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Welcome to the Biosphere

Welcome to the Biosphere. Introduction to Ecology. We are all shaped by the world around us The planet controls many of the everyday functions of humans Understanding how the planet works allows us as humans to adapt to our planet. Introduction to Ecology.

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Welcome to the Biosphere

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  1. Welcome to the Biosphere

  2. Introduction to Ecology • We are all shaped by the world around us • The planet controls many of the everyday functions of humans • Understanding how the planet works allows us as humans to adapt to our planet

  3. Introduction to Ecology • Ecology is the study of the interactions between living and non living components in the environment • From the Greek word oikos, which means home • It is a broad science that includes many different types of observation

  4. Introduction to Ecology • Ecologists are scientists that study ecosystems • This branch of science requires many skills and an open mind • It requires knowledge of all areas of science and an idea of how living and non living factors interact

  5. Organisms and Interdependence • All organisms are considered interdependent • Interdependence means that organisms rely on interactions with their environment • Interactions can include other organisms or non living factors in the environment

  6. Organisms and Interdependence • This means that no organism can survive without its environment • What would happen to a wolf if you took away all of its water? • What would happen to a tree if you took away all of the carbon dioxide? • What would happen to a shark if you took away all of its food?

  7. Organisms and Interdependence • Since organisms rely on each other, it is possible that organisms can affect other organisms • This means that a change in the number of one organism can affect many other organisms

  8. Effects of Interdependence • A good example of this are Oak trees • Every three of four years oak trees produce large numbers of acorns • These acorns feed more mice, deer and other organisms

  9. Effects of Interdependence • With more mice and deer, there is a situation that allows more carnivores • More hawks, foxes and cats can be supported in the area • More parasites can now be introduced into the system as well • More ticks can be supported

  10. Effects of Interdependence • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_t44siFyb4

  11. Dead or Alive? • The environment can be broken up into to large groups of interacting factors • The easiest to recognize are the biotic factors • Biotic factors include all of the living factors that are involved in the environment

  12. Dead or Alive? • The second group of factors are the non living factors that can influence the environment • The abiotic factors are often times more important, however then can be tricky to identify

  13. Levels of Organization • There are different levels of organization in our environment • This helps ecologists understand the environment and how it interacts • Each level of the environment gets larger and more inclusive

  14. Levels of Organization • Organism – an organism is a singular living being • This is how most people view their impact on the planet • One single organism can impact its environment in some cases

  15. Levels of Organization • Population – A population is a group of a given species in a local area • Populations can be used to describe the number of squirrels in Annandale • Populations can be used to describe the number of bears on the East coast

  16. Levels of Organization • Community – a community is a group of living and interacting organisms in a local area • All of the bacteria, algae, plants, fish, turtles and birds that live in a pond would be a community

  17. Levels of Organization • Ecosystem – all of the living and non living organisms in an area • Ecosystems have all of the interacting factors in an area • A forest would be an ecosystem because it has living (trees, insects and birds) and non living (heat, moisture and type of soil) factors interacting

  18. Levels of Organization • Many times ecosystems boarder each other and will interact • A change in ecosystem can cause changes in other ecosystems • Landscapes are interacting groups of ecosystems that are in a localized area

  19. Levels of Organization • Biosphere – The biosphere includes all of the interacting ecosystems in a given area • Our planet is the best example of a biosphere • It includes all of the ecosystems

  20. Biomes • While the levels of organization appear around the world there are striking similarities around the world • The forests in New Jersey greatly resemble the forests in China • Deserts in the Middle East Resemble deserts in Navada

  21. Biomes • Biomes are major types of ecological zones that occupy broad geographic regions • Your book wants you to learn 11 of them • Estuary • Wetlands • Tropical Forest • Desert • Savanah • Coral Reefs • Temperate forest • Coniferous Forest • Artic Tundra • Chaparral • Temperate Grassland

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