Overview of Ecology and Environmental

Science
 Overview of Ecology and Environmental
Science
To make sure that the next generation will
have a sustainable future, we need to
LEARN and UNDERSTAND
how are our environment works and what we
can do to PROTECT, CONSERVE and
IMPROVE
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science

Water
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science

Land
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
Environment
● the circumstances, objects, or conditions that
surround an organism or group of organism.
● the complex of natural, social and cultural
conditions that affect an individual or
community.
● encompasses both: A). NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT
and B). BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
A. Natural environment
● these are the habitats which includes:
☻ abiotic (non-living components and their
interactions)
☻ biotic (living components and their interactions)
B. Built environment
● these are the habitats which man has greatly
transformed or modified into a human environment.
Example : urban settings, agricultural land
conversions,
industrial zones and commercial areas.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
Environmental Science and Ecology how do they
differ?
Environmental Science
● it is the systematic study of our environment.
● a highly interdisciplinary, integrating natural
sciences,
social sciences, and humanities in a comprehensive
and holistic study of the world around us.
● it teaches us different concepts and principles about
the natural world.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
● it’s goal is to create a sense of concern and responsi-
bility from us, to act and get involved in serious efforts
to do something about the problems we have created.
Ecology
● originated from the Greek word “oikos” , meaning
house or home , this was coined by Ernst Haekel in
1866.
● it is the foundation in the study of environmental
science.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
● it is more fundamental and broad discipline than
environmental science.
● it is the study of the interactions of organisms among
themselves and with physical environment.
● the body of knowledge concerning the economy of
nature, the investigation of the total relations of
animal
to its inorganic and organic environment (as defined
by Haeckel).
● literally, the study of the house or the place where we
lived.
POPULATION ECOLOGY
MARINE ECOLOGY
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
Ernst Heinrich Philipp August
Haeckel ( February 1834 – 9
August 1919)
► a German biologist,
naturalist, philosopher,
physician, professor, marine
biologist, and artist who
discovered, described and
named thousands of new
species, mapped a genealogical
tree relating all life forms, and
coined many other species.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
Specialized Branches of Ecology:
1. Habitat ecology
● it deals with ecological study of different habitats on
planet earth and their effects on the organisms living
there.
● it is subdivided into :
♦ Marine ecology – oceanography
♦ Limnology – fresh water
♦ Terrestrial ecology - land
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
● The terrestrial ecology is classified into (according to the
kinds of study of its different habitats.
♦ forest ecology
♦ cropland ecology
♦ grassland ecology
♦ desert ecology, etc.,
2. Community ecology
● It deals with the study of the local distribution of
animals in various habitats, the recognition and com
position of community units, and succession.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
3. Population ecology (Demecology)
● It deals with the study of the manner of growth, structure

and regulation of population of organisms.

4. Evolutionary ecology
● It deals with the problems of niche segregation and
speciation.
5. Taxonomic ecology
It is concerned with the ecology of different taxonomic groups of
living organisms and eventually includes following divisions of
ecology: microbial ecology, mammalian ecology, avian ecology,
insect ecology, parasitological, human ecology and so on.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
6. Human ecology
It involves population ecology or man and man’s relation
to the environment, especially man’s effects on the
biosphere and the implication of these effects for man.

7. Applied ecology
It deals with the application of ecological concepts to
human needs. It includes following applications of ecology:
wild-life management, range management, forestry, con
servation, insect control, epidemiology, animal husbandry,
aquacultare, agriculture, horticulture, and land use and
pollution ecology.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
8. Ecosystem dynamics
It deals with the ecological study of the processes of
soil formation, nutrient cycline energy flow, and
productivity.
9. Production ecology
It deals with the gross and net production of different
ecosystems like fresh water, sea water, agriculture,
horticulture, and tries to do proper management of
these ecosystems so that maximum yield can be
produced from them.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
10. Ecological energetic
It deals with energy conservation and its flow in the
organisms within the ecosystem. In it thermodynamics
has its significant contribution.
11. Physiological ecology (ecophysiology)
The factors of environment have a direct bearing on the
functional aspects of organisms. The ecophysiology
deals with the survival of populations as a result of
functional adjustments of organisms with different
ecological conditions.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
12. Chemical ecology
It concerns with the adaptations of animals of
preferences of particular organisms like insects to parti
cular chemical substances.

13. Ecological genetics (genecology)

Deals with the study of variations of species based upon
their genetic potentialities.
In any environment only those organisms that are
favored by the environment can survive.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
14. Palaeoecology
It is the study of environmental conditions, and life of the
past ages, to which palynology, palaeontology, and
radioactive dating methods have made significant
contribution.

15. Geographic ecology (ecogeography)

It concentrates on the study of geographical distribution
of animals (zoogeography) and plants (phytogeography),
and also of palaeoecology and biomes.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
16. Space ecology
It is a modern subdivision of ecology which is
concerned with the development of partially or
completely regenerating ecosystems for supporting life
of man during long space flights or during extended
exploration of extra-terrestrial environments.
17. Pedology
It is a branch of terrestrial ecology and it deals with the
study of soils, in particular their acidity, alkalinity,
humus contents, mineral contents, soil-types, etc., and
their influence on the organisms.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
18. Radiation ecology
It deals with the study of gross effects of radiations and
radioactive substances over the environment and living
organisms.

19. Ethology
It is the interpretation of animal behaviour under
natural conditions. In it, often, detailed life history
studies of particular species are amassed.
Overview of Ecology and Environmental Science
20. Systems ecology
It is the modern branch of ecology which is particularly
concerned with the analysis and understanding of the
function and structure of ecosystem by the use of
applied mathematics, such as advanced statistical
techniques, mathematical models, characteristics of
computer sciences.
Activity 1
Instructions :
1. Choose one branch among the specialized
branches of ecology.

2. Draw a concept map showing interaction,

and
interdependence of applicable components
of the environment.

3. Use short bond paper.