Definition and concept of Ecosystem

Ecology has been defined variously as “the study of the

interrelationships of organisms with their environment and each other,”
as “the economy of nature,” and as “the biology of ecosystems.”
The term Ecology was coined by Earnst Haeckel in 1869. It is derived
from the Greek words Oikos- home + logos- study.
Ecology deals with the study of organisms in their natural home
interacting with their surroundings, it deals with the organism and its
environment.
Ecologists focus on attempts to understand to understand the
interaction among organism, population, communities, ecosystems,
and the biosphere.
These five levels of organization make up realms of ecology.
There are two branches of Ecology (Based on level of organization)

Autecology
Synecology

Autecology- It is the study of ecology at the level of species. It is the

study of the interactions of an individual life form or a single species
with the living and non-living components of its environment.

Synecology- It is the study of ecology at the level of communities. It is

a study of the development, distribution, and structure of ecological
communities.

Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a geographical area in which plants, animals, and other
species, as well as weather and topography, interact to generate a living
bubble.
Ecosystems can also be defined as the structural and functional units of
ecology in which living species interact with one another and with their
surroundings.
An English botanist named A. G.Tansley created the term "ecosystem"
in 1935.
The biological and behavioural interactions between living and non-
living factors that make up the ecological system are also included in
the definition of an ecosystem.
Definitions of Ecosystem:

• A. G. Tansley (1935): Ecosystem is a particular category of physical

systems, consisting of organic and inorganic components in a relatively
stable equilibrium, open and of various sizes and kinds.

• F.R. Fosberg (1963) has defined ecosystem as a functioning,

interacting system composed of one or more living organisms and their
effective environment, both physical and biological.
• E. P. Odum (1971): Living organism and their non-living
environment are inseparably interrelated and interact upon each other.
Any unit that includes all the organisms (community) in a given area
interacting with physical environment (habitat) so that the flow of
energy leads to clearly defined trophic structure, biotic diversity and
material cycle within the system, is an ecological system or ecosystem.

Classification of Ecosystem

Natural and artificial ecosystems are the two types of ecosystems that
can be found.
Artificial ecosystems are natural areas that have been tainted by human
intervention.
Artificial lakes, reservoirs, townships, and cities are examples.
Natural ecosystems are broadly divided into two categories. There are
two types of ecosystems: terrestrial and aquatic.

Terrestrial ecosystem
Terrestrial ecosystems are those that thrive on the land.
A terrestrial ecosystem may contain water; however, these ecosystems
are largely land-based. Forest ecosystems, desert ecosystems, grassland
ecosystems, and mountain ecosystems are examples of these
ecosystems.
The decreased availability of water in terrestrial ecosystems, as well as
the role of water as a limiting factor, distinguishes them from aquatic
ecosystems. Since the atmosphere is more transparent than water, light
is more readily available in terrestrial environments than in aquatic
ecosystems. Terrestrial ecosystems have more gas availability than
aquatic environments.
Aquatic ecosystem
An aquatic ecosystem is a type of ecosystem that is found in a body of
water. The aquatic surroundings of their environment determine the
nature and characteristics of communities of living or biotic species and
non-living or abiotic forces that interact with and interrelate to one
another. Marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystems are two types
of aquatic ecosystems.
In a water-based setting, an aquatic ecosystem is a community of
species that live together, interact, and to some extent rely on one
another.
Aquatic ecosystems are divided into the following subcategories
based on the concentration of salt content.

Freshwater ecosystems: Rivers, lakes and ponds.

Brackish Water Ecosystems: Mangroves, Estuaries, etc.
Marine ecosystems: Oceans, Seas, etc.

Ecosystem has two components which are: -

1. Biotic Components– It refers to living things of the ecosystem. It
includes plants, animals, and microorganisms.
2. Abiotic Components– It refers to the non-living things of the
ecosystem. It includes wind, water, soil, etc.
Broadly, biotic components of an ecosystem are divided into three
categories. These includes:
Producers– It refers to all the green plants of the ecosystem. These
green plants can prepare their own food by photosynthesis, in which
green plants convert sunlight energy into chemical energy of food.
Plants can be called a converter in terms of energy. They can prepare
their own food with simple inorganic substances like water, carbon
dioxide in the presence of light.
Consumers– It refers to the organisms that consume food that are
prepared by the producers. Consumers cannot prepare their own food
from simple inorganic substances. They can be classified into the
following categories:
Primary Consumers– These organisms are also called herbivores as
they eat only plants. Like cows, goats, deer, rabbits, etc., are examples
of primary consumers, and they directly depend on plants. They occupy
the second trophic level of the food chain.
Secondary Consumers– These organisms are also called carnivores.
They eat the primary consumers, so are called secondary consumers,
and occupy the third trophic level of the food chain. Examples are fox,
dogs, cats, etc.
Tertiary Consumers– Animals that feed on carnivores are called
tertiary consumers. It occupies a tertiary trophic level in the food chain.
Example-wolf eating fox.
Quaternary Consumers– It refers to the animals which can kill the
tertiary consumers. Like lions, tigers, vultures, etc. They are also called
top carnivores. They occupy the highest trophic level.
Decomposers The organic matters on earth need to be broken down
back into its simpler inorganic form. Like that of simple sugars present
in the body of the organisms should be broken down into their inorganic
compounds when they are dead. This decay process is done by some
microorganisms called decomposers. Examples- bacteria and fungi are
well-known decomposers. These decomposers help in the recycling of
materials in the biosphere, and while doing so, they get their nutrition.
This is an unending process. These are also called saprophytes.
Abiotic Factors refer to the non-living things of the ecosystem, which
includes the physical environment, i.e., water, wind, and soil along with
inorganic substances. It also involves climatic factors such as sunlight,
temperature, humidity. These factors influence the survival and
reproduction of organisms.

Following are the abiotic components of the ecosystem:

Water: Life on the earth is known to have originated from it. Life
without water is not possible. Water, when mixed with the nutrients
present in the soil, helps to make it available for plants. The
productivity of the plants is dependent on water availability. Also,
during photosynthesis, water is required by the plants. Most of the life
forms are present inside the water system. For that, they have different
adaptations to survive in.
Water can be freshwater or marine water. Marine water refers to the
salty water of the seas and oceans. Organisms that can tolerate a wide
range of salinity are called euryhaline organisms. Some organisms
which cannot tolerate such a wide range of salinity are called
stenohaline organisms.
Light: Light is another important abiotic factor of the ecosystem.
Without light, plants cannot prepare their food. So, light plays an
important role in the process of photosynthesis. These plants are called
producers, and on producers, the entire living world depends. In plants,
light affects not only photosynthesis but also enzyme action, flowering,
transpiration, plant movement, i.e., phototropic movement, etc.

Light also brings pigmentation to the skin of terrestrial animals. Light

also affects reproductive activities in birds. Activation of gonads of
birds takes place during more light intensities like in summer. Animals
can be diurnal or nocturnal, i.e., the animals which are active during the
daytime are called diurnal like that of humans, few kinds of birds like
passerines, hummingbirds, etc. while those active during the night are
called nocturnal animals, like bats, owls, cockroaches, etc. Bees are
active during daytime because of the light.

Light is also responsible for the distribution of organisms like that of

some illuminated area of the sea or pond. More green plants can be
found in such illuminated areas. And organism’s dependent directly or
indirectly on these green plants can be found more around it.

Temperature: It is an important ecological factor. It varies with season

and changes from the equator towards the poles and from plains to the
mountain tops.
Living organisms can survive in a limited range of temperatures, while
some can survive in a wide range of temperatures. Like- polar bears
can live in such a cold region. These are called stenothermal animals as
they can tolerate a narrow range of temperatures. While the animals
that can tolerate a wide range of temperatures are called eurythermal
animals. Animals hibernate during the cold season and aestivate during
summer days. Birds can migrate during the winter season to warmer
places to avoid the low temperature during the cold season.
Temperature affects the geographical distribution of animals.
Humidity: It refers to the amount of water vapour in the air. This
depends on temperature and pressure. Humidity affects the rate of
transpiration in plants. The distribution of plants is affected by the
humidity along with temperature and precipitation. Animals found in
more humid and warm regions tend to be darker than the animals found
in more dry and cold regions. In some organisms, reproduction is
dependent on the relative humidity of that place. Like that of silverfish,
reproduction occurs when relative humidity is 80–90%.
Soil: Soil is the habitat of many different microorganisms. Plants grow
on soil. It derives nutrition from the soil through roots. Soil comprises
different minerals which are required by the plants like magnesium is
the important constituent of chlorophyll. Nitrogen is also an important
component for the growth of plants as it is one of the components of
protein.
Plants growing in nitrogen-deficient soil have adapted with some other
mechanisms like that of insectivorous plants, e.g. Pitcher plant. This
plant can trap a fly which is attracted towards it and can digest it to
compensate for their nitrogen deficiency. Pitcher plants can be called
carnivorous plants. The leaf is modified as a cup-shaped pitcher to trap
insects.
Topographic Factor: It refers to the altitude and shape of the land,
which can also affect the distribution of organisms. Like the
temperature difference between the top and down plain of the mountain
led to the distribution of different types of animals. Mountain top is
always covered with snow, so the organisms found there are adapted to
live in cold temperatures.

Function of Ecosystem

General characterization of ecosystem functions is:

Regulatory functions: this group of functions relates to the capacity
of natural and semi-natural ecosystems to regulate essential ecological
processes and life support systems through bio-geochemical cycles and
other biosphere processes. In addition to maintaining the ecosystem
(and biosphere health), these regulatory functions provide many
services that have direct and indirect benefits to humans (i.e.,clean air,
water and soil, and biological control services).
Habitat functions: natural ecosystems provide refuge and a
reproduction habitat to wild plants and animals and thereby contribute
to the (in situ) conservation of biological and genetic diversity and the
evolutionary process.
Production functions: Photosynthesis and nutrient uptake by
autotrophs converts energy, carbon dioxide, water, and nutrients into a
wide variety of carbohydrate structures which are then used by
secondary producers to create an even larger variety of living biomass.
This broad diversity in carbohydrate structures provides many
ecosystem goods for human consumption, ranging from food and raw
materials to energy resources and genetic material.
Information functions: Since most of human evolution took place
within the context of an undomesticated habitat, natural ecosystems
contribute to the maintenance of human health by providing
opportunities for reflection, spiritual enrichment, cognitive
development, recreation, and aesthetic experience.

Hence, the Three important function are energy flow, nutrient

cycling, and Homeostasis.

Energy Flow: Energy from the sun enters the ecosystem through the
plants as they undergo the process of photosynthesis. Energy is
transferred from one trophic level to another. Only 10% of the energy
is transferred to the next trophic level of the food chain. Rest is used in
metabolic processes or are lost in surrounding ecosystems. So,
maximum energy is present with the lower trophic level organisms of
the food chain. The flow of energy is unidirectional.
Nutrient Cycling– Nutrients are constantly circulated in the ecosystem
through different components of the ecosystem.
Homeostasis– Both the components of the ecosystem are dependent on
each other and are regulated, and so balance is maintained between
them. It maintains a balance among the various trophic levels in the
ecosystem.

Processes of the Ecosystem

In an ecosystem, energy flows while materials are cycled. These two

processes are linked and essential to the structure, function, and
biodiversity of an ecosystem.

Figure: While some energy is stored in ATP others are released as heat. The heat,
dissipated into the environment is lost in the system and cannot be recycled. This
means the planet is an open system when it comes to energy.
Figure: a simple diagram of a food chain and the flow of energy and
nutrients.

Function and biodiversity

Ecosystems are responsible for the cycling of nutrients and for allowing
the flow of energy, such as from the sun to the biotic components. The
various biological, physical, and chemical systems work together in
maintaining the stability of these systems on earth. Biodiversity is
essential for an ecosystem to function. Biodiversity refers to the biotic
components. The more diverse the biotic components are, the
“healthier” the ecosystem will be. That is because each species has an
important role to play. The more diverse the species are, the greater is
the chance that the ecosystem will persist and continue to function.
High diversity in an ecosystem can help improve productivity and
thereby stabilize the functioning of an ecosystem.

Food Chain

The transfer of food energy through a sequence of eating and being

eaten by the organisms in an ecosystem is termed as the food chain. For
example, in a grassland ecosystem, grass fixes the light energy from
the sun into chemical energy via synthesis of food and eaten up by a
grasshopper, which in turn is eaten by a frog and the frog itself is eaten
up by a snake. So, grass is food for grasshopper, grasshopper is food
for frog and the frog is food for snake. Thus, grass, grasshopper, frog
and snake make a food chain, through which energy contained in food
is transferred from one organism to another. In a pond ecosystem, the
big fishes eat the small fishes which eat the zooplanktons which in turn
consume phytoplanktons. The later fixes the light energy from the sun
into chemical energy. All the organisms, whether live or dead, are
potential food for other organisms. So, essentially there is no waste in
an ecosystem.
Therefore, there is a definite sequence of producers and consumers in
an ecosystem and their interactions along with population size are
expressed together as trophic structure. The position of organisms
along a food chain is referred to as trophic level and the amount of
living matter at each trophic level at a given time is known as standing
crop or standing biomass. All the green plants (primary producers)
belong to first trophic level, plant eaters or herbivores (primary
consumers) belong to second trophic level, carnivores or secondary
consumers to the third trophic level, and other carnivores or tertiary
consumers to fourth trophic level and so on. The top carnivores in the
food chain are known as the top predator.
TYPES OF FOOD CHAINS: -

Food chains are of two basic types:

GRAZING FOOD CHAIN: -
The grazing food chain is the major food chain dominantly occurring
in ecosystems. As obvious fromthe name, it starts from the green plants,
the major source of energy for this chain is taken from the sun as plants
carry out the process of photosynthesis in presence of sunlight. The
green plants are the primary producer and eaten up by herbivores,
which in turn are eaten up by carnivores. This food chain doesn’t
consist of microbes or other decomposers; it is carried out by the
macroscopic organisms. Examples are:
Plant → Deer → Tiger (Forest Ecosystem)
Grass → Insect → Sparrow → Snake → Hawk (Grassland Ecosystem)

DETRITUS FOOD CHAIN: -

The detritus food chain starts from the dead organic matter such as dead
bodies of animals or fallen leaves, which are eaten by microorganisms
and then followed by detritus feeding organisms (detritivores) and their
predators. This food chain has the remains of detritus as the major
source of energy, and this process gets completed by the subsoil
organisms, which can either be macroscopic or microscopic. Thus,
these food chains are less dependent on direct solar energy.
Unlike the grazing food chain, detritus food chain produces a large
amount of energy to the atmosphere. This type of food chain ensures
maximum utilization and minimum wastage of the available material.
It is useful in fixation of inorganic nutrients and utilizing up to the
maximum. For example, the food chain operating in the decomposing
accumulated litter in a temperate forest.

Leaf Litter → Bacteria → Protozoa → Small fish → Big fish

(Detritus Food Chain)

Detritus Food Chain

Food Web
In nature, the food chains never exist as isolated linear sequence; rather
they are interconnected to form a network called food web. Therefore,
a food web can be defined as a network of food chains interconnected
to each other so that a number of options of eating and being eaten are
available at each trophic level. It was Charles Elton who presented the
notion of food web what he referred to as food cycle (Krebs 2009). In
1927, he recognized that the length of these food chains was mostly
limited to 4 or 5 links and the food chains were not isolated, but hooked
together into food webs. Food web is thereal depiction and illustration
of the feeding relationships amongst species in a community.
Biogeochemical or nutrient cycling It offers an important tool for
investigating the ecological interactions that define energy flows and
predator-prey relationship (Cain et al. 2008). Fig. 5.4 shows a
simplified food web in a desert ecosystem. In this food web,
grasshoppers feed on plants; scorpions feed on grasshoppers; kit foxes
prey on scorpions. In addition, the predators of a scorpion in a desert
ecosystem might be a golden eagle, an owl, a roadrunner, or a fox. The
analysis of food web is important to understand ecosystem dynamics.
 Fig. represents a food web in terrestrial ecosystem.

SIGNIFICANCE OF FOOD CHAINS AND FOOD WEBS: -

1. The food chains and food webs help understand the feeding
relationships and the interactions between organisms in any ecosystem.
2. Nutrient cycling and energy flow in an ecosystem takes place
through food chains and food webs.
3. Food chains keep a check on the population size of different
organisms. For example, in a food chain in grassland, if deer population
increases, there will be more food for the carnivores, their population
will increase, which in turn will reduce the deer population. If there are
less deer, some of the carnivores will starve and die, letting the deer
population to grow.
4. Food webs are very important in maintaining the stability of an
ecosystem in nature. In a linear food chain, if one species become
extinct or one species suffers then the species in the subsequent trophic
levels are also affected. In a food web, on the other hand, there are
several options available at each trophic level. So if one species is
affected, it does not affect other trophic levels so seriously.
5. Each species of any ecosystem is kept under a natural check so that
the system remains balanced. For instance, if the primary consumers
(herbivores) had not been in nature, the producers would have been
perished due to overcrowding and competition. Similarly, the survival
of primary consumers is linked with the secondary consumers
(carnivores) and so on.
6. The study of food chain helps us to understand the problems of
biomagnifications. Sometimes certain toxic substances, instead of
dispersing, get concentrated at each level in the food chain and are
referred to as biological magnification or bioaccumulation.

Biogeochemical Process

Elements, such as carbon, nitrogen, or phosphorus, enter a living

organism in different ways. One example is by plants directly taking
them up from their physical environment, for example via roots
absorbing elements available in the soil and gases entering through
stomata. In animals, these elements enter via food consumption.
Droppings and decaying organic matter are broken down by
decomposers, ultimately releasing these elements for nutrient cycling,
or for use by other living organisms. This ecological process in which
decomposers break down organic matter by decomposers is called
decomposition. In decomposition, these materials are neither lost nor
destroyed and therefore the planet, in this regard, is a closed system.
The elements will be cycled between biotic and abiotic states within
the ecosystem.
Figure: This figure illustrates the various biogeochemical or nutrient
cycling carried out by decomposers.

Matter and cycles of matter

Biogeochemical cycles describe the circulation of matter, particularly

plant and animal nutrients, through ecosystems. These cycles are
ultimately powered by solar energy, fine-tuned, and directed by energy
expended by organisms. In a sense, the solar-energy-powered
hydrologic cycle acts as an endless conveyer belt to move materials
essential for life through ecosystems.

Most biogeochemical cycles can be described as elemental cycles

involving nutrient elements such as carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur
and phosphorus. Many are gaseous cycles in which the element in
question spends part of the cycle in the atmosphere – O2 for oxygen,
N2 for nitrogen, CO2 for carbon. Others, notably the phosphorus cycle,
do not have a gaseous component and are called sedimentary cycles.
All sedimentary cycles involve salt solutions or soil solutions that
contain dissolved substances leached from weathered minerals that
may be deposited as mineral formations or they may be taken up by
organisms as nutrients. The sulphur cycle, which may have H2S or SO2
in the gaseous phase or minerals (CaSO4 2H2O) in the solid phase, is
a combination of gaseous and sedimentary cycles.

Carbon Cycle

Carbon, the basic building block of life molecules, is circulated through

the carbon cycle. This cycle shows that carbon may be present as
gaseous atmospheric CO2, dissolved in groundwater as HCO3 or
molecular CO2 , in underlying rock strata as limestone (CaCO3), and
as organic matter, represented in a simplified manner as (CH2O).
Photosynthesis fixes inorganic carbon as biological carbon, which is a
constituent of all life molecules.
An important aspect of the carbon cycle is that it is the cycle by which
energy is transferred to biological systems. Organic or biological
carbon, (CH2O), is an energy-rich molecule that can react
biochemically with molecular oxygen, O2, to regenerate carbon
dioxide and produce energy. This can occur in an organism as shown
by the “decay” reaction or it may take place as combustion, such as
when wood is burned.

Oxygen Cycle

The oxygen cycle involves the interchange of oxygen between the

elemental form of gaseous O2 in the atmosphere and chemically bound
O in CO2, H2O, and organic matter. Elemental oxygen becomes
chemically bound by various energy-yielding processes, particularly
combustion and metabolic processes in organisms. It is released during
photosynthesis. By far the largest reservoir of Earth's oxygen is in the
minerals of the crust and mantle (99.5%).
• Oxygen is also cycled between the biosphere and lithosphere. Marine
organisms in the biosphere create calcium carbonate shell material
(CaCO3) that is rich in oxygen. When the organism dies its
shell is deposited on the shallow sea floor and buried over Bme to
create the limestone rock of the lithosphere. Weathering processes
initiated by organisms can also free oxygen from the lithosphere. Plants
and animals extract nutrient minerals from rocks and release oxygen in
the process.
• Only a small portion has been released as free oxygen to the biosphere
(0.01%) and atmosphere (0.36%).
• The main source of atmospheric oxygen is photosynthesis, which
produces sugars and oxygen from carbon dioxide and water.

Nitrogen Cycle

Nitrogen, though constituting much less of biomass than carbon or

oxygen, is an essential constituent of proteins. The atmosphere is 78%
by volume elemental nitrogen, N2 and constitutes an inexhaustible
reservoir of this essential element. The N2 molecule is very stable so
that breaking it down to atoms that can be incorporated in inorganic
and organic chemical forms of nitrogen is the limiting step in the
nitrogen cycle. This does occur by highly energetic processes in
lightning discharges such that nitrogen becomes chemically combined
with hydrogen or oxygen as ammonia or nitrogen oxides. Elemental
nitrogen is also incorporated into chemically bound forms or fixed by
biochemical processes mediated by microorganisms. The biological
nitrogen is returned to the inorganic form during the decay of biomass
by a process called mineralization.
Phosphorus cycle
The phosphorus cycle is crucial because phosphorus is usually the
limiting nutrient in ecosystems. There are no common stable gaseous
forms of phosphorus, so the phosphorus cycle is strictly sedimentary.
In the geosphere phosphorus is held largely in poorly soluble minerals,
such as hydroxyapatite, a calcium salt. Soluble phosphorus from these
minerals and other sources, such as fertilizers, is taken up by plants and
incorporated into the nucleic acids of biomass. Mineralization of
biomass by microbial decay returns phosphorus to the salt solution
from which it may precipitate as mineral matter.

Community dynamics

Environment is always kept on changing over a period due to

(1) variations in climatic and physiographic factors,
(2) the activities of the species of the communities themselves.
These influences bring about marked changes in the dominants of the
existing community, which is thus sooner or later replaced by another
community at the same place. This process continues and successive
communities develop one after another over the same area until the
terminal final community again becomes more or less stable for a
period of time. It occurs in a relatively definite sequence. This orderly
change in communities is referred as succession. Odum called this
orderly process as ecosystem development/ecological succession.
Succession is an orderly process of community development that
involves changes in species structure and community processes with
time and it is reasonably directional and therefore predictable.
Succession is community controlled even though the physical
environment determines the pattern.
Causes of succession
Succession is a series of complex processes, caused by (I)
Initial/initiating cause: Both climatic as well as biotic. (II)
Ecesis/continuing process ecesis, aggregation, competition reaction
etc. (III) Stabilizing cause: Cause the stabilization of the community.
Climate is the chief cause of stabilization and other factors are of
secondary value.

The process of succession starts as a barren land with bare rocks. The
pioneer species, like lichens and moss, will grow on the rocks and will
become the pioneer species. Then, the site is next colonized by grasses
and herbaceous plants. Soon, trees will grow on this site when their
seeds reach the site, for example by wind currents or by bird droppings
containing undigested seeds.
Figure-the progressive replacement of one dominant type of species or
community. This is called ecological succession.

Succession of Plants
Based on the nature of the habitat – whether it is water (or very wet
areas) or it is on very dry areas – succession of plants is called hydrarch
or xerarch, respectively.
Hydrarch succession takes place in wetter areas and the successional
series progress from hydric to the mesic conditions.
As against this, xerarch succession takes place in dry areas and the
series progress from xeric to mesic conditions. Hence, both hydrarch
and xerarch successions lead to medium water conditions (mesic) –
neither too dry (xeric) nor too wet (hydric). The species that invade a
bare area are called pioneer species.

Types of succession
• Primary succession: Starts from the primitive substratum where
there was no previously any sort of living matter. The first group of
organisms establishing there are known as the pioneers, primary
community/primary colonizers. Very slow is the series of community
changes that takes place in disturbed areas that have not been totally
stripped their soil and vegetation. In primary succession on rocks these
are usually lichens which are able to secrete acids to dissolve rock,
helping in weathering and soil formation. These later pave way to some
very small plants like bryophytes, which can take hold in the small
amount of soil. They are, with time, succeeded by bigger plants, and
after several more stages, ultimately a stable climax forest community
is formed. The climax community remains stable as long as the
environment remains unchanged. In primary succession in water, the
pioneers are the small phytoplankton, they are replaced with time by
rooted-submerged plants, rooted-floating angiosperms followed by
free-floating plants, then reed swamp, marsh-meadow, scrub and
finally the trees. The climax again would be a forest. With time the
water body is converted into land.

• Secondary succession: Starts from previously built-up substrata with

already existing living matter. Action of and external force, as a sudden
change in climatic factors, biotic intervention, fire etc, causes the
existing community to disappear. Thus, area becomes devoid of living
matter but its substratum, instead of primitive is built up. Such
successions are comparatively more rapid.
• Autogenic succession: Community - result of its reaction with the
environment, modified its own environment and thus causing its own
replacement by new communities. This course of
succession is autogenic succession.
• Allogenic succession: Replacement of the existing community is
caused largely by any other external condition and not by the existing
organisms.
• Autotrophic succession: Characterized by early and continued
dominance of autotrophic organisms like green plants. Gradual
increase in organic matter content supported by energy flow.
• Heterotrophic succession: Characterized by early dominance of
heterotrophs, such as bacteria, actinomyces, fungi and animals. There
is a progressive decline in the energy content.
General Process of succession
(i) Nudation: Development of barren area without any form of life.
Cause of nudation: It may be (a) Topographic soil erosion by wind (b)
Climatic - storm, frost etc. (c) Biotic - man, disease and epidemics.
(ii) Invasion: Successful establishment of a species in a barren area.
This species actually reaches this new site from any other area by (i)
Migration, (ii) Ecesis and (iii) Aggregation.
Slow soil development by weathering, activities of tolerant species
Pioneer Species
Retrogressive succession:
Continuous biotic influences have some degenerating influence on the
process. Due to destructive effects of organisms, the development of
disturbed communities does not occur. Process of succession, instead
of progressive, it becomes retrogressive. (Eg.) Forest may change to
shrubby or grassland community.
Deflected succession:
Sometimes due to changes in local conditions as soil character or
microclimate the process of succession becomes deflected in a different
direction than that presumed under climatic conditions of the area. Thus
the climax communities are likely to be different from the presumed
climatic climax community.

Ecological pyramids
An ecological pyramid is a graphical representation of the relationship
between the different living organisms at different trophic levels.
Charles Elton developed the concept of the pyramid of numbers. Later,
G.Evylen Hutchinson and Raymond Lindeman developed the idea of
the pyramid of energy or productivity.
It can be observed that these pyramids are in the shape of actual
pyramids, with the base being the broadest, which is covered by the
lowest trophic level, i.e., producers. The next level is occupied by the
next trophic level, i.e., the primary consumers and so on.
Features of the Ecological Pyramid

The following are the characteristics of an Ecological Pyramid:

The ecological pyramid comprises two to four layers. Organisms that

are dependent on the same type of food sources are placed at the same
level. The producers are situated at the lowest level of an ecological
pyramid with a huge population. The apex predators exist at the
topmost level of an ecological pyramid with a relatively smaller
population.
The pointed shape of the pyramid is since the supply of energy or
biomass becomes lesser with each passing level of the pyramid.
In the case of the pyramid of numbers, the topmost level will have a
lesser number of individuals but their relative body size and volume
increase.
Pyramid of Number

The ecological pyramid that is made by organizing the number of living

individuals at various trophic levels in an ecological system is known
as the pyramid of numbers with producers at the base and top
carnivores at the topmost level.

The pyramid of numbers can be both upright and inverted.

The upright pyramid has the largest number of producers at the base
and their numbers keep on declining with each passing level like pond
or grassland ecosystem.
In the inverted pyramid, the base pointed with a lesser number of
producers whereas the topmost level will have the largest number of
individuals as the size and food consumption of organisms in each level
will decrease i.e. in this system one individual producer can support
many primary consumers, similarly, one primary consumer can support
many secondary consumers, and so on. This type of pyramid is seen in
the case of a parasitic food chain.
Pyramid of numbers – inverted: tree ecosystem
 In this type of pyramid, the number of individuals is increased from
lower level to higher trophic level. Example, tree ecosystem.
detritus food chain, where many organisms feed on one dead plant or
animal also has inverted pyramid.

Pyramid of biomass:

▪ Pyramid of biomass represents the total dry weight of organisms.

▪ It is usually determined by collecting all organisms inavding each
trophic level separately and measuring their dry weight.
▪ This will serve to solve the size difference problem because all kinds
of organisms at a trophic level are weighed.
▪ The unit for measurement of biomass is g/m2.
▪ The biomass of a species is expressed in terms of fresh or dry
weight.
▪ Measurement of biomass in terms of dry weight is considered more
accurate.
▪ Certain mass of living material of each trophic level at a particular
time called as standing crop.
▪ The standing crop is measured as the mass of living organisms
(biomass) or the number in a unit area
The pyramid of biomass on land contains a large base of primary
producers with a lesser trophic level present on top.
▪ The biomass of producer termed as autotrophs is at the maximum
trophic level.
▪ The biomass of next trophic level from base, i.e., primary consumers
is less than the producers.
▪ The biomass of next higher trophic level, i.e., secondary consumers
is less than the primary consumers.
▪ The top, high trophic level consists very less amount of biomass.
▪ On other hand, in many aquatic ecosystems, the pyramid of biomass
may be present in an inverted form whereas pyramid of numbers for
aquatic ecosystem is upright.
▪ It is because the producers are small phytoplankton that grow and
reproduce very rapidly.
▪ Here, the pyramid of biomass has a small base as compared to the
consumer biomass at any instant exceeding the producer biomass and
the pyramid is represent in inverted shape.
Pyramid of energy:
▪ The pyramid of energy represents the flow of energy from lower
trophic level to higher trophic level.
▪ During the flow of energy from one organism to other, there is
remarkable loss of energy.
▪ This loss of energy is in the form of heat.
▪ The primary producers like the autotrophs contain more amount of
energy available.
▪ The least energy is available in the tertiary consumers.
▪ Thus, shorter food chain has more amount of energy available even at
the highest trophic level.
▪ An energy pyramid is regarded most suitable to compare the
functional roles of the trophic levels in an ecosystem.
▪ An energy pyramid represents the amount of energy at each trophic
level and loss of energy taking place during transfer to another trophic
level.
▪ Hence the pyramid is always upward, with a large energy base at the
bottom.
▪ Suppose an ecosystem receives 1000 calories of light energy in a
given day.
▪ Most of the energy is not absorbed by plants; some amount of energy
is reflected back to space.
▪ Green plants utilise only a small portion of that absorbed energy, out
of which the plant uses up some for respiration and of the 1000 calories,
only 100 calories (10%) are stored as energy rich materials.
▪ Now, suppose an animal eats the plant containing 100 calorie of food
energy, that animal uses some of it for its own metabolism and stores
only 10 calorie as food energy.
▪ A lion that eats that animal gets an even smaller amount of energy.
▪ Thus, usable energy decreases while passing from sunlight to
producer to herbivore to carnivore. Therefore, the energy pyramid will
always be always upright.
Importance Ecological Pyramid

The ecological pyramid is important in a biological system due to the

following reasons:
An ecological pyramid considers the dietary patterns of various living
organisms.
The ecological pyramids consider the number of living creatures in an
ecosystem.
It gives clarity of how much energy moved to start with one trophic
level and then onto the next level of the ecosystem.
It gives data about the biodiversity of a region.
The ecological pyramid is framed based on the food-consumer
relationship.
If the food chain order is disturbed, the biological pyramid will be
disturbed, and the entire environment will be seriously harmed.
It helps in keeping up with equilibrium and helps in checking the entire
state of a biological ecosystem.
Limitations of Ecological Pyramid
Following are the limitations that the system of ecological pyramid
possesses;
The ecological pyramid doesn’t consider the saprophytes and treats
them as non-living components of the environment, despite the fact that
they have a significant part in maintaining the equilibrium of the
environment.
There is no inclusion of diurnal or occasional varieties in this pyramid,
the idea of environment or seasons is totally unassumed here.
The ecological pyramid is just relevant in the event of straightforward
food chains not considering the complex food webs.
This pyramid specifies nothing about the pace or speed by which
energy moves from one trophic level to the next trophic level.
Significant sources of energy like litter and humus are totally
overlooked in the ecological pyramid despite the fact that their
significance in the environment is unrivalled. Similar species existing
at various levels in a pyramid are not considered.
What are the three types of ecological pyramids?

The three types of ecological pyramids include:

Pyramid of Number
Pyramid of Biomass
Pyramid of Energy

Q2. What do you understand by an ecological pyramid?

An ecological pyramid is a graphical representation showing the

relationship between different organisms in an ecosystem. It shows the
flow of energy at different trophic levels in an ecosystem.
Q3. What is the 10% law?

The 10% law was given by Raymond Lindeman. This law states that
when energy is transferred from one trophic level to the other, only
10% energy from the organic matter is passed on.
Q4. Why is the pyramid of energy always upright?

Pyramid of energy is a type of ecological pyramid that is always

upright. This is since during the flow of energy from one trophic level
to the other, some energy is always lost as heat in each step.