I.

Organization in the Biosphere

a. Biosphere
i. The portion of the Earth in which all living things
exist
b. Since many living things occupy the biosphere, they interact
c. The study of the interactions among organisms and their
environment is called ECOLOGY
d. Studying ecology requires knowledge of
i. ABIOTIC FACTORS (non-living)
ii. BIOTIC FACTORS (living)
e. Most important abiotic factor is LIGHT
i. Source of energy for almost all living things (directly
or indirectly)
f. Temperature, Water, Soil and minerals are all important
abiotic factors

II.

Organization in the Living Environment

a. To make it easier to study organism interactions, you must
group them and label them appropriately
i. Population all the organisms of a single species in
a given area
ii. Community all the organisms (populations)
within a given area
iii. Ecosystem all the communities and the physical
environment

b. Population Dynamics
i. Population numbers always are changing

ii. Under ideal conditions population numbers are

always increasing because the number of births is
always greater than the number of deaths
iii. Under real life conditions, growth is limited
1. MAXIMUM population is called the CARRYING
CAPACITY

c. Autotrophs vs. Heterotrophs

i. Autotrophs produce own food
1. Photosynthesis
2. Chemosynthesis
ii. Heterotrophs obtain food from other organisms
1. Herbivore, Carnivore, Omnivore, Decomposer
d. Symbiotic Relationships
i. Relationships in which 2 different organisms live in
close association with each other to benefit at least one
of them
ii. 3 types
1. Mutualism ( + / + )
2. Commensalism ( + / 0 )
3. Parasitism ( + / - )

e. Competition in Ecosystems
i. Habitat

1. Particular part of the environment where an

organism lives
ii. Niche
1. The role of the species in its ecosystem
2. Each species occupies its own niche (cant have
more than one)
f. Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers
i. Producers produce organic compounds from
inorganic ones (autotrophs)
ii. Consumers consume organic compounds
(heterotrophs)
iii. Decomposers breakdown remains of dead plants
and animals, recycling materials (saprobes)
g. Food Chain and Food Webs
i. Food Chain

1. A series of organisms through which food energy

is passed
ii. Food Web

1. Multiple interconnected food chains

h. Pyramids of Energy and Biomass

i.

ii. Rule of 10
i. Cycles of Materials
i. Nitrogen Cycle

1.
ii. Carbon and Oxygen Cycle

1.
iii. Water cycle

1.

j. Maintenance in an Ecosystem
i. Ecosystems are always changing
ii. Process by which a new community replaces another
is called ECOLOGICAL SUCCESSION

iii. CLIMAX COMMUNITY

1. Remains stable until some catastrophic event

I.

Human Ecology
a. Deals with the relationship between humans and their
environment
b. Human Population Growth
i. Most of todays environmental problems are the
result of the dramatic growth of the human population
ii. Limiting factor
iii. Any factor that halts any further growth in population
iv. Example = lack of food
v. Carrying capacity
vi. The size of the population the environment can
support
vii. When the birth rate and death rate are equal, the
population does not change; however, advances in
technology have allowed the birth rate to increase
dramatically over the death rate.
c. Disruption of Existing Ecosystems
i. Urbanization has destroyed countless amounts of
farmland, and other ecosystems such as wetlands and
rainforests.
ii. The destruction of natural habitats of other
organisms has led to their downfall.
iii. Destroying one population in an area will have an
effect on all the other populations in that area!!
d. Poor Farming Practices
i. Over-farming and overgrazing has made soil less
fertile, which allows it to erode quicker which leads to
desertification (formation of desert).
ii. Misuse of pesticides has also contaminated the
environment.
e. Pollution

i. Adding anything to the environment or affecting the

environment in a way that makes it less fit for living
things
ii. Types of Pollution
1. Noise pollution
2. Water pollution
3. Oil Spills
4. Air pollution
5. Aerosols (CFCs)
a. Destroy the ozone layer!!

6. Land pollution
II.

Restoring the Environment

a. Controlling pollution
i. Governing exhaust from automobile emissions
ii. Treating sewage that is dumped into the water
b. Conserving Natural Resources
i. Renewable resources
1. Air, water, soil, sunlight and living things
ii. Nonrenewable resources
1. Coal, oil, natural gas, metals and minerals
2. RECYCLING

iii. Conserving Soil

1. Cover crops

a. Protect soil from erosion

2. Crop rotation

a. Growing different crops at different times to

reduce the consumption of soil nutrients
3. Fertilizers
iv. Conserving Forests
1. Reforestation
v. Conserving Wildlife
1. An attempt to preserve animals whose habitats
have been destroyed by human actions
c. Controlling Pests Biologically
i. Instead of spraying pesticides, release a natural
predator of the insect into the area
ii. Pheromones have been used to make more effective
insect traps
d. Key to the Future
i. People must be well-informed to ensure that the
Earth is not damaged in a way that could result in our
own demise