ECOLOGY MASTER FILE
Ecology - the study of interactions and organisms in their environment
Levels of organization
Species
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Biome
Biosphere
Mark-recapture
Used to predict the size of a population when it is
hard to count each and every individual
o Trap and mark organisms
o Release organisms
o Continue to trap, mark, and release
o Formula
How ecologists gather data
Observation
Experimenting
Modeling
Sampling
4 types of global systems
Atmosphere – all gases in the atmosphere
Biosphere – all living organisms
Hydrosphere – all water
Geosphere – all the solid stuff (rocks, mountains, etc.)
Biotic v Abiotic factors
Biotic factors are any living thing in the environment (animals, plants, fungi)
Abiotic factors are any non-living things in the environment (rivers, rocks, streams)
Climate, Weather, and Greenhouse Effect
Climate – are the patterns and averages of temperature, rain, clouds, and wind over many years
Weather – short term changes of temperature, rain, clouds, and wind that’s recorded many times a day
Global climate system
Earth’s systems are driven by the Sun’s energy
The planet keeps some of that energy as heat, and because the equator gets more heat than the
poles, that uneven heating shapes how things work
Solar energy and the Greenhouse effect
The Earth average temperature is found out by averaging the
amount of heat that is lost in space and the amount of heat that
stays in the atmosphere
Greenhouse Effect- gases in the atmosphere that trap heat
increasing the average temperature of the earth such as:
o CO2
o H20
o Methane
o Ozone
What Causes Climate?
Latitude – less sunlight reaches the poles while the eqatator gets more sunlight
o This is due to that the earth is tilted on its axis
Three major climates
o Tropical
o Temperate
o Polar
Global winds
Ocean currents
Changes in Climate
Climate change - long-term changes in weather, such as:
o shifts in temperature, clouds, wind, rain or snow
o how often extreme events like heat waves, storms, droughts, or floods happen—and how
strong they are.
Biomes
Tropical Rainforest
have more species than all of the other biomes combined
canopy – leafy covering 50-80m above the forest floor
understory - the shade below the canopy
nutrient poor soil
Tropical dry forest
alternates wet and dry season
warm year round
Tropical Grassland/Savannah/Shrubland
Seasonal rainfall, isolated trees
Plants will work to conserve water
Desert
Very dry, less than 25cm of rain
annually
Daily extreme temperatures change
(hot in morning, cold in night)
Plants must have ways to store water
Temperate Grassland
Plains and praires with ferile soil
Plants are mostly grass
Consistent rainfall
Temperate Woodland
Large area if grass and wildflowers
Dense, low plants tend to be flammable
California, tends to be dry
Temperate Forest
Where we live
Cold winters and warm summers
Fetire soils (nutrients stay in the soil)
Humus – a material formed from decaying leaves
Very consistent rainfall and seasonal temperatures
Northwestern Coniferous Forest
Mild, moist, air, and abundant rainfall
Tall conifers (cones bearing trees, pinecones)
Rocky, acidic soils
Taigas / Boreal Forest
Dense conifers forest of evergreens
Very cold winters, mild summers
Summers don’t get very hot
Tundra
Characterize by permafrost
Permafrost – a layer of permanently frozen soil
Plants are small
Aquatic Ecosystems
Are described by
o Salinity
o Depth
o Temp
o Flow rate
o Concentration of dissolving nutrients
Marine ecosystems
Oceans are divided into zones
o Phonic Zone – from surface of water to 200 meter deep; where you can see sunlight and
where photosynthesis occurs
o Aphotic Zone – 200 meters to bottom of the ocean; no sunlight nor photosynthesis
Plankton – includes floating algae
o Phytoplankton - photosynthetic; will be found in the photic zone
o Zooplankton - can move between the two zones
Intertidal Zone - organisms are submerged at high tide and exposed at low tide
Costal Ocean- Extends from the low tide mark to the outer edge of the continental shelf - water is brightly
lit and as lots of nutrients (ex: Bahamas)
Open Ocean
Open Ocean – begins at the edge of the continental shelf and extends outwards
o Open Ocean Photic Zone- covers most of the Earth’s surface- most photosynthesis occurs
here (NOT IN RAINFORESTS)
o Open Ocean Aphotic Zone - permanently dark, deep-sea vents
Chemosynthesis - organisms that use chemicals for energy rather than sunlight
Freshwater Wetlands- an ecosystem where water either covers the soil or is present at or near the surface
(ex: rivers, lakes, ponds, streams, etc)
Estuaries
Estuary (aka brackish water) – a wetland where freshwater wetlands (rivers, etc) meet the sea
(salty water)
Also serve as environment for laying fish and shellfish for nursey grounds
Has some salinity, but not as much as the ocean