CHAPTER 7 ECOSYSTEMS

ECOSYSTEM - a community of different kinds of organisms that live together in a particular

environment

ENVIRONMENT - refers to the immediate surroundings of an organism and all the things in it;
including not only living things but also nonliving things such as light, water, air, and soil. Everything
around us makes up the environment

ECOLOGY - study of ecosystems

ECOLOGISTS - scientists who studies the relationships among living organisms and their
environment

POPULATIONS AND COMMUNITIES

CONCEPT MAP

AN ECOSYSTEM

includes two

COMPONENTS

ABIOTIC BIOTIC

Every ECOSYSTEM includes TWO COMPONENTS :

a. living or biotic components b. nonliving or abiotic components

 if an ECOLOGIST wanted to learn about a lake ecosystem, then he or she should study the
BIOTIC FACTORS of the lake such as plants, microorganisms, insects, amphibians, reptiles,
birds, and other living things including people that live around the lake. The ecologist should also
study the ABIOTIC FACTORS like water, soil, climate, temperature, rocks, air, and light affecting
the lake. In an ecosystem, all of these components are CONNECTED TO ONE ANOTHER. When
one part changes, other parts change as well. The biotic factors of an ecosystem affect the
abiotic factors, and vice versa.
 Living things interact with one another. For these living things to survive, they must ADAPT to
the conditions in their HABITAT
HABITAT - is the place where a living thing lives and grows naturally

NICHE - refers to the function of an organism or a population. It describes the organism's or the
population's overall way of life

LEVELS OF ECOLOGICAL HIERARCHY

ORGANISM

POPULATION

COMMUNITY

ECOSYSTEM

 To understand better the STUDY OF ECOLOGY, the BIOLOGICAL WORD is CONCEPTUALLY

ORGANIZED showing the levels of ECOLOGICAL HIERARCHY.

ORGANISM - an individual living thing of any kind

POPULATION - organisms of ONE KIND that live together in an area

 To speak of a gumamela population in an area and refer to two different kinds of gumamela
flowers may not be accurate. The area may have gumamela plants with yellow or red flowers.
You have to specify the population as composed of yellow - flowered gumamela or red -
flowered gumamela.

COMMUNITY - different populations that live in a particular area; its normally named after the
type of habitat where the populations live
EXAMPLE: all the populations that live in or near a pond make up a pond community

ECOSYSTEM - communities that interact with nonliving things

BIOME - a large community of plants and animals in a region that is more or less uniformly
affected by the same prevailing climate
 includes the tropical rain forests in the Philippines, the savannas in Australia, and the prairies in
North America

BIOSPHERE - includes all forms of life on Earth

ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIPS
 Relationships and interactions exist among organisms of different species. These relationships
are needed for the survival of organisms. The most common relationship involves feeding, but
organisms also interact in other ways. These relationships among organisms are either
SYMBIOTIC such as COMMENSALISM, MUTUALISM, and PARASITISM, or NON -
SYMBIOTIC such as COMPETITION and PREDATION.

SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS
SYMBIOSIS - comes from a GREEK WORD which means "LIVING TOGETHER"
 a close relationship between two organisms in which one organism lives near, on, or even inside
another organism, and in which at least one organism benefits

COMMENSALISM - is a symbiotic relationship in which only one organism in the partnership

benefits, while the other organism is neither benefited nor harmed

 Tropical orchids and bromeliads survive in dense, shadowy jungles by growing on tall trees.
Through this the plants get enough sunlight. The roots of these plants are exposed, thus they
can absorb water and nutrients from the air or from the bark of trees

Do you know that thousands of tiny follicle mites live at the base of the hairs that make
up your eyebrows?
 Do not rush to the mirror to check. These follicle mites are microscopic, so you cannot see them.
They are quite harmless and all people have them

MUTUALISM - is a kind of symbiotic relationship that benefits both organisms.

 To provide protection and to have a steady supply of food are the common reasons why two
organisms share such a partnership. The relationship between ants and aphids is just one of the
many examples of MUTUALISM.
 Aphids obtain their food by sucking fluids from plant tissues. They secrete HONEYDEW, a sweet
substance. Ants, on the other hand, are attracted to honeydew and harvest it for food. To
maintain their source of food, ants protect aphids against their enemies. Ants also pick up aphids
gently with their jaws and carry them to other leaves. Through this, aphids are brought to the
fresh leaves when the old ones wither
PARASITISM - is a symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is harmed
 consider the relationship between a human being and a mosquito. In this relationship, the
organism that benefits is the MOSQUITO; it is called a PARASITE. The organism that the
mosquito harms is the HUMAN BEING, which is called a HOST

 PARASITES usually live on or in a much larger organism and feed on it while it is still alive;
worms like ASCARIS and TAPEWORM are also PARASITES

NON - SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS

COMPETITION - a type of relationship in which a population of organisms struggles agains other
populations for basic resources in order to meet their basic needs to live and survive
 most of the relationships among organisms in an ecosystem are based on competition because
the ecosystem cannot satisfy the needs of all the organisms
 competition occurs when food, water, shelter, and other resources in the environment are
limited and when organisms have the same need for these resources

This picture shows a prairie ecosystem which is composed of populations of grasses,

grasshoppers, mice, hawks, and bison. The grasshoppers, mice, and bison compete for
food because all three species eat plants. The hawks compete to obtain mice for food.

 The mice that live in this prairie ecosystem compete with one another for food, water, and
space. As the population of mice becomes larger, competition among them increases. Thus, not
all the mice will survive.

 Competition affects the size of a population. Suppose that in a year the prairie does not receive
as much rain. This will limit the growth of grasses. The decrease in the growth of grasses will
affect the population of other organisms that depend on them. A competition among grass
eaters will occur if there is less grass to eat. Only a few will survive. The hawks that feed on the
mice will also be affected.

 the decrease in the growth of grasses will affect the population of grass eaters
PREDATION
PREDATOR - is an organism that kills and eats other organisms
PREY - an organism that is killed and eaten
 The relationship that exists between these two organisms is known as PREDATION

The picture shows that a leopard hunts deer for food. The LIONESS is the PREDATOR, while
the DEER is its PREY. What would happen to the size of the lion population if the deer
population would decrease?

PREDATION, like COMPETITION, plays an important part in shaping the structure of a community.
Predators help control the size of the prey population. Because of this, predators also help maintain
the diversity in an ecosystem. Without predators, the prey population will continue to increase and
crowd out other organisms.

BREAKING THROUGH LINK

The source of water pollution in streams is hard to detect because the pollutants are
diluted by water. Pollutants are concentrated in fish tissues, which makes detection
easier. The problem is that fishes move too much to be helpful in detecting the source
of water pollution.
In the process called BIOMONITORING, scientists can now evaluate the health of
streams, lakes, ponds, and other freshwater ecosystems by looking at the organisms
that live there. Scientists collect samples of organisms from the water to estimate the
types and quantity of macroinvertebrates that live in the water.

Macroinvertebrates such as mayflies, caddisflies, and stoneflies remain in one location

and have differing tolerances to pollution. Mayflies are very sensitive to pollution.
Large numbers of these show a healthy freshwater ecosystem. Aquatic earthworms
and midges tolerate pollution, so streams, ponds, or lakes with few mayflies but lots of
these organisms may be in trouble.
 TAKE NOTE
1. An ECOSYSTEM is a community of different kinds of organisms that live together
in a particular environment
2. ECOLOGY is the study of ecosystems. Ecologists are scientists who study the
relationships between organisms and their environment
3. An ecosystem includes both biotic and abiotic components
4. BIOTIC COMPONENTS of an ecosystem are all the organisms living in it
5. ABIOTIC COMPONENTS of an ecosystem include water, sunlight, oxygen,
temperature, and soil
6. The THREE TYPES OF SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS are: MUTUALISM,
COMMENSALISM, and PARASITISM
7. COMPETITION and PREDATION are NON - SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIPS

ENERGY FLOW IN ECOSYSTEMS

CONCEPT MAP

FOOD CHAIN
represents the feeding

RELATIONSHIPS

in an

ECOSYSTEM

first link in a food chain are the

PRODUCERS

are organisms that

MAKE THEIR RELEASE OXYGEN

OWN FOOD
 Organisms need energy to live. They use energy to perform all of their basic life functions like
breathing, walking, or running. Most organisms obtain their energy from the food they eat. In an
ecosystem, energy flows from one living thing to another in several steps. These steps are based
on what living things eat or where they get the energy they use.

FOOD CHAIN - represents the feeding relationships in an ecosystem; it shows how groups of
organisms within an ecosystem get their food and energy. It is also a way of describing "which eats
what" in an ecosystem.

PRODUCER - first link in a food chain

 any living thing that makes its own food and releases oxygen

AUTOTROPHS - or green plants are PRODUCERS; they have a GREEN PIGMENT called
CHLOROPHYLL, and can CONVERT THE SUN'S ENERGY INTO FOOD through a process called
PHOTOSYNTHESIS

CONSUMERS / HETEROTROPHS - other living things depend directly or indirectly on

producers for food; these organisms cannot make their own food
 consumers are known by what they eat

HERBIVORES - Consumers that feed on plants

 Some consumers, like insects, feed or get their food directly from plants

CARNIVORES - consumers that eat the meat of other animals

OMNIVORES - consumers that eat both plants and animals

EXAMPLE: HUMANS are omnivores

 HERBIVORES are the SECOND LINK IN A FOOD CHAIN; they are also called FIRST - ORDER
CONSUMERS
 CARNIVORES and OMNIVORES are the THIRD LINK IN A FOOD CHAIN; they are also called
SECOND - ORDER CONSUMERS

 every food chain has consumers called DECOMPOSERS. DECOMPOSERS are mostly
microscopic bacteria and fungi.

How do decomposers get nutrients and energy from dead matter?

 These organisms produce chemicals that digest decomposing materials externally. The digested
materials end up as simple chemicals. Carbon dioxide is one such chemical

CARBON DIOXIDE - a gas released into the air

 other chemicals may remain in the soil and can be used again by plants
 This picture shows a terrestrial food chain. The caterpillar eats the leaves of a tree. The
bird eats the caterpillar. The cat eats the bird. The cat decomposes when it dies. Once it
decomposes, the nutrients are returned to the soil, and the tree uses it to grow.

In a marine ecosystem, a food chain starts from microscopic plants called

PHYTOPLANKTONS. These are eaten by tiny water animals called ZOOPLANKTONS. The
tiny zooplanktons are then eaten by COPEPODS, which are relatively large zooplanktons.
The copepods are eaten by herrings, which, in turn, are eaten by a tuna. A shark then eats
the tuna.
FOOD WEB
FOOD CHAIN - illustrates how food energy is passed from one organism to another; but most
organisms eat more than one kind of food. Therefore, a single food chain does not provide a
complete picture of the energy flow in a community.
EXAMPLE: a bird, birds eat earthworms, fruits, and insects. Several consumers may eat the bird

FOOD WEB - a more complete picture of the energy flow in a community shows several food
chains; all interconnected food chains in an ecosystem
ENERGY PYRAMID - represents the energy flow in an ecosystem; it describes the relationships
between producers and consumers at different feeding stages or TROPHIC LEVELS in an ecosystem

BIOMASS - the total mass of organic matter at each trophic level

 the BIOMASS at each trophic level contains stored energy and potential food for the organisms
in the next higher trophic level. Therefore, both matter and energy are transferred when
organisms eat

 since plants are producers and they support all other organisms on Earth, they form the base of
the energy pyramid. The first level is very broad. Each level above the first level is made up of
consumers.
 each successive level of consumers in the pyramid is narrower than the one beneath it. As
energy moves through the pyramid, from the first trophic level up to all the other levels, much of
the energy is lost. The transfer of matter and energy from one trophic level to the next is not
efficient because only a small fraction of the biomass at one trophic level is passed on to the
next
 at each trophic level, organisms use some energy for their own life processes. Much of this
energy is lost as heat. Some energy is stored in the biomass that is uneaten or undigested; this
energy is not available for transfer to the next trophic level. Therefore, the energy available at
each trophic level is about 90% less than the energy at the level below
 the number of organisms at each trophic level is directly related to the amount of biomass and
energy at each level. Biomass and energy determine the number of organisms a community can
support. As the amount of biomass and energy available to a community decreases, the number
of organisms in the community also decreases

MATERIAL CYCLING
You have learned how ENERGY FROM THE SUN is TRANSFERRED IN THE ECOSYSTEM. Plants
use some of this energy to make food. Without sunlight, living things cannot survive. However, there
are other things in the environment that living things need

 living things need OXYGEN to live. OXYGEN is the SECOND MOST ABUNDANT GAS in the
ATMOSPHERE. CARBON DIOXIDE and OXYGEN are IMPORTANT GASES that cycle --- like
water --- within an ecosystem.
 recall that during PHOTOSYNTHESIS, GREEN PLANTS USE THE ENERGY FROM THE SUN
TO PRODUCE SUGAR AND OXYGEN FROM CARBON DIOXIDE AND WATER

carbon dioxide + water + energy sugar + oxygen

 during RESPIRATION, SUGAR and OXYGEN combine to FORM CARBON DIOXIDE and
WATER.
 How do PHOTOSYNTHESIS and RESPIRATION differ?

OXYGEN - CARBON DIOXIDE CYCLE

 when you INHALE, you TAKE IN OXYGEN. When you EXHALE, you RELEASE CARBON
DIOXIDE AS A WASTE GAS. Green plants use CARBON DIOXIDE during PHOTOSYNTHESIS.
In this process, plants break down water molecules into HYDROGEN and OXYGEN ATOMS.
OXYGEN escapes from plants this makes OXYGEN available for humans and animals. The trade
between plants and animals is the key to the oxygen - carbon dioxide cycle.

THE PROCESS OF RESPIRATION IS ILLUSTRATED AS FOLLOWS

sugar + oxygen carbon dioxide + water + energy
 BREAKING THROUGH LINK
Mang Andoy, a farmer, used to plant only rice in his field. But after years of good
harvest, he finds out that the soil has become less fertile and he has to increase his
input of pesticides and fertilizers to maintain a good harvest. His problems have been
piling up because he has to deal even with the effects of typhoons, drought, and the
increasing cost of agricultural supplies.

Her hears about the potential of diversified farming ang tries it first before selling his
land and giving up on farming altogether. Through this method, he has to use less
pesticides and fertilizers. Cultivating different crops means that he will have different
sources of income as well.

He allotts parts of his farmland to other crops, such as cassava, corn, and peanuts. He
plants vegetables that he can sell and even use for food as he waits for his other crops
to mature and generate money.

Mang Andoy plants local trees and other plants, too. Trees provide shade and they
protect the crops from strong winds once they mature. He carefully chooses local trees
such as molave, yakal, santol, duhat, and bayabas because he has learned that native
species would likely thrive well. The trees also provide habitat for other organisms,
including beneficial insects that are agents of pollination.

TAKE NOTE
1. FOOD CHAIN represents the feeding relationships in an ecosystem
2. FOOD WEB consists of several food chains linked together
3. An ENERGY PYRAMID represents the energy flow in an ecosystem
4. PRODUCERS are organisms that make their own food and release oxygen
5. HERBIVORES are consumers that feed on plants
6. CARNIVORES are consumers that eat the meat of other animals
7. OMNIVORES are consumers that eat both plants and the meat of other animals