Ecology Biology

Ecology

By Bryan Flim

​Levels of Organization

​Vocabulary

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abiotic vs biotic

population

community

ecosystem

biome

biosphere​

biodiversity​

Levels of Ecological Study

Ecology can be studied at various levels. (openstax: 44.1)

Some text here about the topic of discussion

​Organismal Ecology

At the organism level. For example: What are the adaptations that enable individuals to live in specific habitats?

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Population Ecology

A population is a group of interbreeding organisms of the same species living in the same area. Population ecology focuses on the number of individuals in an area and how and why population size changes over time.

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​Karner blue butterfly

​wild lupine

​Community Ecology

A biological community consists of the different species within an area, typically a three-dimensional space, and the interactions within and among these species. Community ecologists are interested in the processes driving these interactions and their consequences.

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Ecosystem Ecology

Ecosystem ecology is an extension of organismal, population, and community ecology. The ecosystem is composed of all the biotic components (living things) in an area along with the abiotic components (nonliving things) of that area.

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Multiple Choice

If a scientist in New Zealand was studying how a group of herbivores interacted with a group of omnivores, and all of their abiotic surroundings, what level of ecology would she be studying?

• organismal

• population

• community

• ecosystem

Open Ended

Biotic factors are the living components while abiotic factors are the non-living components that make up an ecosystem or biome. What other abiotic factors can you think of? Create a list of ten abiotic factors (separated by ','. For example: 'temperature, precipitation...'

​Biomes - Types

​Rain forest

Grassland

Coniferous Forest​

​Temperate Deciduous Forest

Desert

​Shrubland

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​What society is to us, biome is to nature. Biomes are extremely important in nature and every part of the biome is symbiotic. One small change and the entire biome suffers.

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​tropical, temperate

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​​chapparrel, woodland, savannah

​Biomes

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Biomes is a group of similar ecosystems in a large geographical area. Temperature and precipitation are the greatest abiotic determinants of the biome characteristics and its ecosystems.​

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​Biomes

​Biomes

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Do biomes with similar precipitation produce similar vegetation?​

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Ecologists use the aridity index to describe a biome's temperature and precipitation characteristics.

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The aridity ​index is a ratio of a the amount of evapotranspiration to the average yearly rainfall.

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​YouTube Video:

​"Biomes - The Living Landscape of Earth..."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_AfNcjlOgU

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​Things to listen for in this video (and write in your notes):

​types of vegetation which dominate in a biome (Ex. trees, ...)​

What is evapotranspiration?​

Which biome has the highest aridity index? The lowest?

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​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6Ua_zWDH6U

​YouTube Video: 'What is Biodiversity' - David Attenborough

Things to listen for in this video (and write in your notes):

Why is biodiversity on earth important for life on earth? For humans?

​Homework - Becoming familiar with the biomes:

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Select 1 biome from the list below.

Watch at least 5 minutes from the YouTube video listed and a prepare a 3 minute presentation. Include relevant information such as :

-summer / winter temperatures (for example: cool summers, cold winters)

-rainfall

​-vegatation and adaptations

-biodiversity

-soil conditions.

-other​

​Tropical Rainforest and Tropical Seasonal Forest - Biomes#1

​The Savannah Biome - Biomes #2

​The Hot Desert Climate - Secrets of World Climate #4​

​The Grassland Biome - Biomes #5

The Taiga Biome (Boreal Forest) - Biomes #7

The Tundra Climate - Secrets of World Climate #11

​YouTube Video List

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niches (ruby throated ​hummingbird)

habitat​

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cycles​