GEED 010:

PEOPLE’S AND
EARTH’S
ECOSYSTEM
MODULE 1: SCIENCE & THE ART OF GEOGRAPHY
ECOSYSTEM
 MODULE 1: SCIENCE & THE ART OF GEOGRAPHY
ECOSYSTEM

Objectives:

1.Describe the principles of the ecosystem; and

2.Distinguish the different terrestrial biomes.
 ECOLOGY
¡ Greek word oikos = household and logos = science or the "study of the household of nature."

¡ deals with interaction between living organisms with each other and their surroundings.

¡ not synonymous with environment, environmentalism, or environmental science.

 interactions among species functions of ecosystems such as energy flow and
nutrient cycling

ECOLOGY
study of inter-relations of
organism and their environments

physiological and behavioral adaptations of species

populations and communities of living organisms to their environment
IMPORTANCE OF ECOLOGY

¡ It helps in environmental conservation

¡ Ensures proper resource allocation
¡ Enhances energy conservation
¡ Promotes eco-friendliness
¡ Aids in disease and pest control
 LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION IN ECOLOGY

Organism
a single individual Community
all population that
occupies the same
Biosphere
space
global ecosystem; parts of
Population the planet and its
a group of the same species Ecosystem atmosphere where life is
of organism living in the same living and non-living possible
place and time components of an area
COMPONENTS OF AN ECOSYSTEM

Biotic – is any living component

that affects the population of
another organism, or the
environment

ex. producers, consumers &

decomposers - (Fungi, bacteria,
animals, plants, protists, archae)

Abiotic - non-living chemical and

physical parts of the environment
that affect living organisms and
the functioning of ecosystems

ex. Air, salinity, soil, temperature,

light, water, mineral, pH, humidity
HABITAT VS. NICHE

¡ Habitat is the physical location where members of the population live whereas
ecological niche not only involves the physical space occupied by an
organism but also describes the functional role or place of a species in its
community structure.

¡ Habitat is the “address”, whereas Niche is the “profession”

BIOMES

¡ areas that can be recognized by the

distinctive life forms of their dominant
species.
¡ In most cases, the key characteristic of a
biome is its dominant type of vegetation.

¡ Vegetation - an assemblage of plant

species and the ground cover they
provide
TERRESTRIAL BIOMES

¡ ecosystems with distinctive

communities of life and is found in
land.
¡ different biomes exist because of the
variations of light, temperature,
and moisture across the biosphere.
¡ temperature and moisture are the
main factors that determine the
dominant plants in each location.
¡ the vegetation then influences
which other organisms can live in
each area.

Biomes formed when subjected to different precipitation and temperature

 POLAR ICE
• Polar ice is the coldest place
of terrestrial biomes.
• known for barren landscapes,
glaciers, and huge ice sheets.
• Its monthly temperature of
below 0°C allows snow and
ice to accumulate despite low
precipitation levels.
• It is extremely cold, dry, and
windy.
• Penguins, polar bears, seals,
krill, narwhal, killer whales
TUNDRA
• known for its extreme coldness and dryness.
• Dryness is caused by extremely low precipitation, even less precipitation than deserts but
still a wet place because water evaporates slowly.
• Its ground remains frozen year-round, that is why there is a layer of permanently frozen
ground below the surface, called permafrost.
• Plants that grow here are small and have short growing seasons. Animals have thick fur.
 TAIGA
• also called northern coniferous forest or boreal forest.
• It is the largest terrestrial biome on Earth.
• It is found in cool high elevations in more temperate latitudes. It is characterized by long, cold
winters and short, wet summers that are occasionally warm.
• There may be possible precipitation and it is usually in a form of snow.
• Taiga soil is usually thin, nutrient-poor, and acidic but evergreen trees are abundant here.
• Because it is cold and relatively dry here, only some mammals and birds stay year-round.
 TEMPERATE
RAINFOREST
• Temperate rainforest is also
called temperate coniferous
forest.
• It has mild winters, cool
summers, and abundant rain.
• They are common in coastal
areas that have mild winters
and heavy rain.
• Life includes large evergreens,
amphibians, mammals, and
fish.
 TEMPERATE
DECIDUOUS
FOREST
• occurs where there is sufficient
moisture to support the growth of
large trees.
• has warm summers, cool winters,
consistent rainfall.
• While precipitation is fairly
distributed throughout the year,
ground water can be temporarily
unavailable if the soil freezes on
very cold winter days.
• characterized by broad- leaf
deciduous trees.
• have a distinct annual rhythm in
which trees drop leaves and
become dormant in winter, then
produce new leaves in spring.
TEMPERATE
GRASSLAND
• Temperate grassland share some of the characteristics of tropical savanna, but they
are found in regions of relatively cold winter temperatures.
• It has hot summers, cold winters, and is moderately moist.
• The key to the persistence of all grasslands is seasonal drought, occasional fires, and
grazing by large mammals
• Grassland soils tend to be deep and among the most fertile in the world, one of the
reasons is it has an abundant amount of mulch, or decaying plant material that is
deposited each year.
 CHAPARRAL
• Chaparral may be called Mediterranean shrubland.
• Coastal areas that are often characterized by mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers are
dominated by this biome.
• It has hot and dry summers, and cool and moist winters.
• There is a combination of environmental stresses in chaparral: aridity, short growing season, low-
nutrient soil, and frequent fires.
• Plants are resistant to fire and drought thrive; some shrubs have strands of dense, spiny shrubs
with tough evergreen leaves.
 DESERT
• Desert is the driest of all
terrestrial biomes,
characterized by low and
unpredictable precipitation.
• It is always dry. Might be cool
or hot.
• These belts are particularly
dry because of global air
circulation patterns, which
result from descending dry air
absorbing available moisture.
• Its plants store water and
most animals are active at
night.
 TROPICAL
SAVANNA
• Tropical savanna is a grassland
with scattered individual trees.
• It is warm year- round and has
three distinct seasons: (1) cool
and dry, (2) hot and dry, (3) warm
and wet.
• soils are low in nutrients, due in
part to their porosity.
• It is relatively simple in physical
structure but often rich in number
of species.
• Animals are most prominent in
rainy seasons and there are few
trees or shrubs.
 TROPICAL RAINFOREST
• Tropical rainforest is found in areas near the equator, where rainfall is abundant
and dry season lasts no more than a few months.
• It is warm and wet.
• This is characterized with lush jungles and has the greatest diversity of species of
all communities.
 Aquatic Zones
The major differences between the various aquatic zones are due to salinity, levels of
dissolved nutrients; water temperature, depth of sunlight penetration.

Types of Aquatic Ecosystem:

Fresh Water Ecosystem- is classified as

lotic (moving water) or lentic (still or
stagnant water). The lotic water system
includes freshwater streams, springs,
creeks, and rivers. Lentic water bodies
include pools, ponds, some swamps, and
lakes. They vary considerably in physical,
chemical, and biological characteristics.
 Aquatic Zones
Marine Ecosystem – Nearly three-quarters
of the earth’s surface is covered by the
ocean with an average depth of 3,750 m
and with salinity 35 ppt, (parts per
thousand), about 90 percent of which is
sodium chloride(NaCl)
Estuaries – Coastal bays, river mouths, and
tidal marshes from the estuaries. In estuaries,
freshwater from rivers meets ocean water and
the two are mixed by the action of tides.
Estuaries are highly productive as compared to
the adjacent river or sea.
Sources:
• Introduction to ecology. Retrieved from http://schleyscience.weebly.com
• McGraw-Hill Education. (2016). Biology: The essentials.
• https://www.cartercenter.org/resources/pdfs/health/ephti/library/lecture_notes/env_health_science_s
tudents/ln_ecology_final.pdf
MODULE 2: PEOPLE & POPULATION
NEXT MEETING