Warm up 3/13You are working as the head manager of McDonald’s when your rich Uncle passes away. In his will he leaves you $15 million to invest in a small shopping center, but to get the $ 15 million you need to move to his small town, which was mostly destroyed by a tornado and invest all of your new money into businesses in the town. You are approached by many companies to open businesses. You can open 5 businesses for your center. Pick 5 and explain why you made your combination of business is the best to make money . Your choices are:

UNIT 10: Ecology 1INTRO TO ECOLOGY

pp. 359-365

Ecology Defined

• Ecology means "study of homes"

• study the relationships of animals, plants, and their environment (interdependence)

• A small change can affect the whole ecosystem

Levels of Organization

Levels of Organization

Biosphere : Most Inclusive+ all below

Ecosystem + abiotic factors

Community: all organisms + many populations

Population: members of one species in one place + many organisms = Organism : Least Inclusive

Niche/Habitat

• Niche - the job/role of an organism in their environment (usually based on what they eat)

1. generalist: broad niche 2. specialist: narrow niche 3. specialist more at risk from habitat destruction than generalists 4. some times two organisms have the same niche- competition

Habitat

1. geographic location

2. habitats overlap

3. some organisms are territorial -

defend habitat

Ecology of Organisms

• Response to biotic (living) and abiotic (nonliving) factors

1. acclimation: adjust tolerance

2. conformers vs regulators

3. dormancy vs migration

4. limited resources

Dealing with the EcosystemControl of Internal Conditions (2 ways)

•Conformer: organisms that do not control their internal conditions• they conform to the

environment – cold blooded

•Regulator: organisms that control their internal conditions • (regulate despite the

environment – warm blooded)

Dealing with the Ecosystem

• Escaping Unsuitable Conditions– Dormancy: hide and reduce

activity for the duration of the conditions• (ex/ bear hibernates for the

winter)

– Migration: relocate away from the conditions. • (ex/ birds fly south for the

winter)

ENERGY TRANSFER

pp 366-369

• In an ecosystem energy flows:

Sun autotrophs heterotrophs

producers consumer

PRODUCERS

• Can make their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis

• Productivity: energy made by producers (after biological processes) available to consumers

• gross primary productivity: rate at which producers capture energy in organic compounds. (Carbs, Fats, Proteins)

• biomass: the amount of organic material produced

• net primary productivity: the rate at which biomass accumulates (after some is used)

CONSUMERS

• get energy by eating other organisms

- herbivores: eat producers

- carnivores: eat other consumers

- omnivores: eat producers and consumers

- detritivores: feed on “garbage”

- decomposers: breakdown big molecules to smaller molecules and recycle materials

ENERGY TRANSFER

• trophic level: position in a series of energy transfers

• Only 10% of the total energy is passed onto the next trophic level

1. lost to biological processes

2. lost as heat

3. not enough at level above to support

below

Homework

Tri fold Vocab: Due Monday•Regulator•Conformer•Ecosystem•Producers •Consumers

• Biomass• Detritivore • Chemosynthesis• Trophic Level

Biome Project: Part 2 (Due Friday)Part 3 (Due Monday)Part 4 & 5 (Due Tuesday)