ECOLOGY - Humble Independent School District



UNIT 13 Notes: Ecology Part 1

What is Ecology? (pg. 63)

Ecology is the study of ___________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

in which they live. (eco means “house”)

All living factors are called biotic factors. All nonliving factors are called abiotic factors.

(pg. 90) Ex. _______________________ (pg. 90 ) Ex.________________________________

________________________________ _________________________________________

________________________________ _________________________________________

Levels of Organization in the Biosphere (pgs. 21, 63-64, 90-91)

Because of the interaction between biotic and abiotic factors on the planet, the Earth is described as a single living system, or biosphere, in which life exists.

To understand relationships within the biosphere, ecologists study various levels:

1. Species – ________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

2. Populations – _____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

3. Communities -- ____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

4. Ecosystems – ____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

• Habitat- (pg. 90)______________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

5. Biome --__________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

6. Biosphere --_______________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

PRACTICE: Use the terms above in the levels of organization section from above to fill in the following:

ENERGY FLOW THROUGH AN ECOSYSTEM (pg. 67)

The flow of energy through an ecosystem begins with the_____, and is passed on through various organisms:

sun ( producers ( consumers ( decomposers

• Producers – autotrophic organisms that are able to make their own food from inorganic substances.

Examples: (pg. 67) __________________________________________________________

Chemosynthesis____________________________________________________________

Photosynthesis_____________________________________________________________

• Consumers – heterotrophic organisms that get energy by eating producers or other consumers.

Examples: (pg. 68) __________________________________________________________

|1. Herbivores– |2. Carnivores– |3. Omnivores- |4. Detritiovores - |

|eats____________ |Eats______________ |Eats_______________ |Eats____________ |

|Ex. __________ |Ex._____________ |Ex.__________ |Ex._____________ |

|____________ |______________ |_____________ |________________ |

Types of Consumers: (pg. 69)

Level of Consumers: Use the three types of consumers from above to fill in the following blanks:

Primary consumer( Secondary consumer( 3rd(4th …..

________________ __________________

(________________ can be a 1st, 2nd or higher level consumer)

• Decomposers – obtain energy from the__________________________________________. (pg. 69)

Examples:_______________________________________________________________

FEEDING RELATIONSHIPS (pg. 69-70)

Each step in a food chain or web is called a___________________, or a feeding relationship between organisms.

FOOD CHAIN ____________________________ FOOD WEB ______________________________

________________________________________ ________________________________________

(Label each trophic level below)

Food Web Practice:

Part I: Identify the following in this food web:

1. Producers____________________________________

2. Primary Consumers_____________________________

_____________________________________________

3. Secondary Consumers___________________________

_____________________________________________

4. Herbivores___________________________________

_____________________________________________

5. Carnivores____________________________________

_____________________________________________

6. Omnivores____________________________________

7. What elements are missing from this food web?________

_____________________________________________

8. What would happen if the grasshopper population increased?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Part II: Construct a Food web using the following animals.  This ecosystem represents a farm area.  The corn is the main source of food for many of the herbivores in the area.  You do not have to draw pictures; you can just use the animal names and draw arrows between them.  

SNAKE, CORN, CATERPILLAR, DEER, MOUSE, COUGAR, SQUIRREL,

CROW (omnivore) & MICROORGANISMS (decomposers)

(Hint: start with the producer, then add who eats producers, then add secondary consumers…)

ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS (pg. 72-73)

Ecological pyramids ______________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

in a food chain or web.

Pyramid of Energy

A pyramid of energy is used to illustrate the loss of usable energy at each feeding level. Of all the energy consumed by one level, 90% of the energy is used in the individual’s metabolism. (and lost as heat) Only about ________________

________________________________________

________________________________________ is transferred to organisms at the next trophic level.

*Why do you think most food chains don’t have more than 4 or 5 trophic levels?______________

____________________________________________________________________________

Pyramid of Numbers

Because there is less available energy at each trophic (feeding) level, more individuals must be consumed at each level to obtain enough energy to survive.

This can be illustrated with a pyramid of numbers. This will show how many individuals are required to support the next level of feeding.

*Compare the pyramid of energy to the pyramid of numbers. Why must there be so many more individuals at lower trophic levels?

WATER AND NUTRIENT CYCLES:

WHAT HAPPENS TO THE NUTRIENTS WHEN ORGANISMS DIE?

• Energy cannot be recycled or used again.

• However, nutrients/elements in an ecosystem can be recycled.

• When an animal dies, its matter does not disappear; rather, it decomposes and gets used by another organism (through biogeochemical cycles).

• This occurs through the water cycle, carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, and phosphorous cycle.

The Water Cycle

Pg. 75

The Carbon Cycle

Pg. 77

Pg. 78

WHO EATS WHOM?

Part 1: Vocabulary – Fill in the blanks with the terms below.

Abiotic factor

Biotic factor

Ecosystem

Consumers

Decomposers

Photosynthesis

Ecology

Food chain

Food web

community

Producers

Trophic level

1. All living factors in an ecosystem (plants, animals, etc.)

______________________

2. All nonliving factors such as climate and temperature.

______________________

3. The study of how organisms interact with each other and

their environment. ________________________

4. All populations living in an area. __________________________________

5. Heterotrophic organisms that must eat other

organisms for energy. ___________________________

6. Organisms that obtain energy from the remains of other organisms. _________________________

7. Describes plants because they make food from sunlight.

_________________________

8. Community plus habitat_________________________

9. Feeding relationships between individual organisms.

________________________

10. Mass of interconnecting food chains. _______________

11. Each step in a food chain or web that shows the feeding

relationship between organisms. ___________________

12. Process of transforming solar energy into food for plants and other producers______________________________

Part 2: Food Chains and Food Webs

1. List all of the producers. ______________________________________________________________________________

2. List the primary consumers/herbivores. ______________________________________________________________________________

3. List the higher level consumers/carnivores. ______________________________________________________________________________

4. What is the top consumer? ________________

5. What begins the flow of energy in the picture? _______________________________________

6. Using the food web above, describe what would happen to each of the other organisms in the following situations…(be specific)

a. If the grasses were all eaten by the grasshoppers- _________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

b. If the hawks were all killed or captured by humans- _______________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Part 3: Ecological Pyramids: (pg. 72-73)

1. Which trophic level contains autotrophic organisms? _____________

2. Which trophic level contains herbivores? ______________________

3. Which trophic level contains carnivores? ______________________

4. Which trophic level contains the most available energy? ___________

5. Which trophic level contains the least available energy? ___________

6. How much energy is transferred to the next trophic level?__________

-----------------------

What term is used to refer to each of the following?

____________________1. Lake Houston (location)

____________________2. Mississippi river and all of the forms of life that are sustained by it

____________________3. A flock of ducks

____________________4. The Sahara desert

____________________5. All livable areas on Earth

____________________6. The deer, ducks, shore birds, fish and rabbits living in and around Lake Houston

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

Arrows show the flow of energy

2nd

1st

3rd

4th

5th 2nd

1. What would happen to this food web is the plants were removed?____________________________

2. Which organism is most vulnerable to changes in populations?______________________________

3. What happens to the owl population if the foxes we killed off by humans?________________________

Any change in a population or one trophic level in a food chain can seriously alter all other organisms of the food web. A healthy ecosystem has a large diversity of life because of the availability of alternative food sources.

_________Kcal: Humans

_________Kcal: Tuna

_________Kcal: zooplankton

_________Kcal: phytoplankton

[pic]

3rd consumers

Secondary consumers

Directions: Refer to diagram to left, diagram on pg. 75 and chapter text to fill in the following blanks.

1. According to the diagram, where does evaporation take place from?

_______________________________________

2. When water evaporates from the surface of the Earth, what process creates clouds?

_______________________________________

3. Water falls to the earth in a process called ______________________. What are the 4 types of precipitation? __________________________

_______________________________________

4. Plants return excess water to the atmosphere by evaporating water from its leaves in a process called:_________________________________

5. Other than plant and animal usage, what are two other possible destinations for the precipitation that falls to the Earth? _______________________________________

6. What will ultimately happen to the ground water and surface water runoff? _______________________________________

Condensation

Seepage

Decomposers

Directions: Use the diagrams above, and the diagrams and text to answer the following:

1. (pg. 77) Name and discuss the process that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere?________

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. Name and discuss the processes in which carbon dioxide is returned to the atmosphere?_________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. (pg. 87) How is carbon dioxide related to the green house affect? ____________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. (pg.159) It is thought that global warming is caused by adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. What activities (by human and natural causes) are thought to speed up global warming? __________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

The Nitrogen Cycle

by bacteria and/or lightning

Nitrogen Facts

Air is 78% nitrogen

Nitrogen is one of the elements found in plant fertilizers

Protein contains nitrogen

Directions: Use the diagrams above, diagram on pg. 78, and text to answer the following:

1. (pg. 78) Bacteria living in the roots of the plant help the plant by ____________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

2. Bacteria living in the soil help plants by ______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

3. What process transforms nitrogen into usable forms that plants can use?_____________________

3. What do plants use these nitrates and nitrites to make? __________________________________

4. Where do animals ultimately get their proteins from?____________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

5. (pg. 78, fig. 3-14) How has farming affected the nitrogen cycle?____________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

6. (pg. 148) How has industry affected the nitrogen cycle?__________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________

Level 3

Level 2

Level 1

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