TOPIC 2: Ecosystems- Summary

Definitions:

Biotic factors: living components

Abiotic factors: non-living physical and chemical components

Species: a particular type of organism

Population: a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same
time

Habitat: the environment where a species normally lives

Ecological niche: how an organism makes a living

Community: a group of populations living and interacting with each other in a common habitat

Ecosystem: a community of independent organisms (biotic factors) and the physical

environment (abiotic factors) which they inhabit

Biome: a collection of ecosystems sharing common climatic conditions

Respiration: a process of breaking down food in order to release energy

Photosynthesis: a process of producers making their own food (glucose) and producing
oxygen from water and carbon dioxide

Biomass: the living mass of an organism or organisms but sometimes refers to dry mass

Gross Productivity: the total gain in energy or biomass per unit area per unit time

o GPP: by producers

o GSP: by consumers

Net Productivity: the total gain in energy or biomass per unit area per unit time after allowing
for losses to respiration
o

o NPP: by producers

o NSP: by consumers

Biomes:

climate

latitude (distance from equator)

altitude (height above sea level)

wind and water currents

P/E ratio (precipitation over evaporation ratio)

latent heat: heat that is either taken in or produced when water changes from state to state
Different Biomes:

Tropical Rainforest hot and wet areas with broadleaved ever green forest. Within 50 north
or south of the equator. High rainfall and high temperature, high insolation as near equator.
There are amazingly high levels of biodiversity, many species and many individuals of specie.
There are very large evergreen trees, small shrubs, orchids.

It is estimated that tropical rainforest produces 40% of NPP of terrestrial ecosystems. But the
problems it has, are that 50% of human population live near the equator, so they damage the biome,
they are exploited for human economical needs.

Desert dry areas which are usually hot in the day and cold in the night, there are tropical,
temperate and cold deserts. It covers 20-30% of earths surface, about 300 of north or south
of the equator. Water is limited in the deserts. There are few species and very low biodiversity,
there are only the ones who adapted to the conditions. Soil can be rich, because the nutrients
are not washed away from the water. NPP is low because the amount of plants and animals
are limited, because of the water. Desertification is the human activity.

Temperate Grassland fairly flat areas, that are covered with grass, they are located 400
600 from the equator, either north or south. The net productivity is not very high, because its
only grass that grows on the land, nothing else. And with that the animals that are growing are
small size as well. Humans use grass lands for the crops.

Temperate Forest - mild climate and deciduous forest. Located 400 600 north or south of
the equator, it has 4 seasons, there also are fewer species than tropical rainforest, it has the
second highest NPP after the tropical rainforest. Much of the temperate forests, have been
cleared because of human activities.

Arctic Tundra Tree less plain with permafrost, cold and very low precipitation, dark nights.
It is 10% of lands surface, it is located on the arctic cap. Water is limiting but the fire can stop
the climax community forming. There are no trees but there Is a thick mat, covered by
mosses and grasses. It has very low biodiversity, and soil is poor. With that the NPP is very
low, humans use it for mining.

Ecosystem Structure:
Food chains and trophic levels

food chain: shows a flow of energy from one organism to the next

food web: shows a complex network of interrelated food chains

trophic level: a position that an organism or a group of organisms in a community occupies in

a food chain

producers or autotrophs: which manufacture their own food from inorganic substances

consumers or heterotrophs: which feed on autotrophs or other heterotrophs to obtain energy

decomposers: consumers that obtain energy from dead organisms

detritivores: consumers that derive their food from detritus or decomposing organic material

Ecological pyramids

o pyramid of numbers: shows the number of organisms at each trophic level in a food chain
o

advantages:

o easy method of giving an overview

o good for comparing changes in population numbers over different times

disadvantages:

o all organisms included regardless of their size

o numbers can be too great to represent accurately

o pyramid of biomass: contains the biomass at each trophic level

o

advantages:

disadvantages:

only uses samples from populations, so its impossible to measure biomass

exactly

organisms must be killed to measure dry mass

o pyramid of productivity: contains the flow of energy through each trophic level; shows the
energy being generated and available as food to the next trophic level during a fixed period of
time
o

advantages:

shows the actual energy transferred and allows for rate of production

disadvantages:

overcomes the problems of pyramids of numbers

very difficult and complex to collect energy data as the rate of biomass
production over time is required

o bioaccumulation and biomagnification

bioaccumulation: increase in concentration in one organism over time

biomagnification: increase in concentration with the increase in trophic levels

o trophic efficiency: only 10% of the energy is transferred to the next, so the trophic
efficiency=10%

Population Interactions

A population is a group of organisms of the same species living in the same area at the same
time and capable of interbreeding.

Population density is the average number of individuals in a stated area.

Competition

Competition between members of the same species is Intraspecific competition.

Individuals of the different species, competeting for the same resource is called Interspecific
competition.

The other outcome is that one species may totally outcompete the other, this is the principle
of Competitive exclusion.

Predation happens when one animal, the predator, eats another animal, the prey.
Herbivory is defined as an animal eating green plant.
Parasitism - is a relationship between two species in which one species lives in or on another gaining
its food from it.
Mutualism - s a relationship between two or more species in which both or all benefit and none suffer.

Succession
Succession.

Succession is the change in species composition in an ecosystem over time

It may occur on bare ground where soul formation starts the process or where no soil has
already formed, or where the vegetation has been removed.

Early in succession, GPP and respiration are low and so NPP is high as biomass
accumulates.

To see the stages of primary succession go to page 266. Table 14.1

Primary succession involves the colonization of newly created land by organisms.

See Fig. 14.1 on page 266.

Primary succession starts on dry land is called a xerosere. A succession in water is a

hydrosere.

See Fig. 14.2 on page 267

Succession progresses in stages from pioneer species, that are adapted to live in limiting
environments, to stable developed community. This final community is termed a climax
community.

To see the secondary succession process in time, go to page 268 and find Fig. 14.3

Secondary succession occurs on souls that are already developed and ready to accept seeds
carried in by the wind. Also there are often dormant seeds left in the soil from previous
community. This shortens the number of seral stages the community goes through.

Changes occurring during a succession (refer to Fig. 14.4 on page 268)

the size of organisms increases

energy flow becomes more complex

soil depth, humus, water-holding capacity, mineral content and

cycling increase

Biodiversity increases and then falls as the climax community is

reached

NPP and GPP rise and then fall

Production: respiration ratio falls

Species diversity in successions

Early stages of succession: few species

Species diversity increases with the succession

Increase continues until a balance is reached between possibilities

for new species to establish, existing species to expand their range
and local extinction