In NEET, Ecosystem is a high-yield chapter because it is conceptual and easy to score.
An
ecosystem is a functional unit of nature where living organisms interact among themselves and
with the surrounding physical environment.
1. Ecosystem Structure and Function
The four main components that make an ecosystem functional are:
1. Productivity: Rate of biomass production.
2. Decomposition: Breakdown of complex organic matter.
3. Energy Flow: Unidirectional flow of energy from producers to consumers.
4. Nutrient Cycling: Movement of nutrient elements through various components.
2. Productivity
● Primary Productivity: The amount of biomass produced per unit area over a time period
by plants during photosynthesis.
○ Gross Primary Productivity (GPP): Total rate of energy capture.
○ Net Primary Productivity (NPP): Energy remaining after respiration (R).
○ Formula: NPP = GPP - R
● Secondary Productivity: Rate of formation of new organic matter by consumers.
3. Decomposition
Decomposition is an oxygen-requiring process. The steps are:
1. Fragmentation: Detritivores (e.g., earthworms) break detritus into smaller particles.
2. Leaching: Water-soluble inorganic nutrients go down into the soil horizon.
3. Catabolism: Bacterial and fungal enzymes degrade detritus.
4. Humification: Accumulation of Humus (dark, amorphous substance, highly resistant to
microbial action).
5. Mineralization: Release of inorganic nutrients.
4. Energy Flow
● 10% Law: Only 10% of the energy is transferred to each trophic level from the lower
trophic level.
● PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation): Plants capture only 2–10% of PAR.
● Food Chain vs. Food Web: * Grazing Food Chain (GFC): Starts with producers. Major
conduit for energy in aquatic ecosystems.
○ Detritus Food Chain (DFC): Starts with dead organic matter. Major conduit for
energy in terrestrial ecosystems.
5. Ecological Pyramids
● Pyramid of Number: Usually upright (e.g., grassland), but can be inverted (e.g., many
birds on one large tree).
● Pyramid of Biomass: Usually upright, but Inverted in aquatic ecosystems (Biomass of
fishes exceeds that of phytoplankton).
● Pyramid of Energy: ALWAYS upright. It can never be inverted because energy is lost
as heat at each step.
6. Ecological Succession
The gradual and predictable change in the species composition of a given area.
● Sere: The entire sequence of communities that successively change.
● Pioneer Species: The species that invade a bare area (e.g., Lichens on rocks,
Phytoplankton in water).
● Climax Community: The final stable community (usually a Forest).
○ Hydrarch: Succession in water (starts in water, ends in mesic/medium forest).
○ Xerarch: Succession on bare rocks (starts on dry land, ends in mesic forest).
7. Nutrient Cycling (Biogeochemical Cycles)
● Gaseous Cycles: Reservoir is the Atmosphere (e.g., Nitrogen, Carbon).
● Sedimentary Cycles: Reservoir is the Earth's Crust (e.g., Phosphorus, Sulphur).
○ Note: There is no respiratory release of Phosphorus into the atmosphere (unlike
Carbon).
NEET "Quick Recall" Facts
● Largest Ecosystem: Biosphere.
● Deep sea hydrothermal vent ecosystem: Solar energy is NOT the source of energy
here.
● Humus: Acts as a reservoir of nutrients and is colloidal in nature.
● Price Tag on Nature: Robert Constanza estimated the value of ecosystem services at
roughly US$ 33 trillion a year (nearly twice the global GNP).
Would you like a table comparing the differences between Primary and Secondary succession?