ecological principles chapter 19. what is ecology? the study of interactions between organisms and...
TRANSCRIPT
ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES
CHAPTER 19
What is Ecology?
The study of interactions between organisms and the living and non-living components of
their environment.
Root: oikos (household), same as economics
“economy of nature”
BIOSPHERE“thin film of life covering an otherwise lifeless
planet”
http://www.planet-earth.org/images/bluemarble.jpg
ECOSYSTEM
Includes all of the organisms (biotic) and the non-living factors (abiotic) of an environment
found in a particular place
Biotic factors
All living things that affect the organism:
Shelter (Cover from plants)
Competition
Predation
Parasites
Available food supply (plants and animals)
Symbiotic relationships (“partnerships”)
Abiotic factors
All non-living things that affect the organism:Oxygen concentration
PrecipitationHumidity
TemperaturepH
Amount of sunlightAvailable nitrogen
Pollutants
COMMUNITYAll of the interacting organisms living in an area
(biotic factors)
danny.oz.au/travel/ new-zealand/p/1266-estuary.jpg
POPULATIONAll of the members of a species that live in one
place at one time
http://www.bionet.nsc.ru/booklet/images/imagesLaboratories/Kushnir3Big.jpg
http://www.buddycom.com/animal/special/elephant/elephwater.jpg
ORGANISMSimplest level of organization that focuses on
individual adaptations (variations in a group that make the individual
MORE FIT!)
http://131.183.60.23/brenda/brazil/organisms.jpg
BIOSPHERE
ECOSYSTEM
COMMUNITY
ORGANISM
POPULATION
Interconnectedness and Disturbance
http://ww
w.epa.gov/glnpo/atlas/im
ages/big05.gif
Ecological Niche (NICH)
Where it lives?
When is it active?
What it eats?
www.vancouver.wsu.edu/.../ holbrook06-2003.html
Niche
• The range of environmental conditions in which an organism can survive.
• There are two kind:– Fundamental Niche– Realized Niche
Niche Types
• Fundamental Niche:• What the organisms
is able to do• What it could eat• Where it could live• When it could be
active
• Realized Niche:• What the organism
actually does• Due to competition• Due to preference• Due to a lack of
options• Usually “Most highly
adapted to”
The Competitive Exclusion Principle
• What do you think this term means?
• No two organisms can occupy the same niche
• One organism will “out-compete” the other
• Those organism which are more poorly suited will either die or have to find a new niche where they can survive
Niche Differences
Generalists
• Broad niches• Tolerate a wide range
of conditions• Able to adjust easily
to disturbances• Jack-of-all-trades
Specialists
• Narrow niches• Very specific needs• Vulnerable to
disturbances• Really good at what
they do