Ecological principle

1. ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLE BY SudhaSingH

2. Contents • Concept of ecosystem • Kinds of ecosystem • Components of ecosystem • Food chain • Food web • Ecological pyramid

3. Concept of ecosystem • Ecology: • In 1869 first of all Ernst Haeckel (1869) proposed the word • “oikologie” . • oikos = house or dwelling • Logos = study • Ecology is the branch of science, • Which studies the interaction among • Organism and their Environment. • Environment: • Environment refers to the surrounding • It has two component- • 1. Biotic • 2. Abiotic.

4. What is an ecosystem • The term ecosystem was given by A. G. Tansley in • 1935. • An ecosystem is a natural unit consisting of all living • things and non- living things. • There are two factors that make up an ecosystem:- • The biotic factors and abiotic factor of an ecosystem • interact with each other & affect each other. Biotic factor:-living things in an ecosystem. Living things is also called organism. Abiotic factor:- non –living things in an ecosystem.

5. In this pond what are some biotic factors? Examples of some biotic factors:- Shrubs , Grasses , Fish , Trees , Cattles.

6. In this pond what are some abiotic factors? • Examples of some abiotic factors:- • Water , air , temperature, soil , rainfall and sunlight. • Together the abiotic factors make up the non- living • Environment that surrounds plants and animals.

7. Concept of ecosystem • All the organism (plants , animals , microbes) of an area interact with their physical environment and forming a working system called ecosystem. • Ecosystem is the functional unit of ecology. • The term ecosystem was proposed by A. G. Tansley in 1935.

8. There are many other parallel terms or synonyms for the ecosystem, which have been proposed by various ecologist :- • Biocoenosis - Karl mobius in 1877 • Microcosm - S. A. Forbes in 1887 • Holocene - Friederichs in 1930 • Biosystem - Thienemann in 1939.

9. Definition of an ecosystem • Ecosystem is the structural and functional unit of biosphere in which there is exchange of material occurs between living organism and the physical environment.According to prof. Eugene P. Odum:- • An ecosystem can be visualized as a “functional unit of ecosystem”, where living organism interact among themselves & also the surrounding physical environment. • Ecosystem various greatly in size from a small pond to a large forest or sea.

10. Prof. Eugene P. Odum :- “father of modern ecology”. • He received crafoord prize considered to be the equivalent of the noble prize in ecology.

11. Kind of ecosystem • An ecosystem can be natural or artificial , temporary or permanent and large or tiny. • Thus various constituent ecosystem of the biosphere fall into the various categories :- • 1.Natural ecosystem:- • These type of ecosystem operate by themselves without any major interference by man based upon the particular kind of habitat.

12. Natural ecosystem are further classified as:- I. Terrestrial ecosystem : such as forest, grassland , desert, A single log etc. II. Aquatic ecosystem : which may be further distinguished as follows:- A. Fresh water ecosystem B. Marine ecosystem

13. A. Freshwater ecosystems:- • It is cover 0.78% of the earth's surface and inhabit 0.009% of its total water. • They generate nearly 3% of its net primary production. •  Freshwater ecosystems contain 41% of the world‘s. • There are three basic types of freshwater ecosystems:- • I. Lentic: • Slow moving water, including pools, ponds, and lakes. • II. Lotic: • Faster moving water, for example streams and rivers. • III. Wetlands: • Areas where the soil is saturated or inundated for at least part of the time.

14. Example of fresh water ecosystem

15. B. Marine ecosystems :- • These are among the largest of earth's aquatic ecosystems. • These are also called man made or man engineered ecosystem. • These are maintained artificially by man , where , by addition of energy and planned manipulation , nature balance is distributed regularly. • Ex :- cropland , cities , aquarium , & manned spaceship etc.

16. Example of marine ecosystem

17. Component of ecosystem • There are two component of ecosystem i.e.:- 1. Abiotic component 2. Biotic component

18. Example

19. 1. Abiotic component • It is non – living component of an ecosystem. • There are following abiotic component of an ecosystem that is :- • Climatic Component • Inorganic Component • Organic Component

20. A. Climatic component :- • Those component which provide the • environment for ecosystem called climatic • component. • There are following climatic component that • is :- • i. Light • ii. Temperature • iii. Relative humidity • iv. Water

21. B. Inorganic component :- • Those component which form the structure of an ecosystem called inorganic component. • example : N , K , Mg , Fe , S , P , Ca …etc • C. Organic component :- • Those component which provide energy of an ecosystem called organic component. • example : Glucose , Amino acid , Fatty acid , Protein ,..etc.

22. 2. Biotic component • It is living component of an ecosystem. • There are following biotic component of an ecosystem that is :- • a. Auto-trophic • B. Heterotrophic

23. Auto-trophic :- • Auto = self • Trophic = nourishing • Those biotic component of an ecosystem includes the producer or energy transducer , which convert solar energy into chemical energy with the help of simple inorganic substances such as enzymes. • Auto-tropes divided into following two groups : • i. Photoauto-trophs • ii. Chemoauto-trophs

24. Photoauto- trophs : • Which contain green pigment chlorophyll to transduction the solar or light energy of sun. • example – Trees , Grasses , Algae , Other Tiny Phytoplankton & Photosynthetic Bacteria & Cyanobacteria. • Chemoauto- trophs: • Which use energy generated in oxidation -reduction process , but their significance of the ecosystem as producers is minimal. • example - micro-organism such as , Beggiatoa , Sulphur bacteria etc.

25. B. Hetero-trophic component :- • Hetero = other • Trophic = nourishment • Hetero-trophic organism are also called • consumer. • Those biotic component of an ecosystem • which consume the matter built up by the • producers (auto-trophs). • These are of following two types :- • i. Macro-consumer • ii. Micro-consumer

26. Macro-consumer :- • These are also called phago-trophs (phago = to eat) . • It include mainly animal which ingest other organism of organic matter depending on their food habits. • These are may divided into three types : • A. Primary consumer • B. Secondary consumer • C. Tertiary consumer

27. A. Primary consumer : • These are herbivorous which directly depend on plant for food. • Ex.- Grasshopper, herbivorous fishes ,goat ,rabbit, cow etc. • B. Secondary consumer : • There are omnivorous or carnivorous obtain food from primary consumer. • Ex.– Frog , fishes (omnivorous) , dog , jackal etc. • C. Tertiary consumer : • They are top carnivorous obtain their food from primary & secondary consumer. • Ex.- Tiger , lion , leopard , wolf etc.

28. Example of auto-tropes & heterotrophs

29. Example of macro- consumer

30. ii. Micro-consumer :- • These are decomposed dead & decaying matter called decomposer , reducer saprotrophs , osmotrophs (osmo = to pass through a membranes) & scavengers. • Micro - organism breakdown complex organic compounds of dead living protoplasm , absorb some of the decomposition breakdown products & release inorganic nutrients in the environment making them available again to autotrophs or producers. • ex.- Bacteria , Fungi

31. Function of ecosystem • The function of an ecosystem can be best studied by understanding the history of ecological studies. • The function of an ecosystem can be studied under the two heads. • 1.Flow of energy • 2.Tropic level • 1.Flow of energy: • In any ecosystem energy of flow unidirectional. • O. P. Odum described unidirectional flow of energy , by means of pyramid of energy. • Lind man (1942) proposed 10% law of flow of energy in ecosystem. • Therefore producer has highest amount of energy. • Where as tertiary consumers have lowest amount of energy.

33. 2. Tropic level:- • Various step involve in an ecosystem in which food energy passes are called tropic level. • There are many type of tropic level occur in between producer & different type of consumer of an ecosystem that is:- • I. First tropic level:- producer that is green plant which manufacture own food material by photosynthesis. • Ex- all green plants • II. Second tropic level:- herbivorous that is primary consumer. • Ex- all herbivorous • III. Third tropic level :- carnivorous that is secondary consumer . • Ex- nepenthes , drosera , dionaea , man. • IV. Fourth tropic level:- top carnivorous that is tertiary consumer. • Ex- lion, tiger.

35. Food chain • Flow of energy in an ecosystem is one way process the sequence of organism through which is the energy flow , is known as FOOD CHAIN. • At each transfer a large proportion , 60 to 90 % of the potential energy is lost as a heat. • The number of steps or links in a sequence is limited usually to 4 or 5. • The shorter the food chain , the greater the available energy.

36. Example of food chain

37. Types of food chain • Food chain are two types:- • 1. Grazing food chain • 2.Parasitic food chain • 3. Detritus/ Saprophytic food chain • Grazing food chain:- which starting from a green plant based goes to grazing herbivorous (i.e. organism eating living plants) & carnivores(i. e. Animal eater).

38. 2. Parasitic food chain:- It goes from large organisms to smaller ones without outright killing as in the case of predator. 3. Detritus /Saprophytic food chain :- which goes from dead organic matter into micro- organism and then to detritus feeding organism.

39. Example of grazing food chain • Flower Caterpillar Frog (Producer) (Consumer) (Consumer) Snake Owl. (Consumer) (Consumer)

40. Example of parasitic food chain

41. Example of detritus food chain Sun • Dead Organic Matter Bacteria Aerobic Respiration Inorganic Nutrients

42. Significance of food chain :- • Food chain describe the feeding relationship between organism of an ecosystem. • The flow of energy from one species to another at various tropic level. • Food chain help in studying feeding relationship between organism. • Food chain also help us to know how much energy we gain by consuming which food. • Food chain help us to know energy flow from one tropic level to another tropic level.

43. Food web • The interlocking pattern after spoken of as the food web. • In complex natural communities , organism whose food is obtained from plants by the same number of steps are said to belong to the same tropic level. • Green plants(producer level) occupy the first tropic level , plant eaters. • The second level (primary consumer) , carnivorous ,which is the herbivores. • The third level (secondary consumer),carnivores. • The fourth level (tertiary consumer).

44. Example of food web • Grasshopper Lizard Grass Rabbit Hawk • Mouse Snake • In a grazing food chain of grassland ecosystem in the absence of rabbit , grass eaten by mouse which are further eaten by snake and then to the hawk.

45. Example of forest food web

46. Significance of food web:- • Food web maintains stability of ecosystem in nature. • Decrease in the population of alternating herbivores this substitute maintain the stability of ecosystem . • If primary consumer or herbivores not present in nature than the producers become abundant due to over crowding & competition . • Similarly survival of primary individual linked with secondary consumer & so on.. • Thus each species are kept under some natural control , so that, loss of particular organism would not produce large fluctuation in the ecosystem.

47. Ecological pyramid • Graphical representation of various type of tropic level of an ecosystem represented as pyramid shape that is called as “ecological pyramid”. • “Elton” coined the term ecological pyramid. • Producer and different types of consumer of an ecosystem form the pyramid shaped structure in respect to food.

48. Types of ecological pyramid • There are 3 types of ecological pyramid I. E. :- • 1. Pyramid of energy • 2. Pyramid of number • 3. Pyramid of biomass • 1. Pyramid of energy:- • Pyramid of energy is always upright. • “E. P. Odum” described the unidirectional flow of energy , in which producers have highest amount of energy & consumers have lowest amount of energy.

49. Example of pyramid of energy

50. 2. Pyramid of number:- • In respect to numerical relationship between different tropic level of food chain are shown in pyramid of number. • In such pyramid abundant species from the base of pyramid & less abundant species remain on the top. • The pyramid of number indicate that the producer cover the large number in comparison to primary consumer or herbivores. • These are eaten by small number of secondary consumer & than eaten by very small number of tertiary consumer. • The pyramid of number are of 3 types:- • 1. Upright:- pond & grassland ecosystem • 2. Inverted:- forest ecosystem (parasite basis) • 3. Spindle:- forest ecosystem (predatory basis)