Digging A Little Deeper Into Ecosystems

Organisms of Ecosystems

• Producers• Consumers• Herbivores• Carnivores• Omnivores• Decomposers

Producers

• Organisms that use energy from the sun to make their own food through a process called photosynthesis

• PRODUCES its own food

Consumers

• Organisms that must get energy by eating other organisms

• 3 Groups– Herbivores

• Eat only PLANTS– Carnivores

• Eat other ANIMALS– Omnivores

• Eat both PLANTS and ANIMALS

Decomposers

• Get energy by breaking down nutrients in dead organisms

• Return carbon dioxide and water to ecosystem

• Think of them as RECYCLERS

How can 1 Ecosystem Support So Many Communities?

• Habitat (home)– The physical space used by a population– Includes the biotic and abiotic parts• Biotic – living organisms• Abiotic – nonliving parts of the ecosystem

• Niche– An organism’s lifestyle• Habitat, climate, food

What happens when different populations occupy the same niche?

• Competition– Populations compete with each other for food,

water and shelter– 1 population is usually better (more efficient) at

finding food, water and shelter– The stronger population lives and the weaker

population either moves to a new area or dies

Can two populations ever live together?

• YES, if they have partially overlapping niches.• Animals ADAPT to their ecosystems– Adapt - to change so as to fit a new or specific use

or situation

• Examples:– Owls and Kestrels eat the same food– Owls hunt at night and Kestrels hunt during the

day

Predator and Prey

• Predator– An organism that eats other organisms in order to

live

• Prey– The organism that is eaten

Food Chains and Food Webs

• Food Chain– Shows the path of energy as it flows from one

organism to the next

• Food Web– A diagram of several connected food chains

Parasites and Hosts

• Parasite– Organisms that live on or inside another organism

to get energy– Feeds off other organisms, does not eat them– Examples: fleas, ticks, tapeworms, leeches

• Host– The organisms the parasite infects– Usually harmed by parasite because the parasite

takes nutrients