 To understand that living organisms

require certain conditions for their survivals

 To understand that living organism
interact with one another and with their
non-living enviroment
 To define population, community, and
ecosystem
 To realise that available resources
change through
Ecology- the scientific study of
interactions between organisms
and their environments

Ecology is a science of
relationships
 the air, water and land in or
on which people, animals
and plants live

The environment is made up of

two factors:
 Biotic factors
all living organisms
inhabiting the Earth
 Abiotic factors
nonliving parts of the
environment (i.e.
temperature, soil, light,
moisture, air currents)
› Sun light
› water
› wind
› nutrients in soil
› heat
› solar radiation
› atmosphere, etc.

AND…
 Living organisms in the environment
› Plants
› Animals
› microorganisms in soil, etc.
 Producer-
 all autotrophs
 trap energy from the
sun
 Bottom of the food
chain
Consumer- all heterotrophs:
Herbivores
Carnivores
Omnivores
CONSUMERS
1. Primary consumers
 Eat plants
 Herbivores
2. Secondary, tertiary.....
consumers
 Prey animals
 Carnivores
Consumer
Carnivores-eat meat
 Predators
› Hunt prey
animals for food.
Consumer- Carnivores- eat meat
 Scavengers
› Feed on carrion,
dead animals
Consumer- Omnivores -eat both plants
and animals
Decomposers
 Breakdown the
complex compounds
of dead and decaying
plants and animals
into simpler
molecules that can
be absorbed
Symbiosis
a relationship between two types of animal or
plant in which each provides for the other the
conditions necessary for its continued existence

3 Types of
symbiosis:
1. Commensalism
2. Parasitism
3. Mutualism
Commensalism-
one species benefits
and the other is
neither harmed nor
helped
Ex. orchids on a tree
Commensalism-
one species benefits
and the other is
neither harmed nor
helped
Parasitism-
one species benefits (parasite) and
the other is harmed (host)

 Parasite-Host relationship
Parasitism- parasite-host
Ex. lampreys,
leeches, fleas,
ticks, tapeworm
Mutualism-
beneficial to
both species

Ex. cleaning birds

and cleaner
shrimp
Mutualism-
beneficial to both species

Ex. Butterfly and flower

Type of Species Species Species
relationship harmed benefits neutral
Commensalism

Parasitism

Mutualism

= 1 species
Biotics factor are also interact with abiotic
factor, for example all organism need
water to live
Organism - any unicellular or
multicellular form exhibiting all of the
characteristics of life, an individual.
•The lowest level of organization
 POPULATION
 a group of organisms of
one species living in the
same place at the same
time that interbreed
 Produce fertile
offspring
 Compete with each
other for resources
(food, mates, shelter,
etc.)
Community –
several interacting populations that
inhabit a common environment and
are interdependent.
Ecosystem

Community

Population

Organism
 Every living organism on earth needs some
basic things to survive.
 For example, water is a basic need for
survival. The amount of water a frog needs
to survive is not the same as the amount of
water a desert cactus plant needs to
survive. They all need water, but because
they are different living organisms, their
water needs will be different, even though
they both need water to live.
 Sunlight:
This is probably the most important need for all living
organisms, because it is the source of all energy. It also
provides heat for plants and animals

 Water:
Water is the medium in which living cells and tissue work.
Water is also a living environment for many plants and
animals

 Air
Air is made up of several gases, but the two most important
gases are Oxygen and Carbon dioxide. Without oxygen,
animals will die, and without carbon dioxide, plants cannot
survive.

 Food (nutrients):
Living things need energy for function. Energy is needed to
grow, reproduce, move, and to work. Think of what will
happen if you stayed for three days without food…
 "How does plant life survive in freezing
Arctic temperatures?" Encourage them
to focus upon the various plants that are
introduced and their adaptations.
 Environments are always changing. Some changes occur
naturally (examples include disease outbreaks, violent storms,
forest fires sparked by lightning). Other changes are caused by
human activity (examples include establishing conservation
areas, passing laws to control pollution, clearing forests for
agriculture or construction, applying chemicals to lawns and
crops, burning fossilfuels, etc.).

 Changes in an environment are sometimes beneficial to

organisms and sometimes harmful. For example, a newly created
beaver pond provides habitat that attracts frogs and raccoons to
an area; but trees, earthworms and moles are no longer able to
survive in the area.

 When environments change, some organisms can

accommodate the change by eating different foods or finding
different shelters (for example, hawks nest on city buildings and
consume pigeons and rats). Those organisms that can no longer
meet their basic needs die or move to new locations
