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Interactions Among Organisms. What is Ecology?. Ecology is the study of organisms and the living and non-living parts of their environment. There are many levels of organization in ecology. Levels include:
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What is Ecology? • Ecology is the study of organisms and the living and non-living parts of their environment. • There are many levels of organization in ecology. Levels include: • Biosphere – all the area on the surface of earth and in the atmosphere that supports life • Biome – large area characterized by climate and particular plants and animals • Ecosystem – a group of organisms living together and the environment around them • Community – all of the interacting populations in an area • Population – all of the organisms of the same species living in an area • Organism – A single living thing
Abiotic Factors are all of the non-living components of the ecosystem. Examples would be: Water Sunlight Oxygen Temperature Soil Biotic Factors are all of the living components of the ecosystem. Examples would be: Plants Insects Larger animals Abiotic vs. Biotic Factors
Which level is it? • Identify the level of ecological organization represented by each picture. • A herd of buffalo.
Which level is it? • All of the living and non-living parts of a pond
Which level is it? • African savannah
Habitat • The habitat is the place where an organism lives. • An environment that provides the things the organism needs to live, grow, and reproduce is called its habitat. • Several species can live in the same habitat but will use the resources in different ways.
http://www.tycho.dk/ezimagecatalogue/catalogue/variations/1150-250x250.jpghttp://www.tycho.dk/ezimagecatalogue/catalogue/variations/1150-250x250.jpg Niche • A niche is the role of an organism in its habitat or how it makes its living. • A niche includes the type of food the organism eats, how it obtains this food, and which other organisms use the organism as food. • A niche also includes when and how the organism reproduces and the physical conditions that it requires to survive.
Ecological Relationships • Ecological Relationships can be classified as: competition, predation, or symbiosis.
Competition • Competition is the struggle between organisms to survive as they attempt to use the same limited resource. • Organisms compete for: food, water, and living space.
Predation • In predation, one organism, the predator, kills and eats another, the prey. • The relationship of predator and prey is essential to keeping populations of both animals at normal levels.
Defense Strategies • Mimicry: look like something else to trick would-be predators • Protective covering: hard outer shell • False coloring: like “false eyespots” to trick would-be predators • Warning coloring: tell predators not to eat it • Camouflage: blend in with surroundings
Symbiosis is a close relationship between two species that benefits at least one of the species. There are three types of symbiosis: Mutualism Commensalism Parasitism
Mutualism • In mutualism, both organisms benefit from one another. • For example: A clownfish and a sea anemone have a mutualistic relationship. The fish is protected by the anemone and the anemone receives scraps of food from the clownfish.
Commensalism • In commensalism, one organism benefits from the other. The other organism is neither helped nor harmed. • This is usually a relationship between a small organism and a larger organism where the smaller organism benefits. • The benefit is usually shelter, transportation, defense, or food.
Commensalism • An example is the relationship of the remora and the shark. The remora receives food in the form of scraps that come from the shark, but the shark is unaffected.
Parasitism • In parasitism, one organism benefits and the other is harmed. • The organism that benefits is called the parasite. • The organism that is harmed is called the host.
Parasitism • Tapeworms and liver flukes are examples of parasites that live in the bodies of other organisms (endoparasites). They feed off the host and cause disease.
Which relationship is it? • An American robin builds a nest in a red maple tree
Which relationship is it? • A tick makes its home on a white-tailed deer
Which relationship is it? • A Nile crocodile will open its mouth and allow the Egyptian plover to feed on any leeches that are attached to its gums
Which relationship is it? • A red fox hunts and consumes a black rat snake
Which relationship is it? • A certain type of paramecium engulfs unicellular green algae into vacuoles within its cell. The algae are allowed to utilize carbon dioxide produced by the paramecium and the paramecium is able to utilize food produced by the algae.
