Ecosystems

LNDA 215
presented by -
❑ What is an ecosystem ?
• An ecosystem, a term very often used in biology, is a community of plants and animals interacting with
each other in a given area, and also with their non-living environments. The non-living environments
include weather, earth, sun, soil, climate and atmosphere.
• The ecosystem relates to the way that all these different organisms live in close proximity to each other
and how they interact with each other. For instance, in an ecosystem where there are both rabbits and
foxes, these two creatures are in a relationship where the fox eats the rabbit in order to survive. This
relationship has a knock-on effect with the other creatures and plants that live in the same or similar areas.
For instance, the more rabbits that foxes eat, the more the plants may start to thrive because there are
fewer rabbits to eat them.
• “An ecosystem is a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their
environment (things like air, water and mineral soil), interacting as a system. These biotic and abiotic
components are regarded as linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. As ecosystems are
defined by the network of interactions among organisms, and between organisms and their environment,
they can be of any size but usually encompass specific, limited spaces (although some scientists say that the
entire planet is an ecosystem).”
• Ecosystems can be huge, with many hundreds of different animals and plants all living in a delicate balance,
or they could be relatively small. In particularly harsh places in the world, such as the North and South
Poles, the ecosystems are relatively simple because there are only a few types of creatures that can
withstand the freezing temperatures and harsh living conditions.
• Some creatures can be found in multiple different ecosystems all over the world in different relationships
with other or similar creatures. Ecosystems also consist of creatures that mutually benefit from each other.
• For instance, a popular example is that of the clownfish and the anemone – the clownfish cleans the
anemone and keeps it safe from parasites as the anemone stings bigger predators that would otherwise
eat clownfish.
What is an ecosystem ?

Earth as an ecosystem stands out in the all of the universe. There’s no place that we know about that can
support life as we know it, not even our sister planet, Mars, where we might set up housekeeping someday, but
at great effort and trouble we have to recreate the things we take for granted here.
~ Sylvia Earle

• An ecosystem can be destroyed by a stranger.

• The stranger could be a rise in temperature or rise in sea level or climate change.
• The stranger can affect the natural balance and can harm or destroy the ecosystem.
• Its a bit unfortunate but ecosystems have been destroyed and vanished by man-made activities
like deforestation, urbanization and natural activities like floods, storms, fires or volcanic eruptions.
❑ Types of Ecosystems
There are very many types of ecosystems out there, but they are mainly divided into two main categories :
o Natural Ecosystems
o Artificial Ecosystems

Natural Ecosystems
• A natural ecosystem is a community of living and non-living entities and occurs freely in nature.
• Every component interacts together as a combined unit through physical, chemical and biological
processes.
• The discriminating factor of natural ecosystems from other ecosystems is that they are completely natural.
• Their interactions in no way are influenced by human activity as seen in the case of artificial ecosystems.
• The components of natural ecosystems that bring about these interactions are soil, sunlight, air, water,
plants, animals and microorganisms.
• Each of these factors of the ecosystem is associated either directly or indirectly. For example, a fluctuation
in the temperature levels affects the growth of plants.
• Examples Of Natural Ecosystems : Deserts, virgin rain forests, the abysmal plain are a few examples of
naturally occurring ecosystems.
• They are majorly devoid of human existence, thereby enabling these sites to continue existing in their
natural state. However, these ecosystems, with time undergo changes in the event of environmental
changes regardless of human existence.
Natural ecosystems Artificial ecosystems

Ecosystems that are made by man for commercial or

A biological environment occurring freely in nature
other benefits is known as an artificial ecosystem.
rather than being created by man is called as a
These ecosystems are modified by humans for their
natural ecosystem
own profit and can either be terrestrial or aquatic

Example: Desert, forest Example: Aquariums, crop fields, dams, gardens

❑ Types of Natural Ecosystems
The size of every ecosystem varies. On earth, ecosystems are interlinked to make biome – land or atmosphere,
the area of sea, forests, reefs etc. Depending upon the habitats, biomes are connected with each other which
possess several ecosystems. There are two main types of natural ecosystems:

•Terrestrial ecosystem: Land-based

•Aquatic ecosystem: Water-based

Desert Ecosystem

The desert ecosystem can be seen existing in the artics as well as the tropics. As presumed, not all of the
deserts are hot. Some are usually windy. The most striking feature of this ecosystem is the amount of
precipitation it receives, which is the least as compared to any other ecosystem. A few deserts are comprised
of rocks while some have sand dunes. Flora is very rare, but highly adaptive animal species and insects are
found here.

Forest Ecosystem

The forest ecosystem is classified on the basis of the climate which can either be tropical, temperate or boreal.
In temperate zones, the forest ecosystem can have a deciduous, coniferous type or a combination of both
types of flora. The tropics have rainforest ecosystems which include the most diverse animal and plant
ecosystem in comparison to any region on the planet. In this region, trees are found growing tall, with denser
foliage and humid environment wherein species are found right from the roots up till the canopy.
Types of Natural Ecosystems
Marine Ecosystem

The marine ecosystem refers to the aquatic ecosystem containing saltwater and harbours a range of species.
This ecosystem is the vastest and the biggest ecosystem on earth. They not only embed the oceanic beds, but
also the salt marshes, tidal zones, saltwater swamps, mangroves, coral reefs etc.

Freshwater Ecosystems

The freshwater ecosystem refers to the aquatic ecosystem containing consumable water, as opposed to
marine ecosystems, they concern with the ecosystem found in the lakes, ponds, rivers, springs, freshwater
swamps that have fresh water. They nurture planktons, algae, insects, amphibians and underwater plants.

Tundra Ecosystem

Tundra symbolizes polar regions at relatively lower altitudes. It is identified by harsh environmental conditions
correlated to deserts and is habitually treeless, windswept and snow-covered. The soil is found frozen all
through the year and throughout the fleeting summers, snow melts to produce shallow ponds, thereby giving
rise to lichens and small flowers.

Grassland Ecosystem

The grassland ecosystems are found in steppes, savannas, and prairies, in the tropical and temperate regions.
They can be found in colder regions and have a prevalent feature: semi-aridity. The trees in these regions are
close to non-existence and flowers may be distributed along with the grass. These ecosystems are typical for
animal-grazing.