ECOSYSTEM

Everything Is Connected
What is an Ecosystem?
 Refers to an interacting group of natural elements and the
organism in a given environment
 A unit interrelationships between and among living things
and non-living things
 Possesses both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic)
components of the environment

Ecosystems Are Connected

People often think of ecosystems as isolated from each other, but ecosystems do not
have clear boundaries. Things move from one ecosystem into another. Soil washes
from a mountain into a lake, birds migrate from Michigan to Mexico, and pollen blows
from a forest into a field. Living things respond and adapt to non-living conditions in
their environment to maintain homoestasis, or their steady state condition
The Components of an Ecosystem
BIOTIC AND ABIOTIC FACTORS
 BIOTIC FACTORS
 These are the living and once living parts of an ecosystem,
including all of the plants and animals.
 Biotic factors include dead organisms, dead parts of organisms,
such as leaves, and the organisms’ waste products.
 Classified as how organisms consume raw materials for energy:
Producers – an organism that makes its own food. Producers are
also called autotrophs, self-feeders
Consumers – organisms that get their energy by eating other
organisms. Consumers are also called heterotrophs, other-
feeders.
The Diversity of Living Things
 Types of Producers
A. Photosynthetic Organisms
 a plant uses sunlight to make sugar molecules by a process called photosynthesis
 Types of Producers
B. Chemosynthetic Organisms
 Obtain energy by oxidizing inorganic compounds such ammonia, nitrates, and sulfides and use this energy
to synthesize organic compounds
 Have been found supporting communities in some caves and also at hydrothermal vents along deep sea
oceanic ridges

• Bacteria, such as those in the picture, live in some of these organisms and
use hydrogen sulphide to make their own food.
• Hydrogen sulfide is present in the hot water that escapes from the cracks in
the ocean floor.
• Therefore, the bacteria are producers that can make food without sunlight.
These bacteria are eaten by the other underwater organisms and thus
support a thriving ecosystem.
 Types of Consumers
A. Herbivores
 Consumers that eat only producers are called herbivores, or plant
eaters.
B. Carnivores

 Consumers, such as lions and hawks, that eat only other

consumers are called carnivores, or flesh eaters.
C. Omnivores
 Consumers that eat both plants and animals are called omnivores, or eaters of all.

 Scavengers are omnivores

that feed on the dead
remains of plants and
animals that have recently
begun to decompose.
D. Decomposers
 Consumers, such as bacteria and fungi, that use their digestive secretions to
chemically breakdown their dead organic matter including animal wastes in the
external environment
 Returns nutrients to soil, air and water
 Decomposers produce detritus
Detritus is a term that refers to organic remains in the water and soil that
are in the final stage of decomposition
 ABIOTIC FACTORS
 These are the non-living parts of the ecosystem
 Abiotic factors include:
 Sunlight
 Water

 Temperature

 Wind

 Atmospheric Gases
 Rocks and soil
 Chemical substances
 Periodic disturbances
A. Sunlight
 Primary source of energy in nearly all ecosystems
 Energy used by plants during the process of photosynthesis
 In aquatic environments, the availability of sunlight has a
significant effect on the growth and distribution of algae
 Because water itself and microorganisms in it absorb light
and keep it penetrating very far, most photosynthesis
occurs near the surface of the water
 In terrestrial environment, light is not often the most
important factor limiting plant growth
Photoperiodism
 The response of plants to changes in the length of day and night
 Organized into three categories: long day plants, short day plants,
and day neutral plants
Long Day Plants
 Plants that begin the flowering process before the summer
solstice, June 12, when the lengthening days reach some critical
length
 Examples are radish, lettuce, potatoes, and spinach
Short Day Plants
 Plants that begin the flowering process after the summer solstice,
December 21
 Examples are strawberries, poinsettia, chrysanthemums, and
primrose
Day Neutral Plants
 Plants which appear to be in different cycles of night and day
 May flower continuously or respond to other stimuli
 Examples are sunflower, cucumber and dandelions
Nocturnal Animals

 Animals that are active only at night

 They tend to have keen eyesight and excellent hearing
Diurnal Animals

 Animals that demonstrate activity during the day

 They tend to have poor eyesight and hearing compared to
nocturnal animals
Crepuscular Animals
 Animals that are active during the twilight hours, at and dusk
 Animals take advantage of the twilight to feed, seek out water and
engage in other behaviors because they know that predators are
not as active in twilight
 Visibility is also challenging at dawn and dusk, making it easier for
animals to hide from potential threats
B. Water
 The universal solvent and the basis of all life on our planet
 An odorless, tasteless substance that covers more than 70% of
the earth’s surface

Global Water Distribution

• Although 71 percent of the Earth’s surface is

covered with water, nearly 97 percent of
Earth’s water is salt water in oceans and
seas.

• Of the fresh water on Earth, about 77

percent is frozen in glaciers and polar
icecaps. Only a small percentage of the
water on Earth is liquid fresh water that
humans can use.
 Water is the primary agent for the chemical and mechanical
breakdown of rocks called weathering to form loose rock
fragments (regolith) and soil

 By the process of erosion,

water sculpts the surface of
the earth as precipitation
falls on the land and makes
it way from rivers to the sea
 Waves from ocean storms
can erode coastlines to give
rise to a variety of
spectacular landforms.
 Aquatic organisms have a seemingly unlimited supply of water,
but they face problems of water balance if their solute
concentration does not match that of their surroundings

 For terrestrial organisms, the main water problem is the threat

of drying out. Many land species have water-tight coverings
that reduce water loss.

 According to water requirements, plants are grouped into:

 Hydrophytes – plants that actually live in water
 Mesophytes – plants that need moderate amount of water
 Epiphytes – plants that get their water from the air
 Xerophytes – plants that grow under dry conditions
 Halophytes – plants that can live in salty water
 Hydrophytes (water lily) Mesophytes (rose) Epiphytes (orchids)

Xerophytes Halophytes
(cactus) (mangrove)
C. Temperature
 Describe as the measure of a hotness or coldness of the body,
substance or the environment
 Temperature of air depends on the temperature of the
temperature of the surface below
 Temperature remains lower on surfaces like snow and ice
compared areas of forests and soil
 Temperature decreased as you move higher in the mountain
 Environmental temperature is an important abiotic factor
because of its effect in metabolism
 Few organisms can maintain sufficiently active metabolism at
temperatures close to 0°C
 Temperatures above 50°C destroy the enzymes of most organisms
 Effects of Temperature in Plants
 Sometimes, temperatures are used in connection with
day length to manipulate the flowering of plants
 Chrysanthemums will flower for a longer period of
time if daylight temperatures are 50°F
 The Christmas cactus forms flowers as a result of
short days and low temperature
 Daffodils are forced to flower by putting bulbs in cold
storage in October at 35 to 40°F. The cold
temperature allows bulb to mature. The bulbs are
transferred to greenhouse in midwinter where growth
begins. The flowers are then ready for cutting in 3 to
4 weeks
Temperature Regulation in Animals
1. Cold-blooded Animals (Poikilotherms)
 Animal whose internal temperature varies along with that
of the ambient environmental temperatures
 Examples are reptiles, fishes, and amphibians
2. Warm-blooded Animals (Homeotherms)
 Animal whose members keep their body temperature at a
roughly constant levels regardless of the ambient
temperature
 Has an ability to cool down or produce more heat by
regulating their metabolic rates
 Examples are mammals and birds
Corrective Mechanisms in Temperature Control

 Increased sweating aimed to reduce temperature of organisms.

 Vasodilation is a corrective response where the blood vessels
close to the skin surface become more dilated, meaning there is a
larger surface area for heat to be lost from the blood vessels
carrying over heated blood.
 Vasoconstriction occurs when the temperatures in an organism
drop. The blood vessels become constricted so that minimal heat
loss occurs.
 The hairs on your body has a corrective response where hairs
“stands on end”, and trap a layer of air between the hair and the
skin. This insulation of warmer air next to the skin reduces heat
lost, while a thin layer of insulation would increase heat loss.
 Effect of Temperature in Plants
 Thermoperiod refers to daily temperature change
 Plants produce maximum growth when exposed to a day temperature
10 to 15°F higher than the night temperature
 High temperatures cause increased respiration (break down),
sometimes above the rate of photosynthesis (build up) which means
the energy are being used rapidly than it is being produced
 Low temperatures can also result in poor growth, photosynthesis is
slowed down and results in lower yields
 Buds of many plants require exposure to a certain number of days
before a critical temperature (chilling hours) before they resume
growth in spring
 During dormancy, buds can withstand very low temperatures but after
the rest period, buds are more susceptible to weather conditions and
can be damaged easily by frost
 D. Wind
 Winds have great effect on weather and climate
 Wind constantly wears down rocks and scoops out canyons, it
carries away sand and soil by the process of soil erosion and
eventually results to soil formation
 Some organisms, such as bacteria, protists and many insects that
live on snow-covered mountain peaks depend on the nutrients
blown on them by winds
 Many plants depend on wind to disperse their pollen and seeds
 Local wind damage often creates opening in forest, contributing
patchiness in ecosystem
 Wind also increases an organism’s rate of water loss by evaporation.
The consequent increase in evaporative cooling can be
advantageous in summer but can cause dangerous wind chill in the
winter.
Monsoons
 These are large-scale seasonal wind

Southwest Monsoon
(Habagat)

 Blows during the months of

June to October each year
 Subjected to abundant rainfall
and extensive cloud
development at the western
sections of the country
Northeast Monsoon
(Amihan)

 Blows during the months of

November to February each
year
 Subjected to abundant rainfall
and extensive cloud
development at the eastern
sections of the country

The Philippines have a year-round humid, tropical climate.

E. Atmospheric Gases
GASES NAME PERCENT
VOLUME
Nitrogen 78.08 %
Oxygen 20.95 %
Water 0 to 4 %
Argon 0.93 %
Carbon Dioxide 0.360 %
Neon 0.0018 %
Helium 0.0005 %
Methane 0.00017 %
Hydrogen 0.00005 %  Nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor, carbon
Nitrous oxide 0.00003 % dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and ozone
Ozone 0.000004 % are extremely important to the health of
the Earth’s biosphere
 Nitrogen
 Removed from the atmosphere and deposited at the Earth’s surface mainly by
specialized nitrogen-fixing bacteria and by way of lightning through precipitation
 Addition of nitrogen to the earth’s surface soils and various bodies of water supplies
much needed nutrition for plant growth
 Returns to the atmosphere primarily through biomass combustion and denitrification
 Oxygen
 Exchanged between the
atmosphere and life
through the process of
photosynthesis and
respiration
 In respiration, oxygen is
combined with glucose to
chemically release energy
for metabolism
 Water Vapor
 Redistributes heat energy on the
Earth through latent heat energy
exchange
 The condensation of water vapour
creates precipitation that falls to
the Earth’s surface providing
needed fresh water for plants and
animals
 Helps warm the Earth’s
atmosphere through the
greenhouse effect
 Carbon dioxide

 Increased by over 35% in the last

three hundred years
 Increase is primarily due to
human induced burning from
fossil fuels, deforestation, and
other forms of land-use change
 Human-caused increase in its
concentration in the atmosphere
has strengthened the green
house effect and has definitely
contributed to global warming
over the last 100 years
 Methane
 A very strong greenhouse gas,
since 1750, it increased by more
than 150%
 Primary sources for the additional
methane in the atmosphere are:
 Rice cultivation
 Domestic grazing animals
 Termites
 Landfills
 Coal mining
 Oil and gas extraction
 Ozone
 Stratospheric ozone provides an important
service to life on Earth as it absorbs harmful
ultraviolet radiation
 At the surface of the Earth, however, ozone is
a human-made air pollutant that at certain
concentrations may affect human health.
 Ozone forms from the reaction of volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen oxides
(NOx) in the presence of heat and sunlight.
 As ozone concentrations in the atmosphere
increase, greater numbers of people may
experience harmful health effects of ozone on
the lungs.
 Exposure to ozone may also accelerate the
natural aging process.
 In recent years, levels of
stratospheric ozone have been
decreasing due to the build up of
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
 Satellite measurements have
indicated that the ozone had a
3% decrease in stratospheric
ozone
 CFCs were being used in
refrigerators, air-conditioners,
aerosol spray containers, and
many other consumer products.
 Since late 1970, scientists have
noticed the development of
severe holes in the ozone layer
over Antarctica
 F. Rocks and Soil
 It sustains the growth of all plants and animals and forms part of the
biosphere
 Formation of soil is attributed to combined effect of the physical,
chemical, and biotic forces acting on organic and weathered rock
fragments resulting to soil with porous fabric that contains water and
air
 The physical and chemical composition of rocks and soil limit the
distribution of plants and of animals that feed on the vegetation.
 In streams and rivers, the composition of the substrate can affect
water chemistry, which in turn influences the resident plants and
animals
 In marine environments, the structure of underlying substrates
determines the types of organisms that can attach or burrow in those
habitats
Classification of Soil
 Texture is determined by the minerals, water and air that
composed the soil
 The minerals present determines the classification of the
soil
 The soil particles present in soil vary by size and
characteristics
 Texture along with the organic content and pH, determine
how well a plant will grow without any interference
 Soil is classified according to particle size as clay soil, silt
soil and sandy soil
 Clay Soil (<0.002 mm)
 Made up approximately 0 to 45% sand, 0 to 45% silt and
50 to 100% clay
 Sticky and feels almost plastic-like when it is wet
 Holds water and nutrients well

Silt Soil (0.002 – 0.05 mm)

 Made up approximately 25 to 50% sand, 30 to 50% silt
and 10 to 30% clay
 Feels smooth and slippery when wet

Sandy Soil (0.05 – 2.0 mm)

 Made up approximately 80 to 100% sand, 0 to 10% silt
and 0 to 10% clay
 Drains quickly after it rains, is easy to work with and
warms up quickly in warm weather
 Has lower moisture and nutrient holding capacity
Soil Horizon
 O Horizon – Organic matter. Litter layer of plant
residues in relatively undecomposed from
 A Horizon – Surface soil. Layer of mineral soil with
most organic matter accumulation and soil life. This
layer is depleted of iron, clay, aluminum, organic
compounds, and other soluble constituents
 When eluviation is pronounced, a lighter colored “E”
subsurface soil horizon is apparent at the base of the
“A” horizon.
 B – Subsoil. This layer accumulates iron, clay,
aluminium, and organic compounds, a process referred
to as illiviation
 C – Parent rock. Layer of large unbroken rocks. This
may accumulate the more soluble compounds.

Humus is a decomposed organic material

 Types of Soil
 Classified according to nature of parent material, climate and vegetation
 The most general category of the Soil Classification System recognizes eleven
distinct soil orders:
 Oxisols, ardisols, mollisols, alfisols, ultisols, spodosols, entisols, inceptsols,
vertisols, histosols, andisols
G. Chemical Substances

 Acids
 Some microorganisms would require acidic
conditions in order to survive, they are
categorized as acidophiles
 Plants would require some acids such as abcisic
acid for growth and development that plays an
important role in integrating various stress signals
and controlling downstream stress responses
 Some plants that grow best in acid soils are
azaleas, ericas, ferns and many protea species
 Bases
 Various biological activities such as
ammonification or sulfate reduction can
lead to transient alkalinity in microhabitats
that is widespread feature of
heterogeneous environment such as soils
and the highly alkaline Ca2+ dominated
ground waters that are present in various
geological locations have paved the way for
the existence of microorganisms that are
categorized as alkaliphiles
 Some plants grow best in alkaline soils with
pH above 7 such as Lucerne and many
xerophytes
 Salts
 Molten salts and solutions containing
dissolved salts are called electrolytes
 Plants that have adapted to live in salty
environments are called halophytes
 Salt draws water out of the roots of most
plants, slowly drying them out but some
halophytes have ways to get rid of excess
salt
 Mangroves take in salts from saltwater
from their roots, the salt is carried in the
tree’s sap up to old leaves, which are
then shed or to living leaves which have
glands that excrete salt
 Carbohydrates
 Also termed as saccharides, are divided into
four chemical groupings: monosaccharide,
disaccharides, oligosaccharides,
polysaccharides
 Monosaccharide and disaccharides are
smaller carbohydrates which commonly
referred to as sugar
 Polysaccharides serves as storage of energy
(starch and glycogen) and as structural
components (cellulose and chitin)
 Saccharides and their derivatives include
many other important biomolecules that
play key roles in immune system,
fertilization, preventing pathogenesis, blood
clotting, and development
 Carbohydrates are coming from the
different plants in the form of glucose
 Proteins
 Many proteins are enzymes that catalyse the
chemical reaction in metabolism
 Other proteins have structural or mechanical
functions, such as proteins that form the
cytoskeleton that maintain the cell shape
 Essential amino acids cannot be produced by
the body and must be brought in through diet
while non-essential amino acids can be made by
the body
 Complete proteins are those that contain all of
the essential amino acids, while incomplete
proteins lack one or more of the essential
amino acids
 The body needs all the essential amino acids to
build or repair tissues
 Soy is the only vegetable protein to be
complete
 Lipids
 Are non-soluble in water and combine with
carbohydrates and proteins to form majority of all
the plants and animal cells
 Commonly synonymous with the word “fats” in
terms of personal health, and though all fats are
lipids, not all lipids are fats
 Major purposes of lipids are energy storage, cell
membrane development, and serving as a
component of hormones and vitamins in the body
 Lipoprotein is the medical term used to define a
combination of fat and protein
 Cholesterol is a naturally occurring substance in the
body and is comprised by lipids
 Cholesterol is separated in two types, high density
lipoprotein (HDL) and low density lipoprotein (LDL)
 Nucleic Acids
 Biological molecules essential for life, and
include DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA
(ribonucleic acid)
 Each is found in abundance in all living things,
where they function in encoding, transmitting
and expressing genetic information
 When a cell divides, its DNA is copied and passed
from one cell generation to next generation
 DNA contains the “programmatic instructions for
cellular activities, when organisms produce
offspring, these instructions in the form of DNA
are passed down
 RNA is involved in the synthesis of proteins,
information is typically passed from DNA to RNA
to the resulting proteins
 H. Periodic Disturbances
 Catastrophic disturbances, such as fires, hurricanes,
tornadoes, and volcanic eruptions, can devastate biological
communities
 After the disturbance, the area is re-colonized by organisms or
repopulated by survivors, but the structure of the community
undergoes a succession of changes during the rebound
 Some disturbances, such a volcanic eruptions, are so
infrequent and irregular that organisms have not acquired
evolutionary adaptations to them
 Fire, although unpredictable over the short term, recurs
frequently in some communities, and many plants have
adapted to this periodic disturbances
Types of Natural Fires
 Surface Fires
 Usually move rapidly through an area and do
not consume all organic layers
 Burn the upper litter layer and small
branches that lie on or near the ground
 Moisture in organic horizons prevents ignition
of the humus layer and protects the soil and
inhabiting organisms from the heat
 Fast moving fires does not normally persist
long enough to damage tissues underneath
the thick bark of large trees
 But it will girdle the root collar of small trees
and shrubs and reduce small diameter
branches
 Ground Fires
 Usually occur only during periods of
protracted drought when the entire soil
organic layer may dry sufficiently, but
they may burn for weeks or months until
precipitation and low temperature
extinguish the fire or they run out of fuel
 Large and small trees are generally killed
because of long and high temperature
heat pulse generated
 Release considerable amounts of
nutrients from burned fuels
 Can cause an increased chance of surface
flow and erosion on slopes and leave a
baked and hardened seedbed that may
prevent rapid revegetation
 Crown Fires
 Occur in forests during periods of
drought and low relative humidity,
particularly in areas with heavy
accumulations of understory material
called ladder fuels such as fallen trees,
logging slash and combustible understory
vegetation
 Tree crowns become engulfed in flames
and the fire spread to nearby trees
 Generate tremendous heat that rises in a
strong convection column, drawing in
brisk surface winds that fan the flames
even more
 Have environmental effects similar to
those of ground fires
Limiting Factors and Tolerance
 Limiting Factors
 Are environmental influences that constrain the productivity of organisms,
populations, or communities and thereby prevent them from achieving their
full biological potential, which could be realized under optimal conditions
 Can be single elements or a group of related factors
 Law of
Minimum

 States that the growth and well-being of an organism is ultimately

limited by that essential resource, this is in its lowest supply
relative to what is required
 The most deficient resource is therefore called the limiting factor
 Law of
Tolerance

 States that for each physical factor in the environment, a minimum and
maximum limit exists called tolerance limit; beyond which the organism
does not thrive or survive
 Adaptation
 an inherited trait that increases an organism’s chance of survival and
reproduction in a certain environment
Difference of Niche from Habitat

 Niche is more on how the organisms behave in the places

where they belong, while habitat is focused on the place
where each organism belongs
 Niche is more on how organisms react to their environment,
while habitat is more on how their environment affects them
 The short definition of niche is how an organism makes a living
in the place it belongs, while habitat is where the organism
live
Difference of Niche from Habitat
Homeostasis in Ecosystem

 Refer to the optimum balance in any system, be it biological

or environmental in nature
 Balance in nature simply considers the different aspect of the
ecosystem which comprise of biotic and abiotic components in
it
 Humans and other living entities in the ecosystem must not
engage in activities that incurred accumulated wastes that will
disrupt the prevailing biochemical cycles and other abiotic
factors which will lead to an imbalance state of ecosystem
Types of Ecosystem
 Ecosystems differ in flora (plants), fauna (animals) and
environmental conditions, but all of them support some kind of life
 Therefore it is very important to understand the features of the
ecosystem before entering it and trying to make changes
 It was lack of this understanding in early days that led to the
exploitation of natural habitats and extinction of many rare species,
along with the distractions of some beautiful landscapes
 Human beings are known to act in manners which disrupt the natural
cycles and flow of things in ecosystem that leads to major problems
 To prevent this from happening, we need to understand what type of
ecosystem we are dealing with
 There are basically two types of ecosystems: terrestrial and aquatic