-2million living kinds of living organisms today (Majority: Animals that do not possess a backbone, 20% plant organisms,

4-5% vertebrates)

Biological Species Concept (ernest meyer)

1. Species
a. Group of organisms mating exclusively among themselves under natural conditions (do not produce viable offspring with members of other
groups)
b. Reproductive isolation among populations that avoid or block gene flow which can result in infertile and non-viable hybrids
2. Reproductive isolation mechanisms
a. Prezygotic barriers (barrier to mating happens before the formation of a zygote - before the organisms evern mate)
i. Temporal isolation (time element) - organisms should be ready at the same time to mate
ii. Habitat isolation - locality where the individual is residing (if not together, the egg and sperm cannot meet)
iii. Behavioral isolation - organisms must be able to recognize each other (mating dance/ritual) if not recognize, fertilized egg cannot form
(no mating)
iv. Mechanical isolation - organisms’ anatomical or morphological characteristics must be compatible with one another (structure for
delivery of sperm must fit with the structure for receiving by egg)
v. Gametic isolation - characteristics of the gametes themselves (gametes should be able to recognize each other- done through the
wrapping around the sperm should be able to recognize its compatible partner)
b. Post zygotic barrier (after the egg and sperm meet)
i. Reduced offspring - Offspring cannot survive because of genetic defects from 2 species mating with each other
ii. Hybrid breakdown- 1st generation okay but the 2nd generation of offspring cannot survive (breakdown of viability of the hybrids resulting
to non survival of next generation)
iii. Reduced hybrid fertility - Can live a long time but they are Sterile, infertile hybrids (i.e mule)
3. Limitations
a. Fossilized remains of ancient organisms - cannot use biological species concept because we cannot confirm
b. Asexually reproducing prokaryotes (asexual reproduction) - cannot apply bsc
c. Parthenogenetic bdelloid rotifers - no sexual reproduction to produce offspring - almost all of the species are female so they rarely find male
counterparts to mate so they reproduce by themselves
Alternative definitions of species
1. Morphological species concept
a. based on observable physical traits (Body shape and other structural features)
b. Applicable to: Asexual organisms, fossils
2. Ecological species concept
a. Defines species by its ecological role/niche
i. How members interact with non living and living parts of their environment
b. Focuses on unique adaptations to particular roles in a biological community
c. Ecological niche - organisms’ specific role of the specific species in their environment
i. Functional position of organism in its environment
ii. Habitat, activity pattern when they are active, resources it obtains from the habitat
d. A species is a group of phonetically similar organisms that occupy a given ecological niche (or set of niches)
i. 2 species may be similar in appearance but distinguishable based on what they eat or where they live
e. Applicable to sexual and asexual reproduction and emphasizes the role of disruptive natural selection as organisms adapt to dif.
environments.
3. Phylogenetic species concept
a. Defines species as the smallest group of individuals that share a common ancestor
b. One branch of tree of life
c. Track phylogenetic history of a species by comparing its characteristics (morphology or molecular sequences with other organisms)
d. Defining the amt of difference required to separate species is a problem
4. UNIFIED APPROACH -
a. Combine many competing concepts and definitions of what a species is into a single overarching one
b. Molecular, ecological, behavioral, genetic, evolutionary, biological, etc.

Evolution of species (Speciation) - how does a species change from one generation to another through time?
- Speciation- process by which one species is split into 2 or more species which may share many of the same characteristics but also produces
tremendous diversity.
- Evolution - change over many generations in the composition of individuals comprising a population of a species
- It is the population that evolves because individuals of the populations are those selected to survive
a. Allopatry (allopatric speciation), Adaptive radiation
i. Physical barrier fragments, isolates populations into subpopulations, resulting in reproductive isolation
1. Series of dispersals leads to a reproductive isolation of populations
2. Porkfish v. panamic porkfish (barrier from south america and north america - adaptive radiation)
ii. Once geographic separation has occurred, the separated gene pools may diverge when different mutations arise and natural selection
and genetic drift may alter allele frequencies in different ways in the separated populations.
iii. With changes occuring between the species, reproductive barriers arise (when populations are subjected to different environmental conditions)
iv. Leads to Adaptive radiation - emergence of new variety of species from a common stock due to allopatric speciation
v. It is biological barriers, not physical separation, that prevents interbreeding
b. Sympatry (sympatric speciation)
i. Occurs in population that lives in a wide/huge common habitat
1. Complete absence of physical barrier
ii. Certain individuals from the original population will become adaptive to certain conditions in certain sections of the habitat (certain unique set of
environmental conditions) and the separated subpopulations will soon be fully adapted to certain unique conditions in certain regions
which would lead to the development of different species through adaptive radiation.
iii. Food resources,environmental conditions
iv. Can occur if gene flow is reduced by factors such as:
1. Polyploidy: plants: origin of species from accident during cell division which results to an extra set of chromosomes
2. Sexual selection: Mate choice based on a characteristic as the main reproductive barrier that normally keeps the gene pools of the two
species separate
 3. Habitat differentiation: Subpopulation exploits a habitat or resource not used by the parent population
v. Lead to adaptive radiation
c. Descent with modification (Natural theology, creationist essentialist view)
i. Infinite,supreme being was able to create the universe
ii. Intelligent design- universe was created by an intelligent entity which is why we see many diverse forms that happen today (watchmakers
analogy)
d. Evolution of idea of descent with modification
i. Plato - perfect v. imperfect world (perfect world is populated by perfectly adapted organisms; imperfect world is populated by real imperfect
representations of organisms in the perfect world - organisms are not capable of changing overtime)
ii. Aristotle - scale of increasing complexity (natural scale) - organisms are not capable of changing overtime. All levels of the scale are already
fully occupied
iii. Carolus Linnaeus - father of taxonomy : came up with binomial classification of organisms based on morphological characteristics
a. Still believed that animals were not capable of changing over time
iv. George cuvier - excavation; fossilized record remains become different from one level to another (catastrophism)
v. James hutton - Gradualism : geological features are records of past geological events that happened on earth
vi. Charles Lyell- uniformitarianism : existence of processes that have been happening to shape the same manner and intensity over time.
vii. John Baptist Lamark - fossil record as evidence of continuing evolution of organisms from inanimate material towards greater
complexity and perfection in response to organism’s sentiments interieur (felt needs)
1. Lamarck’s mechanism of evolution (Lamarck’s giraffes)
a. Use and disuse - part being constantly used to satisfy needs will become more prominent over time.
b. Traits acquired during an organism's lifetime is inherited by offspring -prominent traits acquired will be passed onto offspring
c. Flawed - ie. abs cannot be passed on to next generation
d. Upside- Diversity is result of evolution happening overtime
viii. Charles Darwin - Evolution of Species (and John Henslow, Fitzroy, Malthus, Lyell, Wallace)
1. Robert Malthus- Human population increase exponentially
2. Lyell- geological process stay constant in continuously shaping the earth’s landscape
3. Darwin- population size does not increase in proportion to the number of young offsprings produced per generation.
a. Species of finches - all species originate and evolve from a common ancestor
b. Adaptive radiation - When a population become fragmented and are separated over many generations, subpopulations will
increasingly become different from one another as only fit individuals will survive, then become a new species
c. The origin of Species by means of natural selection
ix. Origin of Species by means of natural selection
1. All species originate from a common ancestor through descent with modification (tree of life)
2. Reconciles with Linnaeus’ classification scheme - classification based on the same morphological characteristics.
a. Darwin- same characteristics because they come from the same ancestors
b. Evolution’s mechanism is through Natural Selection (survival of the fittest) -
i. Individuals of a population have unequal chances of surviving
ii. Changes of survival depends on traits inherited from ancestors
iii. Motivating force that drives evolution is the survival of the species
1. Individuals who survive have a survival advantage because of the traits (thus genes) they inherited
iv. Individuals of a population are those fit to survive -> change in composition of individuals of a population ->
origin of a new species.
3. Evidence of Macro-evolution- fossils as a record of progressive evolutionary change (ie. origin of eukaryotic life forms; the origin
of humans; the origin of eukaryotic cells; and extinction of the dinosaurs.)
a. Archaeopteryx to chicken - the feathers of ancestor originated from scales (like the ones on the feet of the chicken) and is not
used for flying but for insulation
b. Divergent evolution - Related species in neighboring habitats appear very similar with each other
i. Darwin’s finches - the beaks of the finches are different and is most likely because of the different resources present in
each their habitats
c. Convergent evolution - Share common characteristics because they share the same lifestyle and the characteristics allow
them to survive in their habitat (penguin, shark, dolphin) - subjected to the same conditions in the same habitat.
d. Parallel evolution - Share same characteristic- developed same characteristic for their survival
i. Lie convergent evolution,but 2 species evolve at the same time or same ecospace (flying squirrel in australia and north
america)
1. Filling similar ecological roles in similar environments, so similar adaptations were selected.
e. Homology- characteristics of a related species as a variation of the same theme but became modified to serve a different
function. (i.e forelimbs of man, bird, tortoise, elephant)
f. Comparative development of vertebrate embryos- Gill slits are characteristics carried over from ancestors
i. Karl Von Baer: Vertebrates appear similar during their stages of early development
ii. Ernst Haeckel : Ontogeny repeats phylogeny (Biogenetic concept: embryo dev. Stages of an animal species follow the
path of its evolutionary history)
1. Development of advanced species passes through stages represented by adult organisms of more primitive species.
Otherwise put, each successive stage in the development of an individual represents one of the adult forms that
appeared in its evolutionary history.
2. Pharyngeal grooves between the pharyngeal arches in the neck of the human embryo not only roughly resembled gill
slits of fish, but directly represented an adult "fishlike" developmental stage, signifying a fishlike ancestor.
g. Biochemical composition of related organisms (genetics)
i. Proteins/peptides are made up of a sequence of amino acids
ii. Composition and sequence of AA of proteins are determined by genes inherited from ancestors
1. Closely related species have almost similar genes, the amino acid sequence of their proteins differ less
(especially when their ancestor is near each other than when their ancestors are distant from each other)
4. Microevolution - evolution at the level of hereditary traits (genes) of a population - deviation from hardy weinberg principle
(Pesticide resistance, herbicide resistance, and antibiotic resistance - focuses on a single population)
a. Hardy Weinberg principle - Explain genetic basis of non-evolving population of organisms.
 i. Gene pool of the population remains constant unless acted upon by some factors. Otherwise, it stays in
equilibrium over many generation
ii. Genetic structure of a gene pool - frequency of alleles of a population
iii. Requirements of the HW Principle
1. Large (closed) population size
2. No gene flow/inter-breeding with other related populations (closed population)
3. No net mutations (absence of allele substitutions)
4. Occurrence of random matings in the closed population (no strict preference for mating partner)
5. Absence of natural selection (all offspring has equal chance of survival)
b. Genetic Drift - fragmentation of large population into several isolated/closed sub-populations, resulting in the origin of several
new species (allopatry, sympatry) - has larger effect on smaller populations
i. Bottleneck effect - happens when some catastrophe, like an earthquake or a tsunami, kills off most of a population at
random and leaves only a handful of survivors. The catastrophe has to be something that strikes at random, however,
and kills individuals irrespective of the genes they carry.
ii. Founder Effect - When a small group separates from a larger population and strikes out on its own, that small group
might be carrying genes that are rare in the original population. These rare genes will now be common among the new
group's descendants. Other genes present in the original population, however, may be absent from the new group
altogether.
c. Gene flow or inter-breeding with another elated population, mutations, or substitution of alleles, non-random matings -
result in the accumulation of genetic variations to destabilize the gene structures of a non-evolving population, resulting in the
origin of one or several new species
d. Occurence of natural selection - individuals have unequal chances of survival.
i. Evolution is a change/alteration in the genetic structure (or allele frequency) of a population which allows only fit
individuals to survive.
ii. Ie.e brown beetles who can camouflage survive and its gene frequency increases because the reen beetle is easily
picked by the predator
Evolution of sex
a. Origin of sex
i. Recombination of genes as a means to repair damaged DNA among individuals of early life forms (asexual reproduction)
1. Asexual reproduction of single cell resulted to clone having very low survival.
b. Sexual Reproduction
i. Recombination of genes/ gene flow during sexual reproduction is a selected trait because genes of offspring derived from 2 mating
partners increase the survival of the offspring and therefore, the species
ii. Variations of the genes of a population are the raw material of natural selection to allow populations to survive, adapt, and evolve.
iii. Special case of natural selection (need for 2 individuals of opposite sex to mate)
1. Consequences
a. Powerful motivation to attract a suitable mate
b. Development of sex-specific anatomical traits and behavior (mate preferences)
2. Mate Preferences
a. Attractive men produce better quality sperm, while more attractive women are more fertile
iv. Evolution is not really about survival but the perpetuation of henes with survival advantage (mates are chosen due to their reproductive
fitness/viability)
v. Product of evolution is shaped by natural selection because it provides survival advantage, motivating organisms to attract a suitable
mating partner who will most likely produce a fit offspring necessary to perpetuate the genes of the species.

Human evolution
- 1st hominids- 2 to 5 million years ago
- Aegyptopithecus- proconsul- Australopithecus - Humans (chimpanzees nearest in primate evolution)
a. Biological evolution (Homo Sapiens)
i. Large skull: Increased intelligence (tool making), abstract thinking (rituals), Rationality (learning experiences)
ii. Bi-pedalism and upright posture: Increased mobility and maneuverability; hands-free mobility
iii. Extended parental care- increased parental bonding with offspring; transmission of accumulated knowledge and culture to succeeding
generations via speech and language
b. Cultural evolution
i. Homo habilis, Homo erectus - Nomads -> hunting-gathering society
ii. Homo sapiens: Agricultural -> industrialized society
iii. Change in knowledge, skills, tech spread from an indiv to another
iv. Language; tools; exploration of the agricultural, fishing resources
v. Allowed humans to survive despite having little resources left from overhunting in the past
c. The Anthropocene Epoch
i. Humans have become the new natural selection agent, which has short-circuited biological evolution
ii. Cultural evolution has outpaced biological evolution; will earth’s other inhabitants be able to cope and survive?

Community Ecology
a. Ecology - Interactions or relationships of biotic and abiotic components of the environment
b. Community: collection of populations interacting with one another and with the non-living components of their common and shared habitat.

Ecology of communities: Why various species are found in a community (composition, abundance, and distribution of a species in a community)
a. Models of communities
● Individualistic model (HA Gleason)- chance collection of populations of various species sharing the same habitat due to similar abiotic
requirements of each population
● Interactive model (RE Clements) - collection of closely linked species bound by mandatory biotic interactions
i. Entire community functions as one whole integrated unit/superorganism
ii. They aid in each others survival
 b. Interactions or relationships as natural selection agents
i. Biological interactions in a community (inter and intra species) and abiotic factors act as natural selection agents to initiate traits or
characteristics among individuals of populations in a community
ii. Biological interactions translate into adaptations among various species in a community, resulting in the evolution of populations.
- I.e. in a population where most bunnies are not disease resistant, when they are hit by a virus, the only surviving ones will be the
disease resistant rabbit. Hence, the non drug resistant bunnies will be extinct while the disease resistant rabbit will be able to
reproduce.This will result in the future generation of bunnies to all be disease resistant.
c. Biological interactions
i. Predation: predator-prey interaction
1. Parasitism and herbivory parasitism
2. Coping with predator-prey interactions
a. Result in the co-evolution of adaptive traits (Predator adaptations and Anti-predator adaptation)
i. Predator adaptation: adjust characteristics to allow them to catch more prey
ii. Anti predator adaptations: Cryptic coloration (blend in with its environment or have color), mimicry (look like the predator),
aposematic coloration (make themself look prominent and dangerous), organisms living with a lot of members of the
same species (protect each other by number)
3. Dynamics of predator-prey interactions
a. Increase population of prey = increase population of predator
b. Consequence of predation as biological pest control- hazardous for farmer
ii. Competition: Intra- and inter-species interactions
1. May result in:
a. Direct physical contact (Aggressive, ritualistic, territorial, hierarchical behavior)
b. Lower population size (high death rate, low birth rate)
2. Competitive exclusion principle: 2/more species competing for common resources cannot co-exist (especially if complete
competition)
a. Natural selection favors individuals with traits/adaptations which are able to reduce or eliminate competition
i. Evolution of population is shaped and guided by competition
3. Character displacement
a. Species competing long enough can result in character displacement (composition of one competing population from another
population = competition as natural selection agent)
i. Present day characteristics are the result of past species interactions
ii. Allopatric - eventually develop similar characteristics because they do not live together, thus do not compete for
resources they both need/prefer
iii. Sympatric - eventually develop different sizes of beaks/ characteristics because they do not stay in one island due to
competition
4. Resource Partitioning- Resource partitioning is the division of limited resources by species to help avoid competition in an
ecological niche. In any environment, organisms compete for limited resources, so organisms and different species have to
find ways to coexist with one another.
a. Based on physical location - lizards may live in same habitat but different place (one on the ground, one on the trees)
b. Based on food - chemical characteristic, same food but different part, or different eating pattern
c. By partitioning out resources, species can have long-term coexistence with one another in the same habitat (reduce inter
and intra species competition). This allows both species to survive and thrive rather than one species causing the other to go
extinct. Only the individuals with the appropriate traits to reduce competition (the stronger species) will survive.
iii. Symbiosis:
1. Commensalism - one benefits while one does not experience any effects
2. Mutual Symbiosis - each organism benefits and cannot exist without each other
- I.e. Bifidobacteria - lives in the intestines of people, each party cannot live without the other.
iv. Evolution of population is shaped by biological interactions/relationships (comp, pred, symb)
1. Biological interactions may translate into traits or long term adaptations having a survival advantage among various species
in the community, resulting in the evolution of populations.

Ecology of Population

Population: Group of individuals of a species living in a common habitat

● Rely on same finite resources
● Influenced by similar environmental conditions in the common Habitat
● High likelihood of interbreeding among individuals of the population

a. Characteristics shaped by evolution

i. Distribution - density and dispersion of organisms
 ii. - often results from uneven distribution of nutrients or other resources in the
environment. It can also be caused by social interactions between individuals.

iii. Demography - Reflection of the survival pattern of a population

1. Decline - mortalities, emigration
2. Growth, Expansion - birth, immigration
3. Survival pattern of cohort (Age group, generation) in a population
a. Type I (Convex): K-selected population :
i. Slow growth, delayed mating events; large body size, very few offspring, protected by parents
ii. Want to reach the logistic growth - reach carrying capacity and live for the long term
b. Type III (Concave): R-selected population
i. Fast growth, Early mating events, small body size, millions of offspring, without prenatal care
ii. Often live in unstable environments and want to explore their resources very quickly
b. Life history - dictates chort’s survival pattern
i. Pattern of reproduction and survival of organisms in a population which reflects a population's survival pattern, thus how a population
grows or declines
ii. Varies from one population to another (based on Type of cohort)
1. Natural selection factors in a life history which ensures
a. Survival of fit offsprings
b. Survival of adults who will mate to produce the next generation of offsprings
2. Not all offspring and adults will survive because of natural selection and trade-offs between offspring survival and ensuring the
reproductive success of adults
a. Limitations of available resources
b. Unpredictability of environmental conditions.
iii. Natural selection shapes and guides the life history of a population to ensure the survival of only fit individuals who will become adults
and eventually mate and create the next generation of offspring.
c. Frequency of mating
i. Variation of frequency results from trade-offs between: ensuring survival of fit offspring and ensuring that these fir offsprings will be able to
mate
1. Semelparity - one time, big time
2. Iteroparity - protracted reproduction
ii. Frequency of mating is shaped by natural selection to ensure survival of fir offspring who will become adults to mate and create the
next generation of offspring.
d. Exponential Growth - dN/dt=rN - rapid exponential increase without limits ; r= intrinsic rate of increase
e. Logistic Growth- Existence of a carrying capacity due to finite resources and consequences of too many individuals of a population (disease,
aggression, starvation, etc.) thus limiting further expansion as population approaches K (carrying capacity) dN/dt=rN[(K-N)/K]
i. What limits population growth?
1. Limited shared resources
2. Interactions/relationships (predation, competition, symbiosis, etc.)
3. Changing environmental conditions that regulate birth and death rates of the population
a. Environmental resistance, interactions/relationships determine
f. Human population growth: history
i. Improvements in technologies and living conditions continue to alter the carrying capacity (K) of the human population
1. Improved nutrition, sanitation, healthcare, technology, living conditions, etc.
ii. Thomas Malthus- tendency for exponential growth of the human population will always exceed what existing food supply can support,
resulting in the decimation of young and old people and the degradation of the quality of human life.
iii. Birth and Death rates
iv. Sex ratio
1. both male- and female-biased sex ratios have been shown to be associated with elevated male–male aggression and
male–female harassment, resulting in the disruption of pairbond formation and female reproductive output.
v. Age structure: difference among countries results from differences in the age structure of the population, which determines birth and death
rate
1. Major reproductive age groups lie between 15-44 years old
a. Zero - stable - about the same number of old, reproductive, to younger generation (rectangular)
b. Rapid - unstable - heavy reproductive age and young but super light older (triangle)
c. Slow - fairly stable- about same younger and reproductive but less older)
vi. Demographic transition
1. Transition from unstable population with high birth and death rates (rural agrarian society) to stable population with low birth and
death rates (urban industrialized society).
2. Demographic dividend (“bonus’)
a. Economic benefit arising from increase in proportion of working age adults relative to young dependents.
 i. Decrease of birth rate = age structure shift to working age adults, accelerating economic growth by increasing
labor productivity and household income levels, reducing expense for basic social services to care for the young
population.
3. Aggressive v. weak reproductive health policies
vii. Mega Manila
viii. Sustenance of human population growth
1. Biodiverse resources as a product of evolution sustains life in manila and the whole world
2. Biodiversity provides a variety of goods and services to support and sustain human life
3. Consumption of these resources very fast leads to the generation of much waste that our planet lacks time to process.
ix. Ecological footprint
1. Measures how much land and water area is required to support the human population to produce the resources consumed and to
absorb the waste products under the prevailing technology in Global Hectares (units)
2. Land and water area involved in producing goods and services and to dispose the waste products generated impacts the earth’s living
and non-living resources
3. Ecological overshoot
a. Consumption is not within the limits provided by the planet’s biodiverse resources
b. Takes more than 18motnths for the earth to replenish what is used in 12 months.
c. Biodiverse resources of 2-4 planet earths are required to support the human’s current lifestyle.

Ecosystem
- Sum of all living communities and their interactions with biotic and abiotic components of the environments consisting of chemical elements
and energy
- Living and nonliving components consist of chem elements that contain chemical energy and are bonded together by chemical energy.
- Purpose of interaction among biotic and abiotic factors in the environment: need to acquire energy to power life processes that organisms need
to grow, breed, and SURVIVE.
- Energy comes from biosphere (living and on living)
Vital processes of ecosystem
- Flow of energy
- Recycling of chemical elements found in living and nonliving matter

a. Food chain and Food web (feeding or trophic relationships)

i. Vital process of ecosystem
1. Flow of energy
2. Recycling of chemical elements found in living and non-living matter
ii. Vital processes occur so organisms can obtain energy happen through (Inter-dependent Feeding/Trophic Relationships) and illustrate:
1. Transformation, flow, and direction of energy
2. Direction of movement of chemical elements constituting biotic and abiotic matter when these are utilized by organisms
b. Energy flow and recycling of chemical components: Where does this start?
i. Energy flow is one way and most of it is lost as heat energy
ii. Chemical elements found in the chemical matter are recycled in the process
1. Chemosynthetic microorganisms in hydrothermal vents in the deep ocean (if no sunlight is present), chemical compounds released
from the vents are used by the bacteria to power their life processes then other animals obtain that energy.
iii. Trophic structure of ecosystems: energy flow and recycling of chemical elements (primary to quaternary consumer to decomposer to recycling
of chemicals)
c. Ecosystem: Primary energy production:
i. Only 1% of solar radiation is converted into chemical energy
1. Gross Primary production (GPP)= amount of chemical energy produced and converted from solar energy by photosynthetic plants
2. Net primary production (NPP)= difference between GPP and the amount of chemical energy utilized for metabolism
(growth,reproduction) by photosynthetic plants.
ii. Different ecosystems have varying levels of primary production
1. Oligotrophic - low primary production in most areas of ocean basins
2. Eutrophic - shallow areas of oceans have primary production
iii. Primary productivity in aquatic ecosystems
1. Primary production is confined to the shallow lighted or photic zone and then decline with increasing depth because light
penetrates through the top layer easier than deeper levels
2. Nutrients (nitrates,phosphates, silica) from decomposing aquatic organisms accumulate in the deep aphotic zone of oceans
a. Upwelling: Nutrients go up to top where light can hit it and the nutrients can be used by the populations that can access the top
layers (i.e sardines, anchovies)
d. Secondary energy production (Consumers)
i. Secondary production: (amt of energy found in the flesh of consumers) - Tissue biomass of consumers converted from chemical energy found
in tissue biomass of plants
ii. Only 10-20% of total chemical energy from primary production is utilized and converted by consumers for their own tissue biomass or growth
and is eaten by higher level consumers
iii. Energy obtained from producer is allocated by consumers : 50% feces, 20% growth, 30% cellular respiration
e. Ecological efficiency: Trophic pyramid
i. Ratio of net productivity at one trophic level and the net productivity of the trophic level below it
ii. Multiplicative loss of energy along the entire food chain/web (1M, 10k, 1k, 100, 10J)
iii. Pyramid of biomass (amt of tissue biomass decreases as we go up the food web/food chain/food relationship)
iv. Pyramid of numbers (huge number of plants, smaller number of snails dependent on the plants, smaller number of trushes dependent on
snails, then smaller number of hawks to eat the animals dependent on thrushes)
f. Recycling of chemical elements (nutrients) of chemical matter in ecosystem
i. Because chemical energy is limited, Lost energy in ecosystems is replenished continuously by photosynthetic primary producers.
ii. Quantities of chemical elements in ecosystems are not infinite- thus needs to be recycled.
iii. Flow of chemical elements occur through biological and geological process (respiration, decomposition, excretion) or (Erosion, weathering,
fossilization, sedimentation) - all go through biogeochemical processes/change
 iv. Biogeochemical cycle: recycling of chemical elements found in chemical matter involves biological (metabolism, decomposition, excretion)
and geological (weathering, erosion, sedimentation, fossilization) processes.
1. Nitrogen (N2) Cycle - Ammonium (NH4+), Nitrates (NO3-)
a. Used as building block of a lot of matter such as amino acids that make up living organisms
b. Components of Inorganic fertilizer
c. Nitrogen found in air or in water

d.
2. Phosphorus Cycle - (phosphate in soil from decomposers and geological uplifting used in leaching and sedimentation for the formation
of new rocks) - organic fertilizer

a.

3. Carbon Cycle - CO2 released by organisms (cellular respiration) and burning of wood and fossil fuels are used by plants and converted
to detritus to make non-renewable fossils fuels (oil, natural gas)
a. Carbon does not exist as carbon element but forms chemical compounds where carbon is sourced by the environment (mostly
CO2)

b.

g. Agricultural food production for hungry planet

i. Increasing human population = increased food production
ii. To sustain human survival, we rely on biogeochemical cycles to recycle nutrients from food we eat and waste we generate.
iii. Human impacts on global biogeochemical cycles
1. Excess waste by-products of intense human activities accumulate on land, in oceans, contributing to greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere which harms the planet
a. Increase in ecological footprint
b. Excess goes to biogeochemical cycles which overwhelm the cycles until they are unable to process and recycle these excess
gases. This results in so much stress on the planets which leads to the accumulation of greenhouse gases, leading to the
formation of holes in the ozone layers, allowing much heat to pass through and melt the ice in the polar regions= climate change.
2. Meat diet and Climate change
a. Meat diet requires more land and freshwater use and generates more ghg emissions per unit of protein than any other
commonly consumed food.
h. Eutrophication - Rate of deposition of nutrients which increases the rate of increase of biological activity in the body of water
i. Natural - eutrophication and lake aging occurs over centuries, and results from natural sources of nutrients and sediments
ii. Cultural - cultural eutrophication and lake aging occurs over decades, and results from human-induced urban runoff, sewage effluent,
industrial waste, fertilizers, pesticides, and excess sediments
1. Increased rate will increase the rate of deposition of nutrients and increase the rate of increase of biological activity in the body of water
which can be harmful for the populations who live in the areas. (i.e the fish too much = use too much oxygen from water die)
 2. This can lead to negative effects (i.e explosive growth of algae in boracay beach and mass fish kills)
i. Biological Magnification or Bioaccumulation
i. Process where trace amts of nutrients or substance in the ecosystem will find its way into the food web/chain/trophic system(food eaten by
organisms)
1. Phytoplankton eat toxic pesticide will be eaten by fish then hawk, all of which will receive and accumulate the trace amount of the
substance and will be passed on to the trophic system
2. Nanoplastic eaten by organisms in the ocean which will soon be eaten by other organisms which would pass the nanoplastics to
different organisms, harming all of them in the process.
j. Coastal resources in the Philippines
i. Coral reefs and Mangroves (3M hec, 5% excellent condition) and Sea grasses (0.5M hec, 10% rem)
ii. Loss in marine biodiversity (source of food, raw materials for drugs,beneficial compounds, etc. bioremediation; nutrient recycling; leisure and
recreation; other goods and services)
iii. State of coastal fishery
1. Large decrease in catch rates of Filipino fisherfolks who remain in the poorest sector despite the fact that 60% of the population is
dependent on fisheries
2. Depleted fishery stocks have made the coastal fisherfolks in worse conditions
iv. Protecting coastal fishery
1. Take advantage of fish reproduction: Dispersal of fish and larvae from the sanctuary of a marine reserve enhances reproduction and
recruitment outside
2. Marine protected areas (Sumilon and Apo reserve)
k. Biodiversity is a product of evolution and is a source of a variety of goods and services that support and sustain life.
l. Activities that affect biodiversity
i. Land-use Changes - Habitat destruction, conversion of habitat to human use that is not compatible to native species - urbanization
ii. Pollution- Degradation of local habitats that cause downstream effects (i.e. waterborne pollutants caused by leaching which can affect
reproductive viability of the organisms , dead zones from nitrogen fertilizers from the rivers which result to nitrogen blooms and bacteria which
use up the oxygen in the body of deadzone), waste disposal (sewage: drugs, chem compounds), noise pollution (change behavior patterns
iii. Resource exploitation- use up environment
iv. Exotic species