Ecosystem Classification And Relationsips Flashcards
Ecosystems
Includes the organisms in an area (biotic factors), their physical environment (abiotic factors ) and their interactions of these factors.
Ecology
is the study of relationships between organisms and their physical and biotic environments
Biosphere
Region within which all living things found on earth
Extends to the earths crust
Broken into biomes
Community
The interacting populations of different species inhabiting an area at one particular time
Biome
Defined as a large scale community of organisms shaped by similar climate, animals and plants. They can be further classified into ecosystems.
Terrestrial biomes
Recognised for all the major climate regions of the world and are classified on basis of their predominant vegetation type.
The same biome may occur in widely separated regions
Examples: tropical rainforests, desert and tundras
Aquatic life determined by the amount
Terrestrial environments
A land environment such as tundras, deserts, open forests and temperate grasslands are mainly the result of climate variation
Factors that influence where biomes are located
- Water currents affect weather and climate, which in turn affect the type of biome
- Air currents and wind affect weather and climate which in turn type of biome
- Vegetation patterns are determined largely by climate but can be modified human activity
- Rainfall
- Temperature
- Climate
temperature, water, light and wind are the four main elements of climate - Aquatic environments:
- Include both marine (salt water) and freshwater environments
- Make up the largest part of the biosphere
Biotic factors
include:
- Producers - usually green plants that make their own food through photosynthesis
- Consumers - usually animals which feed on plants or other animals
- Decomposers - which live on, and decompose, dead organic matter.
Abiotic factors
include:
- Physical factors such as temperature, light, humidity, winds, slope and ocean currents
- In organic matter such as carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and water
- Energy in the form of heat and light from the sun
Ecosystems include
All of the organisms the community
And their physical environments (abiotic)
- Light
- The medium e.g. water, soil, air
- Substrate e.g. soil
- Climate (atmospheric) including temperature, rainfall, wind
Can be very large or small or artificial
Can include many different habitats
Classifying ecosystems using biotic features
Ecosystems are classified by abiotic factors but also by their component species and species interactions (biotic factors)
Ecosystems are often named after their dominant species
Competition
Is when individuals compete for a resource that limits their survival and reproduction
Collaboration
Is when organisms work together to benefit all; this can be intraspecific (relationships between members of different species) or interspecific (occurs between members of the same species)
Predation
Is when one species (predator) kills and/or eats another species (prey) for food
Disease
The interaction between a disease-causing organisms and the host can also affect the biodiversity of an ecosystem
Symbiosis
Is the general term for a relationship between individuals of two or more species that benefit at least one species. There are three main types
Habitat
A physical area or environment within an ecosystem where an individual of a species lives, feeds and reproduces
Niche
The role an organism has in its ecosystem and the conditions it requires to persist, including food sources, feeding, activities, spatial habitat, reproduction and relationships
Topography
The arrangement of physical features, both natural and artificial, of an area
Populations
A group of individuals belonging to the same species, living in the same habitat at the same time
Climate
Atmospheric weather of an area, measured and averaged over a long period of time. Temperature, water, light and wind are the four main elements of a climate
Aquatic environments
Include both marine (saltwater) and freshwater environments
They make up the largest part of the biosphere
Parasitism
Between two species, a parasite and a host. The parasite is an organism that lives on or in another organism, known as the host
Ectoparasites, live and feed on the external surface of their host organism
Endoparasites, live and feed within there own host organism
Mutualism
Both species in the relationship benefit and neither is harmed
Commensalism
One species benefits and the other neither benefits not is harmed
