The Biosphere

1. The Biosphere Mr. Bragg 2011-2012

2. 3.1 Essential question: How do ecologists study life?

3. What living things do you see in this picture? Non-living things? What do you think we study when we study the Biosphere?

4. I. What is Ecology? A. Ecology– the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms in their environment. 1. Organisms respond to each other and their environment 2. Organisms affect each other and change their environments 3. These affects produce an ever-changing biosphere

5. a. Biosphere- a part of earth in which life exists, including land, water, air, and atmosphere. • The biosphere contains every organism that extends from 8km above the earths surface to as far as 11km below the surface of the ocean.

6. b. Ecology and Economics • Food, water, and other products humans use are often worth money. • Economics is concerned with human interactions based on money and trade

7. c. Levels of Organization • Ecology can be studied at various levels of the biosphere. Some scientists focus on just one of these levels. • The levels include: organism, population, community, ecosystem, biome, and biosphere

8. B. Biotic and Abiotic Factors 1. Biotic factor- are any living parts of the environment a. Example: insects that a bullfrog may eat, or species that the bullfrog competes with for food or space

9. 2. Abiotic factor- are any nonliving parts of the environment a. Example: sunlight, precipitation, and water currents.

10. 3. Biotic and Abiotic factors together a. Example: The bullfrog is dependent on levels of precipitation in order to reproduce. b. Physical factors can be influenced by organisms: Bullfrogs live in the muck that is on shores of ponds. This “muck” is made up of sand and bacteria. Trees around the pond affect how much sunlight reaches the shoreline.

11. C. Ecological Methods 1. Ecologists use three scientific approaches to complete their work a. Observation- the first step. Ex: “Which species live here?” or “How does an animal protect its young from predators?”

12. b. Experimentation- testing hypotheses. Ex: Plant Growth Study- setting up an artificial environment in a greenhouse to test the plants responses Top right: camera trap Bottom right: Bengal Tiger

13. c. Modeling- some events occur over long periods of time and are difficult to study. Models are based on data collected through observation and experimentation

14. 3.1 Essential question: How do we study life?

15. Activity Questions • What level(s) of organization are being shown in the picture? Use pages 64-65 + your notes as a reference • Make a T-chart and list the biotic and abiotic factors that are shown in the photo • Insinuate, what might also live in this area portrayed in the photo? • How are the biotic and abiotic factors related?

16. Do Now (Day 2) • What does an ecologist study? • What are biotic and abiotic factors? Give an example of each. • What are the 3 methods used in ecological studies?

17. 3.2 Essential Question: How do different organisms get the energy they need to survive?

18. II. 3.2 Energy, Producers, and Consumers A. Primary Producers- algae, blue-green bacteria, and plants 1. Autotroph- an organism that is able to capture sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds

19. 2. Primary producer- the first producer of energy rich compounds that are later used by other organisms. 3. Energy from the sun: sunlight energy is captured through the process of photosynthesis and with the combination of water and carbon dioxide is converted into carbohydrates.

20. Lithotrophs or “Chemoautotrophs” Bottom left: animals dependent on chemoautotrophs in a hydrothermal vent community

21. B. Consumers- animals, fungi, many bacteria 1. Heterotroph- an organism that obtains food by consuming other organisms 2. Consumer- an organism that relies on other organisms for its energy and food supply. a. Classified by the way in which they acquire energy and nutrients

22. b. Types of consumers • Herbivores- eat plant leaves, roots, stems, fruits, or seeds Ex: deer, caterpillars, rabbits, horses, koalas

23. Carnivores- kill and eat other animals Ex: wolves, cats, birds of prey, snakes

24. Scavengers- are animals that consume the carcasses of other animals that have been killed by predators or other causes Ex: vultures, spotted hyenas, flesh flies

25. Omnivores- are animals that eat both plants and other animals. Ex: Humans, bears, pigs, cassowary, opossum

26. Detritivores- organisms that feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter Ex: earthworms, mites, snails, shrimp

27. Decomposers- feed by mechanically breaking down organic matter. This process produces detritus (small pieces of dead material). Ex: bacteria and fungi

28. 3.2 Essential Question: How do different organisms get the energy they need to survive?

29. Activity – Consumer’s Foldable • Create a foldable for the consumer groups (i.e. herbivore, carnivore, decomposer,etc.) • Foldable should include: your name (on back), names of consumer groups, descriptions of each group, and examples for each group

30. Do Now #2 (Day 3) • What are primary producers? • What is another term for a heterotroph? • How do we classify heterotrophs? • What are the 6 different groups of heterotrophs?

31. 3.3 Essential Question: How does energy move through an ecosystem?

32. III. 3.3 Energy Flow in Ecosystems A. Food Chains and Food Webs 1. Food chain- a series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten

33. a. Ex: algae (primary producer) flagfish (herbivore) largemouth bass (carnivore) Anhinga (secondary carnivore) alligator (top carnivore)

34. 2. Food web- a network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem a. Ex: Serengeti Plain of Africa- herbivores such as zebras, buffaloes, and gazelles eat several varieties of grass species. Several predators such as lions, hyenas, and leopards, in turn, eat these herbivores

35. The paths linked in a food web are each a food chain with several different paths.

36. b. Big picture: Decomposers are nature’s recyclers which release locked in nutrients into ecosystems. These nutrients are used by producers, which in turn are eaten by consumers. When consumers and producers die, decomposers break them down and release the nutrient back into the system.

37. B. Ecological Pyramids • Defined: an illustration of the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level in a given food chain or food web. a. Three types: pyramids of energy, of biomass, and of numbers

38. 1 2 Above: Biomass Pyramid Bottom left- Hypothetical number pyramid

39. 3 2. Trophic levels- each step in a food chain or food web a. Ex: primary producers, various levels of consumers

40. 3. Biomass- the total amount of living tissue within a trophic level

41. 3.3 Essential Question: How does energy move through an ecosystem?

42. Do Now #3 (Day 4) • What is a food chain? • What is a food web? • What are the 3 types of ecological pyramids?

43. 3.4 Essential question • Why is the cycling of matter important to planet Earth?

44. VI. 3.4 Cycles of Matter A. Recycling in the biosphere 1. Biogeochemical cycles- a process in which elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another.

45. 2. Classification of Biogeochemical processes a. Biological- activities performed by organisms including: eating , breathing, burning food, waste elimination b. Geological- activities performed by the earth: volcanic eruptions, rock formation and degradation c. Chemical/Physical- formation of clouds and rain, flow of running water and the action of lightning

46. Biogeochemical processes (cont.) d. Human Activity- mining, farming, fertilizer use, and burning of fossil fuels affects the cycles of matter.

47. B. Water Cycle 1. Water continuously moves between the oceans, the atmosphere, and land. Hydrologic Cycle Animation

48. 2. The water may be outside living organisms and sometimes it is inside them

49. C. Nutrient Cycles • Carbon Cycle a. Carbon is a major part of organic molecules such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and nucleic acids. b. Carbon can be found in animal skeletons, rocks, the atmosphere (CO2), dissolved in oceans, and also in fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, oil).

50. Carbon Cyclehttp://blogs.dickinson.edu/copenhagen/files/2009/09/carbon-cycle.gif