DEBER TABOR UNIVERSITY

College of Agriculture and Environmental

Science
Department of Natural Resource Management

Introduction to Ecology (NaRM 221)

By: Hailu Menale Nov., 2025

 Recall
What have we discussed in
the previous class?
Chapter 4
Brainstorming

What is community ecology?

 Community ecology
• A biological community (or ecological
community) consists of all the populations of
different species

✓living together in a particular area and

✓ interacting through various ecological

processes such as competition,
predation, mutualism, and succession
 Community ecology ….. Cont.

• Community ecology is the study of

✓how groups of interacting species coexist, distribute, and function

within a shared environment.
 Community ecology ….. Cont.

• Communities are

✓the next level of organization

above populations and

✓form the building blocks of

ecosystems
 Community ecology ….. Cont.
• A community can be described in terms
of its

• structure (the number and types of

species present, their relative abundance,
and spatial arrangement) and

• function (the roles species play, energy

flow, and nutrient cycling).
 Community ecology ….. Cont.

• Understanding community structure and

function is crucial because

✓it explains how ecosystems maintain

balance and respond to disturbances.

• Species do not exist in isolation;

✓they form networks of interaction that

regulate energy flow and nutrient
dynamics
Basic Characteristics of Ecological Communities

• Several attributes are used to describe and compare ecological

communities
1. Species Composition (Flora and Fauna)
2. Species Diversity
3. Trophic Structure
4. Dominance and Keystone Species
5. Physical Structure
6. Stability and Resilience
 1. Species Composition
(Flora and Fauna)

• The identity of species present in a community

defines its composition.

• Communities are often named after their

dominant species

• Ex: Acacia–Commiphora woodland or

Juniperus forest.

• The species composition reflects environmental

conditions such as climate, soil, and altitude.
 • Diversity has two components’
1. species richness (the number of species) and
2. Species 2. species evenness (the relative abundance of each
species).
Diversity • A community with many equally abundant species is more
diverse than one dominated by a few.
• Species diversity is a key indicator of ecological stability and
productivity
3. Trophic Structure • Communities can be viewed as networks
of feeding relationships, organized into
• trophic levels producers, consumers, and
decomposers.

• The flow of energy and matter through

these trophic levels forms
• food chains and food webs that
interconnect all species.

• The complexity of food webs increases

with community diversity
 4. Dominance and Keystone
Species
• A few species often exert disproportionate
influence on community structure.

• Dominant species are those with high

abundance or biomass,

• keystone species have strong ecological

impacts despite low abundance.
Example: sea otters are keystone predators that
regulate sea urchin populations, maintaining
kelp forest communities
 • Communities also possess spatial

5. Physical Structure characteristics determined by

✓ vegetation height, layering, and density.

• In terrestrial ecosystems, vertical

stratification (e.g., forest canopy,
understory, shrub layer, and forest floor)
✓ creates microhabitats that support
diverse organisms.

• In aquatic systems, structure depends

on depth, light penetration, and
temperature gradients
 • Stability refers to a community’s ability to resist or recover
from disturbance.

• Resilient communities can return to equilibrium after

6. Stability and stress (such as fire, drought, or pollution).
Resilience • High diversity and functional redundancy usually enhance
resilience, enabling ecosystems to maintain productivity
and services even under environmental change
 Significance of Studying Communities

• Studying community structure and dynamics is vital for several reasons:

➢It helps ecologists understand the functional organization of ecosystems and

the role of biodiversity in maintaining stability.

➢It informs conservation strategies, as protecting keystone species or critical

habitats often safeguards entire communities.

➢It provides insights into ecosystem responses to disturbance, guiding habitat

restoration and sustainable resource management
 Species Distribution
• Species are not randomly distributed across the Earth’s
surface.

• Their occurrence and abundance vary systematically along

gradients of environmental factors such as:
• temperature, moisture, light, altitude, and soil fertility.

• These gradual changes in abiotic conditions influence

• where species can survive, grow, and reproduce thus
shaping the structure and composition of ecological
communities
 Species Distribution ….. Cont.

• Understanding species distribution along

environmental gradients is fundamental
to community ecology because

• it explains how diversity patterns

arise and how communities respond
to environmental change
 Environmental Gradients and
Species Responses

• An environmental gradient is a continuous variation in one or more ecological factors

across space or time. Gradients can be
• abiotic (temperature, pH, salinity ….), or
• biotic, (competition intensity, resource availability …).

• Each species has a characteristic response curve to a given environmental factor, typically
forming a bell-shaped pattern that represents its ecological tolerance range defined
• by minimum, optimum, and maximum limits.

• This concept is known as the law of tolerance,

 Environmental Gradients ….. cont.

• Along an altitudinal gradient on

a mountain,
• temperature decreases, and
moisture increases with elevation,
leading to zonation from lowland
forests to alpine grasslands.
Environmental
Gradients ….. cont.

• In aquatic systems, species

composition changes with depth due
to:

✓variations in light, temperature,

and oxygen concentration.
 Factors Affecting Species
Distribution
• Species distribution along gradients is influenced by
multiple interacting factors:
✓Abiotic Factors
✓Biotic Interactions
✓Disturbance and Succession
✓Dispersal Ability
✓Human Influence
 Interactions Between Species in a Community
• No man is an island.” This saying is also true for organisms in an
ecosystem.
• No organism exists in isolation.
• Individual organisms live together in an ecosystem and depend
on one another.
• In fact, they have many different types of interactions with each
other, and many of these interactions are critical for their survival.
• Three types of interactions
• Competition
• Symbiosis:- any relationship where two species live closely
together
• Mutualism, Commensalism and parasitism
• Predation
 1. Competition

Competing for resources

occurs due to a limited number of resources which are

necessity for life.
living space, mates, or other
water, nutrients, light, food.
common needs

Competitive exclusion principle- no two species can

occupy the same niche in the same habitat at the same
time
 1. Competition …. Cont.
• Competition may be:

• Interspecific, or
• Intraspecific
• Competition can be due to:
• exploitation, (When a resource is in short supply that used
by one it is not available to the other) or
• Interference (When an action or substance produced by
one is directly harmful to the other )
Outcomes of Competition

1. One wins; other loses …..

(competitive exclusion)

2. 2. Neither wins …………(coexistence)

3. 3. Both lose ……………. (mutual

extinction)

Only 1 and 2 above are of ecological or

evolutionary significance
 Populations interact to the benefit of both.

Mutualism may be obligate (necessary for

survival of one or both species) or facultative
(advantageous to one or both species).
2. Mutualism
The basis for agricultural domestication of
plants and animals by humans.

Common in nature, but the effect on

population dynamics is difficult to
demonstrate and often complex.
2. Mutualism ….. Cont.

• Although free nitrogen is about 80% of the

atmosphere, plants are unable to use it
until it is “fixed” into ammonia and
converted to nitrates by bacteria.

• A common example of this mutualism

between plants and nitrogen fixing
bacteria is found in lawns containing
white clover.
 2. Mutualism ….. Cont.
• The mutualism between Rhizobium and soybeans is an
important source of nitrogen fixation.

• Rhizobium, a bacterial genus, can convert atmospheric

nitrogen (N2) into ammonia (NH4).

• Thus, making this essential nutrient available to these

legumes.

• In turn legumes, such as soybeans and clover, supply

Rhizobium with carbohydrates and other nutrients for
growth and reproduction.
2. Mutualism ….. Cont.

• One of the most observed mutualism is the

pollination of flowering plants by an insect or
hummingbird.

• The pollinator benefits from the interaction by

receiving nectar.

• The plant gets its pollen transferred from one plant to

another.
2. Mutualism …..
Cont.

• Lichen
✓ The lichen is a mutualistic association between a species of algae
and a species of fungus.
✓ The fungus retains water and takes up minerals.
✓ The algae provides carbohydrates and other organic nutrients as
the result of photosynthesis.

• Cleaner birds and Crocodiles

✓ Bird gets its food and the while it cleans mouth of crocodiles
3. Commensalism

• When populations of commensal species are together, one population is benefited but the
other is not significantly affected.

• The effect of the interaction on population growth and individual survival is:

LIVING ALONE LIVING TOGETHER

A B A B

COMMENALISM 0 0 + 0

(The COMMENSAL (A) does better when the host is present. The HOST (B) is not affected by the
interaction.)
 3. Commensalism …. Cont.

• One member of a symbiotic relationship benefits and the other is

neither helped or harmed. For example

• The cattle egret and cattle or other grazing African ungulate

species. The egret benefits from catching insects that cattle
“scare-up” while grazing Cattle is not harmed

• Remoras attach themselves to sharks for transportation

without affecting the shark’s well-being
3. Commensalism …. Cont.

Bromeliads are a group of

E. coli (Escherichia coli) is a flowering plants that attach
common bacteria found living to trees (epiphytes).
in the guts of mammals,
including humans, where it
gets all it needs to thrive. • They gain access to
sunlight and catch water.
• The trees are not harmed
• In most circumstances, or benefited.
humans are not harmed by
its presence and no benefit
has been discovered.
4. Parasitism

• In ecology, parasitism is a non-mutual symbiotic relationship

between species, where:
• one species, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the
other, the host.

• Traditionally parasite (in biological usage) referred primarily to

organisms visible to the naked eye, or macroparasites (such
as helminths).

• But parasite can include microparasites, which are typically

smaller, such as protozoa, viruses, and bacteria.
Parasatism

• Parasitism
 5. Predation
• In ecology, predation is an interaction where
• a predator (an organism that is hunting)
feeds on its prey (the organism that is
attacked).

• Predators may or may not kill their prey prior

to feeding on them, but the act of predation
often results in the death of its prey and the
eventual absorption of the prey's tissue
through consumption.

• Thus, predation is often, though not always,

carnivory.
 Summery of Interaction
Type of interaction sign Effects
• When populations of different
Both species benefit from
mutualism +/+
species interact, the effects interaction

on one on the other may be: commensalism +/0

One species benefits, one
unaffected
• positive (+),
competition -/- Each species affected negatively
• negative (-) or

• neutral (0). predation, parasitism, One species benefits, one is

herbivory
+/- disadvantaged
Habitat and Niche
 Habitat
Type of environment in which a population or
species regularly lives.
 Physical and biotic environment
 Vegetation
 Forest, meadow, pasture, coniferous
forest, etc.
 grand scale: marine, estuarine, freshwater
and terrestrial
 local scale: freshwater pond, oakwood or
rocky shore
Habitat ….. Cont.

 Habitats may be subdivided into layers or zones

 Microhabitats

 Forest canopy: leaves, branches

 Shrub layer: leaves, branches, trunks

 Herb layer: leaves, stems, mosses, ferns

 Litter: dead fallen leaves, logs,

 Varies in depth, quality

 Soil: topsoil, subsoil

 Species’/population’s role in its community

Dimensions of a niche:
Niche Habitat & microhabitat Food “spectrum,” Reproductive requirements
(Space occupied) essential nutrients • Nutrition, nest/den sites

Seasonality: When are resources required, used.

Niche …. Cont.

• Fundamental niche

• full potential range of physical, chemical

and biological factors a species could use
if there were no competition
Niche …. Cont.

• Realized niche

• Resources actually used in presence of

competitor. the portion of the fundamental
niche that a species actually occupies
Niche …. Cont. .

• Competitive exclusion
• When two different species forced to
compete, one species eliminates
other(s)

• Resource partitioning avoids competition;

• Realized niches divide resources among
several species.
 Habitat …. Cont.

 Ecological niche
 total way of life or functional role in an ecosystem
 involves all the physical, chemical, and biological
conditions
 A plant's or animal's ecological niche is a way of life that is
unique to that species.
 Thus, Niche and habitat are not the same. While many species
may share a habitat, this is not true of a niche. Each plant and
animal species is a member of a community.
Community Change (Ecological Succession)
 Do
communities yes, of course,
change?

What makes something about the environment changes, may be huge or

them small, natural or man-made, sudden (a disturbance) or gradual
change? (abiotic factors change as the community changes)
• How do they change?
• gradual change over time as
species are replaced by other
species
 disturbance

This change in a community

over time is called
ecological succession
Ecological Succession

Definition:- a gradual process of change and

replacement of the types of species in a community

The sequence of changes is somewhat

predictable

May take place over hundreds or thousands of

years
 • There are two types of ecological succession

1. Primary succession:- occurs on a surface

Ecological where no ecosystem existed before (no
Succession ……. soil)
Cont. 2. Secondary succession: - occurs on a
surface where an ecosystem has
previously existed but has been disturbed
(soil is present)
1. Primary
Succession

• On new islands created by volcanic eruptions

• On sand dunes
 • Where glaciers have retreated
1. Primary …… Cont.
1. Primary …… Cont.
• Paved areas that are abandoned
1. Primary …… Cont.

• Begins with pioneer species (defined as

the first species to colonize a disturbed
area), like lichens, that can grow directly
on rock; begin the breakdown of the rock
to form soil
1. Primary …… Cont.

• Once rocks begin to weather and crack, soil

forms and small plants can take root
 • Larger plants continue to move in until the
1. Primary …… Cont. bare ground is covered with life
2. Secondary Succession

• Definition: type of ecological succession that occurs on a site where an

ecosystem previously existed (soil is present)

• Due to a disturbance to the ecosystem – something upsets the natural

balance

• May be natural or man-made (anthropogenic) disturbances

• Think of examples of each….

2. Secondary
…. Cont.

• Examples of natural
disturbances

• Hurricanes ,
Floods, Fire,
Disease Blizzard
2. Secondary
…. Cont.

• Examples of man-made
(anthropogenic)
disturbances
• deforestation,
pollution,
urbanization,
harvesting
2. Secondary • After a disturbance, pioneer species move in,

…. Cont. followed by other species in a somewhat

predictable sequence
Typical stages of secondary succession in woodlands

01 02 03 04

Middle: plants
Late: plants and Climax
Early: plants animal species are
those associated
community:
typically small with typically longer with older, more final stage of
mature succession that
short lifecycles lived, slower ecosystem: larger, will last as long
slower dispersal, as there is no
(annuals, grasses), seed dispersal, better
competitors, disturbance
rapid seed and usually slower growth
2. Secondary …. Cont.
• Each stage of succession brings about changes in the
ecosystem that enable or prevent certain species from moving
in – better soil, less light, more competition as ecosystem
matures

• Some changes may help other species – called facilitation

• Eg: dogwood trees grow well under the shade of larger
trees)

• Some changes may hinder other species – called inhibition

• Eg: black walnut produces a chemical that keeps other
plants from growing near it)
Each stage of succession brings about changes in the ecosystem that enable
or prevent certain species from moving in – better soil, less light, more
competition as ecosystem matures

Some changes may help other species – called facilitation (example:

dogwood trees grow well under the shade of larger trees)

Some changes may hinder other species – called inhibition (example: black
walnut produces a chemical that keeps other plants from growing near it)
General about
Succession

• Even though the stages can be generally predicted, stages of succession can vary, depending on local
conditions
• Amount of rain, temperature, terrain, latitude, altitude, soil type, human impact

• Current way of thinking: instead of one stable, final climax community, there are patches that
are constantly changing within an ecosystem (called patch dynamics)
This is all about today and chapter 4
See you for next class