light, they carry on photosynthesis. In this process,
the algae absorb carbon dioxide and water and they use the energy from light to
make these two raw materials into energy rich glucose (sugar). In further steps, the
algae use the glucose and additional nutrients from the solution in the tank to build
their growing and dividing cells. In the process of photosynthesis the algae also
produce oxygen which would go into the astronaut’s breathing tanks. As the
astronauts breathe they consume the oxygen and release carbon dioxide, which is
precisely the gas needed by the algae for photosynthesis. When the astronauts gets
hungry and thirsty, they could simply deep into the tank for a nutritious bowl of
algae soup. By the time the next meal came, the algae would have reproduced
sufficiently to replace the amount consumed by the astronauts. The astronaut’s
body wastes, after a period of decomposition, would be put back into the tank to
supply the water and nutrients needed by the algae.
Theoretically, this system could go on indefinitely, the astronauts using the products of the
algae and the algae using the products of the astronauts. Only light, the source of energy
necessary for photosynthesis by green plants, must be supplied by the outside.

Perhaps the thought of recycling one’s body wastes back into one’s food seems repulsive,
but repulsive or not, this is how the world works. Pictures of the earth taken from the
moon emphasize that the world is a body suspended ¡n the void of space- a large, self-
contained spaceship receiving essentially nothing from the outside except radiation from
the sun.

On this spaceship, Earth, not only algae but also the entire multitude of plants
participate in absorbing carbon dioxide, water, and other nutrients from the
environment. With the energy from the sun, these raw materials are made into
chemicals composing the plant bodies and oxygen ¡s released into the air. All animals
including humans depend upon these plants as the ultimate source of food to eat and
oxygen to breathe. The metabolism of the animals returns carbon dioxide and other
nutrients to the environment where they may be reused by plants.
During the several billion years of life on earth, chemical elements have been, and
continue to be, recycled from the non-living environment through living organisms and
back to the environment. Chemical elements which now compose your body and mind
have been used before to make the fishes, dinosaurs, trees, and so on of the past, and
they will be used again in making countless plants and animals of the future.
 CARDINAL PRINCIPLES OF THE ECOSYSTEM
NUTRIENT CYCLING
Nutrient cycling is the movement of chemical elements from the environment into living
organisms and from them back into the environment as organisms live, grow, die, and
decompose.
Examples:
1. Carbon Cycle
2. Oxygen Cycle
3. Phosphorous Cycle
The overall idea of nutrient cycling may be further clarified by considering the concepts
organic and inorganic. The term organic is from the same root as organism, which refers to
any and every living thing: plant, animal, or microbe. Thus organic, In Its most general
sense, means of or from any living thing.
Examples:
1. Plants, animals, microbes
2. Dead organisms and their tissues
3. Sugar, honey, flour, wood, leather
Conversely, inorganic refers to anything that is not derived from living organisms.
Examples:
1. Rock and other minerals
2. Air
3. Water
4. Metals
ENERGY FLOW
In an ecosystem, the basic building blocks are the inorganic nutrients present in air, water,
and soil. But these nutrients will not be formed into organic tissues of an organism without
expenditure of energy. Sunlight is the source of energy by green plants to organize inorganic
nutrients into the organic substances that make up their bodies.
Some of the energy that is required to build the organic substances is trapped within the
organic materials as they are constructed. That is, while some of the energy is used in the
process of making organic material, there is some energy, which ends up in the product
itself. When the organic material breaks down again to inorganic nutrients, the energy
trapped within it is released. Herein lies the key to animal life. Animals, like plants, require
energy to convert the nutrients of their food into tissues of their bodies; they require energy
for all their activities as well. Thus, the food that an animal eats plays a dual role. A small
fraction supplies the necessary building blocks that are made into the tissues of their
bodies, but the largest fraction is broken down to release needed energy. Inorganic
chemicals, which result from this breakdown, are excreted as body wastes- but they are not
wastes in terms of the overall ecosystem. They are nutrients that can be and are used again
by plants, continuing the nutrient cycles. Cycling continues, however, only so long as the
system is supplied with the light energy, which is required to build organic materials from
inorganic nutrients. Without light, cycling would come to stop. It is important to emphasize
that as energy is used to do work, it is lost from the ecosystem as heat which is not, and
cannot, be recycled as nutrients are recycled; additional energy must continually be
supplied, consequently, there is one-way flow of energy through an ecosystem in contrast to
the cycling of nutrients within it.
STRUCTURE
In the earlier description of the spaceship, an obvious functional relationship existing
between algae and astronauts is assumed, Such a spaceship would be doomed to failure
if for example, the algae proved to be inedible or to lack some vitamin essential to the
astronauts. Likewise, it would be doomed if the algal tank were too small to provide
algal growth to keep up with the appetite of the astronauts, and so on. We can see,
therefore, that to establish an ecosystem requires more than just putting together any
combination of plants and animals. Specific relationships must exist between plants and
animals that ensure that, overall, the needs of each group are mutually satisfied. The
particular pattern of interrelationship that exists between organisms in an ecosystem is
the structure of the ecosystem.
In the spaceship ecosystem the structure is very simple Consisting only of algae and
astronauts supplying each other’s nutrient needs. On earth, the multitude of different
plants and animals comprise a structure that is far more complex but no less
fundamental, Energy flow and nutrient cycling can only occur as long as a certain
structure, that ¡s, a relationship between organisms is maintained.
In summary, these three cardinal principles- nutrient cycling energy flow, and structure-
form the functional basis of every ecosystem. Given a suitable structure, energy from an
outside source flows through the system and fuels a cycling of nutrients within the
system.
COMPONENTS OF ECOSYSTEM STRUCTURE
ABIOTIC FACTORS
Abiotic factors include all chemical and physical components of the environment.
Examples:
1. temperature
2. Light
3. Soil characteristics
4. Availability of various nutrients
5. Amount of moisture
Despite this complexity consideration of the abiotic factors is very important because they
determine the type of structure of ecosystem that may be supported in an area. This
follows from the obvious fact that every plant and animal must be adapted to cope with,
and obtain its needs within the framework of, the abiotic factors of the area which It
inhabits; if it ¡s not, it cannot live in that area. All abiotic factors in their various
combination will have some bearing on the structure of an ecosystem.
“The pace of a caravan is set by the slowest camel”
The overall structure of an ecosystem be determined by a single abiotic factor. Such a factor
is called Limiting Factor. For most of the land areas of the earth, moisture or the amount of
rainfall is the overriding or the limiting factor which is responsible for the basic
categorization of ecosystems into forests, grasslands, or deserts.
The amount of moisture is generally the master limiting factor. Other factors may be
limiting in particular situations.
BIOTIC COMPONENTS
PRODUCERS
Within every major ecosystem the most important producers are the green plants
depending upon the ecosystem. Green plants are called producers because they produce
the organic matter, which all other organisms feed upon. Green plants do this through the
process of photosynthesis. The connection between green plants and photosynthetic ability
is not incidental. The green color indicates the presence of chlorophyll, a pigment that is
instrumental in absorbing light energy for Photosynthesis.
In examining any ecosystem it is safe to assume that every green plant contains chlorophyll,
carries on photosynthesis and a producer Plants with deep color, other than green, are also
producers. In such plants, the presence of pigments other than Chlorophyll tends to
overshadow the green color. These different pigments also absorb light energy and are also
producers.
But not all plants are producers. Fungi such as mushroom and molds do not carry on
Photosynthesis nor do some flowering plants like beech drops and Indian pipe. The lack of
photosynthetic ability of these plants are evident in their whitish color, which indicates a
lack of chlorophyll or any pigment capable of absorbing light energy. Most such
nonproducer plants are decomposers.
The producers of an ecosystem use energy to produce organic matter from inorganic
nutrients. The organic matter incorporated into the producers becomes the source of
energy and nutrients, which sustains
DECOMPOSERS
Much of the detritus in ecosystem, particularly dead leaves and wood, is apparently not
eaten by detritus feeders but rots, decays, or decomposes. Actually, feeding activity of
certain organisms called decomposers causes this rotting or decomposition. They are
microscopic, so all we see is more on the decomposition not on the organism. However,
in a functional sense, decomposers are simply specialized detritus feeders. Like other
consumers, they derive energy and nutrients from the organic matter on which they
feed. There are two types of decomposers: Bacteria and Fungi.
The importance of decomposers in the ecosystem may be better appreciated by thinking
about the volume of leaf drop occurring in each fall in deciduous forests. It is not
uncommon to find a foot or more of dead leaves and other detritus covering the forest
floor in the late fall, if it were not for the decomposers, much of this materials would
accumulate from year to year, and it would not be many years before forests would
smother in their own litters.
Autotrophs and Heterotrophs
The various organisms that feed upon other organisms and their wastes products have
been described as consumers, detritus feeders and decomposers. These kinds of
organisms all use pre-existing organic matter as a source of energy and nutrients. Such
organisms can be referred to collectively as Heterotrophs, literally “other feeders” or
feeding on others.
By contrast, those organisms that are capable of using light or inorganic chemical to build
inorganic nutrients to organic nutrients of their bodies are referred to as Autotrophs, or
“self-feeders”. All Autotrophs are producers; all other organisms-consumers, detritus
feeders, and decomposers are Heterotrophs.
ECOSYSTEM CLASSIFICATION
Trophic Level
Decreasing Biomass and Energy Flow
• Biomass is the mass of living biological organisms in a given area
or ecosystem at a given time.
• Energy flow, also called the calorific flow, refers to the flow of
energy through a food chain.
The influence of an organism on the movement of energy
and nutrients through an ecosystem is determined by the
type of food it consumes, and by what consumes it.

All organisms in an ecosystem are either consumed by

other organisms or enter the pool of dead organic matter
(detritus).
The breakdown of detritus occurs through consumption
by detritivores (primarily bacteria and fungi), in a process
known as decomposition.
DECREASING BIOMASS AND ENERGY FLOW
Biomass simply means the total combined weight of any specified group of organisms.
Example:
1. The biomass of the first trophic levels (producers) is the total weight of all the producers
in that given area.
2. The biomass of the second trophic level of all the herbivores in that given area.
3. The biomass of the third trophic level is the total weight of all secondary consumers and
so on.
Ecologists have actually determined the biomass of each trophic level for various
ecosystems.
Example:
In a grassland this is done by digging up square-meter sample plots of vegetation,
separating all the dirt and debris, then drying and weighing all the plant material. After the
average biomass of producers per square meter is determined, simple multiplication gives
the biomass per hectare. (1 hectare=2.5 acres) or any other desired area. Similarly,
trapping procedures allow one to estimate populations of herbivores and carnivores and
determine their biomass per area.
The significant findings derived from such measurements ¡s that biomass decreases at
each higher trophic levels.
If the biomass of the first trophic level is 100 tons/hectare, the biomass of the second
trophic level is 10 tons/hectare and the biomass of the third trophic level is only 1
ton/hectare. The biomass of successive trophic levels is often represented by a bar graph;
the diminished biomass at each trophic level then resembles a pyramid. Hence the term
food pyramid is commonly used to denote the decline in biomass which occurs at each
higher trophic level.
It is important to understand why biomass decreases at each higher trophic level, for this
decrease underlies the concept of energy flow through the ecosystem.
Like energy, the same statements can be made for the transfer of biomass for the second to
the third trophic and for each step thereafter. At every step, there is the portion not eaten,
the portion eaten but not digested, and the portion that is broken down for energy by the
consuming heterotroph. In each case, only an average of about 10% of biomass of one
trophic level is actually transferred to the biomass of the next trophic level. Consequently,
available potential energy is decreased by 90% at each step.
Ultimately in most ecosystems, all the biomass produced at the first trophic level will be
consumed and digested by the combination of Consumers, decomposers and detritus
feeders at the second trophic levels. Thus, one can consider just two pathways for biomass:
1. It is either broken down to provide energy
2. It contributes to the growth of the consuming organism
In Conclusion, we can visualize a continuous one-way flow of energy through an ecosystem.
The principle of diminishing energy at higher trophic levels has particular application to
humans and the kind of foods they consume. Using the principle of energy, Can you see
why a much larger population can be supported if people eat grains directly rather than
eating animals that fed upon grains?
Decreasing Biomass and Energy Flow

Energy flow among trophic levels

Energy will decrease with each increase in trophic
level- second law of thermodynamics states that
during any transfer of energy, some is lost due to the
tendency toward an increase in disorder.

Decrease in Biomass
When energy is transferred from one trophic level to
the next, typically only ten percent is used to build
new biomass. The remaining ninety percent goes to
metabolic processes or is dissipated as heat.
Trophic pyramids portray the transfer of energy
between trophic levels
Levels of organization in an
ecosystem: An individual is any living thing or
organism. Individuals do not breed with
individuals from other groups.
A group of individuals of a given species
that live in a specific geographic area at a
given time.
This includes all the populations in a
specific area at a given time. A community
includes populations of organisms of
different species.
Ecosystems include more than a
community of living organisms (abiotic)
interacting with the environment.
A biome, in simple terms, is a set of
ecosystems sharing similar
characteristics with their abiotic factors
adapted to their environments.
A biosphere is the sum of all the
ecosystems established on Earth
 EcologicalSuccession
 The gradual process by which ecosystems change and
develop over time. Nothing remains the same and
habitats are constantly changing.
 Each stage of ecological succession can take 100s to
1,000s of years – if not more.
Two main types of Succession
• Primary succession is the series of community
changes which occur on an entirely new habitat
which has never been colonized before.
PRIMARY SUCCESSION
If the area has not been previously occupied, the process of replacement of one ecosystem
by another is referred to as primary succession
Example 1
The gradual invasion of a bare rock surface by what eventually becomes a forest ecosystem is
an example. Bare rock ¡s an inhospitable environment. There is little place for seeds to
germinate, and if they do seedlings are killed by lack of water or exposure to wing and sun
on the rock surface. However, moss is uniquely adapted to this kind of environment. Its tiny
spores which functions as seeds can lodge and germinate in minute rocks and it can
withstand severe drying. Upon drying out the moss ¡s not killed; it simply becomes dormant.
With each bit of moisture, it quickly revives and resumes its growth. As it grows the moss
forms a mat which acts as a sieve, catching and holding particles as they are broken from the
rock or as they blow or wash by. Thus, a layer of soil held in place by the moss, gradually
accumulates. The moss-soil mat provides a suitable place for seeds of larger plants to lodge,
and the greater amount of water held by the mat permits their germination and growth. The
larger plants in turn serve to collect and build additional soil and eventually there is enough
soil to support shrubs and trees. In the process, the fallen leaves and other litter from the
larger plants smother and eliminate the moss and most of the other plants that initiated the
process. Thus, there is a gradual succession from moss through small plants and finally to
trees. Erosion, earthquakes, landslides and volcanic eruptions periodically expose new rock
surfaces so that primary succession may be occurring somewhere.
Example 2: Invasion of lakes by forests ecosystems
• Secondary succession is the series of community
changes which take place on a previously colonized,
but disturbed or damaged habitat.
SECONDARY SUCCESSION
When an area is cleared as for agriculture and then abandoned, the dominant ecosystem of
the area will generally return through a series of well-defined stages. Since this is the re-
establishment of an ecosystem that was originally present, the process is termed secondary
succession.
Example 3
On an abandoned agricultural field, crabgrass is predominant among the initial invaders,
Crabgrass is particularly well adapted to invade a bare soil. Its seeds germinate and it grows
and spreads rapidly by means of runners. However, taller plants easily shade crabgrass out.
Consequently, taller weeds and grasses, which take a year or more to develop eventually
take over the crabgrass. Next, young trees, which are well adapted to thrive in the direct
sunlight and the heat of open fields, gradually develop and shade out the smaller.
Eventually, they form a tree forest. Consequently, as the trees die off (their life span is 50-
100 years), they are replaced by smaller trees. The seedlings of the smaller trees will
continue and flourish beneath the cover of their parents and thus the process of succession
is completed.
Both primary and secondary succession imply that spores and seeds of the various plants
and breeding populations of various animals are present to invade the area as conditions
become suitable for them.. If not, succession will be blocked or altered accordingly. Also, it
is assumed in secondary succession that a fertile soil base is present at start. If this has
been destroyed by erosion or other means, it may be necessary for the system to start over
in a manner similar to primary
 Climax Ecosystem
• The final stage of ecological succession attainable
by a plant community in an area under the
environmental conditions present at a particular
time.
THE CLIMAX ECOSYSTEM
Succession finally reaches a point at which all the species present continue to reproduce
in proportion to each other and no further change occurs. This balance state is called
climax ecosystem. The nature of the climax ecosystem differs according to the prevailing
abiotic factors of the region. The climax in hot dry areas is a desert ecosystem, in hot
wet areas it is a tropical rain forest, and so on
No ecosystem is absolutely stable or unchanging. Even climax systems are subject to
very slow successional changes in response to gradual changes in climate or
modifications in other factors.
 Biotic Potential
maximum rate at which the population of a given species can
increase when there are no limits on its rate of growth.
The biotic potential of a species is its capacity for reproducing itself. It is the combination
of all the factors that permits its kind to become more numerous. Reproductive rate is an
obvious factor but it is only one. The ability of animals to migrate or of seeds to disperse to
similar habitats in other locations, the ability to adapt to and invade other habitats,
defence mechanisms such as thorns or bad smell, and the ability to avoid or survive
adverse environmental conditions are equally important. Every species has a biotic
potential such that, given favourable conditions, its population will increase.
 Environmental Resistance
Example:
A pair of frogs has the biotic Potential to reproduce several hundreds of offspring in turn
could potentially produce several hundred more.
The fact that population generally do not “explode” in numbers is not due to the limits in
biotic potential, but to a second factor, environmental resistance. The environmental
resistance facing each species is the combination of all factors that limit the survival of its
members. These factors are similar for both plants and animals. They include lack of
foods or nutrients, lack of water, predators, diseases, parasites and other organisms that
are competing for the same habitat. Thus, there is a dynamic equilibrium between biotic
potential and environmental resistance.
If the environmental resistance is less than the biotic potential, the numbers of species
will increase. If environmental resistance is greater than the biotic potential, then its
numbers will decrease. In a stable ecosystem environmental resistance evenly balances
the biotic potential of each species.
Conversely, change in an ecosystem can be viewed as a shift in the environmental
resistance or in the biotic potential among the different species in the system.
• all the things that keep a population of organisms from endlessly
increasing.
• lower the chances for reproduction, affect the health of organisms, and
raise the death rate in the population.
 Environmental Resistance Factors

• Biotic (living things) factors are things like predation,

parasitism, lack of food, competition with other
organisms and disease.
•Abiotic factors (non-living things) include
drought, fire, temperature, and even the
wrong amount of sunshine.
FACTORS
OF
BALANCE
AND
CHANGE
1. BALANCE BETWEEN PREDATORS
AND PREY

As population increase in density, individuals

become more vulnerable to natural enemies;
increased predation or disease then tends to
restore the balance and vise versa.
PREDATOR – PREY
CYCLE
2. BALANCE BETWEEN VEGETATION,
HERBIVORES, AND CARNIVORES

Herbivore populations have the potential to overgaze the

vegetation on which they feed. That is, herbivore populations
may expand to the point where they eat the vegetation faster
than it can regenerate and, consequently destroy it. Drastic
effects on the ecosystem obviously follow. In general,
Herbivore populations are held below overgazing level by
predators and other natural enemies.
3. BALANCE BETWEEN COMPETING
SPECIES

 Climate

 Food sources

 Times of activity

 Etc.
 4. BALANCE BETWEEN ABIOTIC
FACTORS

Plant and animals are adapted to abiotic factors, but abiotic

factors are not constant. Weather conditions such as high
temperature, low temperatures, rainfall, and so on vary
from year to year. Since organisms are adapted to specific
optimums, wet years will obviously favor wet-loving species
and they will spread at the expense of dry-loving species; in
dry years the reverse will occur.