ECOSYSTEM

ABIOTIC COMPONENTS
1. Water
2. Air
3. Soil
✓ Texture
✓ Air
✓ Temperature
✓ Water
✓ Solution
✓ pH
✓ Background
✓ Topography
4. Climatic Conditions
✓ Sunlight
✓ Temperature
✓ Humidity
✓ Wind

WATER:
→ Required for photosynthesis
→ Received and absorbed as soil water.
→ Helps in carrying out metabolic processes
→ Consumed by animals for osmoregulation.
→ Helps in transpiration and perspiration.

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→ Water regulates opening and closing of stomata
→ Helps in pollination
→ Most Biochemical reaction takes place in aqueous medium
→ Keeps cells turgid and provides pressure for the roots to
move through the soil

Mechanisms in plants to prevent water loss:

Anatomical:
• Multiple epidermis
• Sunken stomata
• Thick cuticle
• Epidermal hairs

AIR / WIND
→ Provides oxygen for respiration for both plants and animals
→ Provides carbon dioxide for photosynthesis
→ To provide medium for flight of birds
→ Serve as agent for transpiration, pollination, and dispersal.
→ Strong wind inhibits free growth and flight of many animals.
→ Nitrogen in air is fixed by bacteria and is made available to
plants for protein synthesis.
→ Unidirectional wind does not allow growth of branches in the
windward side, thus causing deformation.

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SOIL
→ Soil contains water and mineral nutrients required by the
living organisms.
→ Soil is the home to a host of micro-organisms.
→ It also provides dwelling place for burrowing animals like
rats, snakes, as well for earthworms.
→ Soil texture can be sandy, loamy, clayey and so on.
→ Water retaining capacity, aeration and soil porosity depends
on the texture of the soil.
→ Sandy soil has very less water retaining capacity and
maximum soil aeration.
→ Clayey soil has very high water retaining capacity and
minimum soil aeration.
→ Loamy soil is a mixture of sandy and clayey soil and is ideal
for the growth of plants. Its has ideal water retaining capacity
and soil aeration and is rich in nutrients.
→ Soil air is found in between soil particles that are not filled
with water.
→ The amount of soil air depends on the soil texture.
→ Sandy soil has maximum soil aeration.
→ Clayey soil has minimum soil aeration:
→ Loamy soil is has ideal soil aeration.
→ Soil aeration is important for the healthy growth of roots.
→ Soil aeration ensures low population of denitrifying bacteria
→ A well aerated soil must have 20% by volume of air.

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SOIL TEMPERATURE:
→ Low soil temperature does not allow microbial decay.
→ Below a depth of 30 cm the temperature of the soil remains
constant during the day.

SOIL WATER:
Soil retains water in three forms:
→ Hygroscopic water
→ Gravitational water
→ Capillary water

SOIL pH:
→ pH below 7 – acidic soil
→ pH above 7 – alkaline soil
→ pH 7 – neutral soil
→ Different plants grow in different soil pH
→ Slightly acidic soil is best for the growth of the plants.
→ Snails and Earthworms do not occur in acidic soil.
→ Animals with calcareous shells live in soils having neutral or
alkaline pH.

SOIL BACKGROUND:
→ Most animals develop colour, pattern and general texture
matching to their background.
→ Helps in camouflaging from the predator.

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SOIL TOPOGRAPHY:
→ Topography determines wind, precipitation, duration of
light, soil type.
→ This controls vegetation.
→ Topography determines the fauna too.

CLIMATIC CONDITION
Sunlight:
→ Duration of light or photo-period influences both plants and
animals.
→ In animals light controls breeding, period of activity,
migration, mating etc.
→ In plants light controls photosynthesis and flowering.
→ Ecosystem is affected by
• Quality of light
• Intensity of light
• Period of light

Diurnal Organisms:
→ Organisms that can tolerate bright light and stay active
during the day are called diurnal organisms.
→ Examples
• Dog
• Cat

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Nocturnal Organisms:
→ Organisms that cannot tolerate bright or intense light and
stay active during the night are called nocturnal organisms.
→ Examples
• Insects
• Termites
• Earthworms
• Bats
• Owls

Temperature:
→ Hot, mild or cold temperature, influences the kind of body
functions and behaviour of plants and animals.
→ Migration of birds and animals, hibernation, aestivation and
breeding.
→ Temperature influences photosynthesis, transpiration,
respiration, germination, flowering, dormancy and crop
quality.

→ Temperature can influence:

• Photosynthesis
• Transpiration
• Respiration
• Germination
• Flowering
• Dormancy

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 • Crop quality.

Humidity:
→ Affects plant processes like transpiration, water uptake,
nutrient transport, cell turgor and growth.
→ High humidity lowers rate of transpiration.
→ Low humidity increases the rate of transpiration.
→ Excessive transpiration due to very low humidity can make
the leaves loose large amount of water which may lead to
decrease in turgidity of cells, stunted growth and shorter leaf
area.
→ In cucumber high humidity leads to increase in growth and
increase in surface area of leaf.
→ In tomatoes high humidity causes calcium deficiency in
young leaves of tomatoes, due to reduced nutrient
transport, which reduces leaf area and hence reduces
growth and production.

INTERDEPENDENCE OF ORGANISMS

Symbiosis:
The phenomenon in which two dissimilar organisms of different
species live together in close physiological association, causing
mutual benefit to each other and also pooling their nutritional
resources, is called SYMBIOSIS. The concerned organisms are

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called SYMBIONTS. The nutrition performed by the symbionts is
called SYMBIOTIC NUTRITION.
• Bonnelia (Male living inside the female)

• Zoochlorellae in corals

• The Rhizobium bacteria reside in the root nodule of

leguminous plants. They fix atmospheric nitrogen and give
the legume its required nitrogen content for protein
synthesis. In return the bacteria receive shelter and
carbohydrate from the plant.

• Lichen is an association of an alga and a fungus.

Parasitism:
The relation in which an organism depends on another living
organism for food and shelter such that one is benefited and the
other is harmed it is called parasitism. The organism which is
benefited, is called the PARASITE. The organism, which is the
looser, is called the HOST.
Eg. The Cuscuta reflexa is a parasite
Rafflesia is a parasite

Ectoparasite:
Parasites, which reside outside the body of the host, are called
ecto-parasite.

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Eg. Lice, Tick, Leech

Endo-parasite:
Parasites, which reside inside the body of the host and may be intra
cellular (Plasmodium) or extra cellular (Taenia) are called endo-
parasite.

Predation:
It is a relation in which one organism is eaten by the other.

Prey:
The organism that is eaten is called the prey.

Predator:
The organism that eats another organism is called predator.

Types of Ecosystems
An ecosystem can be as small as an oasis in a desert, or as big as
an ocean, spanning thousands of miles. There are two types of
ecosystems:
✓ Terrestrial Ecosystem
✓ Aquatic Ecosystem

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Terrestrial Ecosystems
Terrestrial ecosystems are exclusively land-based ecosystems.
There are different types of terrestrial ecosystems distributed
around various geological zones. They are as follows:
1. Forest Ecosystems
2. Grassland Ecosystems
3. Tundra Ecosystems
4. Desert Ecosystem

Forest Ecosystem
A forest ecosystem consists of several plants, animals and
microorganisms that live in coordination with the abiotic factors of
the environment. Forests help in maintaining the temperature of
the earth and are the major carbon sink.

Grassland Ecosystem
In a grassland ecosystem, the vegetation is dominated by grasses
and herbs. Temperate grasslands, savanna grasslands are some of
the examples of grassland ecosystems.

Tundra Ecosystem
Tundra ecosystems are devoid of trees and are found in cold
climate or where rainfall is scarce. These are covered with snow for

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most of the year. The ecosystem in the Arctic or mountain tops is
tundra type.

Desert Ecosystem
Deserts are found throughout the world. These are regions with
very little rainfall. The days are hot and the nights are cold.

Aquatic Ecosystem
Aquatic ecosystems are ecosystems present in a body of water.
These can be further divided into two types, namely:
1. Freshwater Ecosystem
2. Marine Ecosystem

Freshwater Ecosystem
The freshwater ecosystem is an aquatic ecosystem that includes
lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and wetlands. These have no salt
content in contrast with the marine ecosystem.

Marine Ecosystem
The marine ecosystem includes seas and oceans. These have a
larger salt content and greater biodiversity in comparison to the
freshwater ecosystem.

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Flora:
All the plants naturally occurring in a particular area are referred to
as the flora of that place.

Fauna:
All the animals naturally occurring in a particular area are referred
to as the fauna of that place.

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