ECOSYSTEMS
An ecosystem is a community of living and non-living organisms interacting with each
other and their environment
System is a set of things that work together
Ecology is the study of interaction of plants and animals with each other and the
environment
Components of the ecosystems
Ecosystems are made up of biotic and abiotic components
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Biotic components consist of flora and faun which are the living things such as plants
Abiotic components are the non-living things such as soil, air, light, air and climate.
Biotic components are the living organism in an ecosystem such as animals, plants,
algae, fungi and bacteria.
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How components of an ecosystem interact.
Components in an ecosystem depend on each other, they interact as they exchange
energy amongst themselves
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Examples of interactions
Food; animals and insects eat plants or other animals and insects.
Shelter: animals and insects may use non-living things, such as rocks and stones, as
shelter. Some animals and insects live underground. living things can also use other
living things for shelter. For example birds live in trees
Water: animals, insects and plants need water to live. They rely on a water source such
as a river or pond or on rainfall
Breeding: many animals and insects rely on other factors in the ecosystem for
successful breeding. For example, fish breed in water so if the water is polluted or runs
dry, it can affect the fish population.
MICRO ECOSYSTEM
- Small ecosystem are called micro ecosystem+
- Examples of micro ecosystem is a garden, field, a small pool, a decaying tree trunk or a
small
- In these small units there are organisms interacting
- In a garden there are vegetables making their own food from the sun, the vegetables are
eaten by humans and insects, insects are eaten by birds
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- Decomposers are there to break dead vegetable matter into manure
- Micro organisms are therefore present to cause decomposition
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System of an ecosystem
- Systems approach is used to help us understand many and complex relationships that
exist in an ecosystem
- A system refers to interrelated and elements in an interacting unit where some inputs
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elements are worked on or processed to produce outcomes or outputs
- Inputs are the things that are put into a system. Examples are soil, air, sunlight and water
- Processes refers to something that happens in the system. For example, plants growing,
animals feeding,or people farming
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- Output are the results of the process. For example, fully grown plant and animals,young
animals and crops. There can be also be negative output, such as eroded soil and
pollutants in the soil or water
Examples of inputs, processes and outputs
INPUTS POCESSES OUTPUTS
Sunlight, soil, water Plants use these things to Plants grow to full size
grow
Plant Animals eat the plant Animals are able to grow
Humans, soil, water Humans erode the soil Remaining soils further
through poor farming eroded
practices it rains heavily
Interdependence in ecosystem
- In an ecosystem energy is constantly being used and produced
- The primary source of energy is light
- The transfer of energy from one organism ta another is illustrated by food chains and
food webs
- Food chains show how the energy provided by one organism is passed onto another by
feeding
- Food chain can have many arrows to show the direction in which energy flows
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- Example of a food chain : sun →grass →rabbit→cat
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- As energy flows through the ecosystem, it passes through a serie of trophic levels
(feeding levels)
- The first trophic level is the autotrophs (producers) or plants tha produce their own food
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using the energy of the sun
- Second trophic levels are the herbivores (primary consumers) who eat plants
- Third trophic level are the carnivores and omnivores (secondary consumers)
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Food webs
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- Food webs are more complex tha food chains
- One organism may feed on a number of organisms and is also prey to a number of
organisms
- This gives more complex structure of interaction amongst organisms
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