College of Arts and Sciences Education

2nd Floor, DPT Building

Matina Campus, Davao City
Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118

BIG PICTURE IN FOCUS: ULO-3. Describe how evolution produces species and discuss
how species interaction shape biological communities.

Below are the essential terms that you are going to encounter in the pursuit of ULO-3.
Describe how evolution produces species and discuss how species interaction shape
biological communities. Again, you advise to frequently refer to these definitions to help
you understand the following topics. I would like to highly recommend familiarizing and
review the previous definition terms for ULO-1. And ULO-2 to connect and comprehend
the basic as well the technicalities that surround the study environmental science in
studying evolution and ecosystems processes and functions.

1. Evolution it is referring to the change in the characteristics of a species over several

generations that relies on natural selection.
1.1. In the theory of evolution is based on the idea that all species? Are related
and gradually change over time.

2. Natural selection is referring to the process by which organisms with different

phenotypes adapt to the environment, which leads to the survival and reproduction
of more offspring.
2.1. The change in the inherited traits and characteristics of a population over
time is a crucial mechanism of evolution.

3. Adaptation is referring to the evolutionary process whereby an organism becomes

better able to live in its habitat or habitats.

4. Acclimation it is referring to the process of a slow change of an organism’s body to

help adapt to a wide range of conditions and changes in the environment.
4.1. Acclimatization occurs in a short period and within the organism's lifetime.

5. Genetics. A branch of biology which studies genetic traits, its variation, and how
these traits are being passed to an organism from one generation to another.
5.1. Gregor Mendel is known as the father of heredity, who study genetics in the
19th century.

6. Speciation is the evolutionary process by which populations evolve to become

distinct species.
6.1. Orator F. Cook, an entomologist, a botanist, and an agronomist, creates the
word speciation, which means a new species arises from other species.

7. Genetic drift is referring to an evolution in the frequency of an existing gene variant

in a population due to selection sampling of organisms.
7.1. The alleles found in the offspring determines whether that individual survives
or reproduces. These alleles come from those of their parents.

8. Taxonomy. The science of naming, defining, and classifying groups of biological

organisms based on shared characteristics.

9. Predation it is referring to a biological interaction where one organism captures

and kills other organisms, its prey.

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9.1. It is one of the known modes of feeding behaviors that includes parasitism
and micropredation and parasitoids.

10. A symbiotic relationship is referring to any close and long-term biological

interaction between two different organisms.
10.1. The organisms, each termed a symbiont, may be of the same or different
species.

11. Mutualism it is referring to a biological and ecological interaction where both

organisms benefit from each other.
11.1. It is one of the known ecological interactions.

12. Parasitism. A symbiotic relationship between species, where one organism, the
parasite, lives on or in another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is
adapted structurally to this way of life.

13. Keystone species. It is a concept that was introduced by Robert T. Paine in 1969. It
pertains to species relative to its abundance is a disproportionate effect on its natural
environment.

14. Resilience is referring to the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, toughness.

15. Ecotones. These refer to the area of transition area where ecological or biological
communities meet and integrate.
15.1. It sometimes manifests a sharp boundary line that appears on the ground. It
may be narrow (small) or wide (big) , and it may be local or regional.
Consequently, it blends biological communities across a broad area.

16. Ecological succession is referring to the process of change in the species structure of
an ecological community over time.
16.1. It refers to a more or less orderly and predictable phenomenon or process
experienced in an ecological community. Subsequently, this is also the
initial colonization of a new habitat.

17. Biomes. These refer to a community where plants and animals exist, thrive, and
survive due to similar or shared characteristics in the given environment.
17.1. These can be found over an area of different continents.
17.2. These are formed in response to a distinct physical climate, which results in
the formation of different biological communities, we call it biomes.

18. Marsh is referring to a wetland abundant in the herbaceous type of plant species
instead of woody plant species.
18.1. This wetland forms a transition between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems,
as the location is at the edges of lakes and streams.
18.2. Grasses, rushes, or reeds often dominate them.

19. Swamps. A forested wetland. Swamps are considered transition zones due to the
shared roles of both lands in water in creating this environment.
19.1. This type of environment can be seen in different sizes and is located all
around the world.

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19.2. The water present in this type of environment varies. It can be freshwater,
brackish water, or seawater.

20. Wetlands. These refer to a distinct ecosystem where oxygen-free processes prevail.
This type of environment is regularly or seasonally flood by water.
20.1. These environments differ from other landforms and bodies of water due to
the characteristic vegetation of aquatic plants, adapted to the unique hydric
soil.

21. Estuaries. These refer to a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water that is
freely connected to the open sea and comes from one or more rivers or streams
flowing into it.
21.1. These form a zone where both river environments and maritime
environments meet, which can also be identified as an ecotone.

To perform the aforesaid big picture (unit learning outcomes) for the first three (3)
weeks of the course, you need fully understand the following essential knowledge that will
be laid down in the succeeding pages. Take note that you are not limited to refer to this
resource exclusively. Thus, you are expected to utilize other books, research articles, and
other available resources in the university library. e.g.,e-library, search.proquest.com, etc.

EVOLUTION, BIOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES

AND INTERACTION

NATURAL SELECTION

Over generations, organisms compete for survival because of limited resources.

They compete with each other to survive and to have a higher reproductive potential or
fitness and for their offspring to acquire the beneficial traits. As time goes by, these traits
become concentrated and common to all populations. The organism that perfectly fits the
conditions of the environment will survive. The process of a better selection of organisms
to transmit traits to the next generation is called natural selection.

Adaptation and the acquisition of traits that allow a species to survive in its environment
are among the most important biological concepts. Natural selection leads to evolution.
The term can be used in two ways:

1. Genetic traits being transmitted from one generation to another and allow an
organism or individual to survive in the environment. This type of adaptation results
in the costing of many individuals in a population. Subsequently, individual
organisms adapt immediately to the changes in a specific environment known as
acclimation.

2. Another type of adaptation affects populations due to the breakage of a large unit
of individuals creating a smaller group in establishing a colony. For an organism to
survive in a specific environment, genetic traits suitable for survival from one
generation to another.

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LIMITING FACTORS

Anything that constrains or compel a population's size and slows or stops it from
growing. All living things need food, water, shelter, and space to survive. As long as
organisms have all of these things available to them, their population will continue.
However, populations cannot grow forever. Here are the types of limiting factors that affect
population dynamism:

1. Density Independent Factors. Limit the population size, regardless of

population density. Examples:

a. Natural Disasters. Such as droughts, hurricanes, and fires can be

devastating to aquatic life. While we often see the destruction of
these storms on the news, we rarely consider the impacts or
results of such a blast on wildlife and vegetation. The fact is,
hurricanes or other natural calamities increase the death rate or
fatality for many species, while some species see a highly
increased birthrate after the destruction.
b. Temperature. It influences the activity and growth of organisms.
c. Sunlight. It can only penetrate to a depth of 30 meters in water.
Most photosynthesis in the aquatic environment occurs near the
surface. It means that most plants grow if they are at the bottom
of deep bodies of water.
d. Pollution. While humans concerning in cities around the globe,
the emissions and chemicals we create are dispersing into the
different levels in the atmosphere. From here, they are carried
globally and affect all organisms. Even organisms (plants and
animals) in the oceans are concerned, as pollutants dissolve from
the atmosphere into various water sources.

2. Density Dependent Factors.

3. It is correlated to the population size, either a positive or negative impact.
4. With a positive relationship, these limiting factors increase with the size
of the population and limit growth as population size increases. With a
negative correlation, population growth is limited at low densities and
becomes less limited as it grows. Examples:

a. Competition. Animal (vertebrates and invertebrates) communities

compete for food and water sources, whereas plant communities
compete for soil nutrients and sunlight. Animals also vie for space to
nest, roost, hibernate, or raise young, as well as for mating rights.

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Two different types of competition:

• Intraspecific competition. It occurs between

members of the same group of species. For example,
two male birds (parrot) of the same species might
compete for mates in the same area. This type of
competition is an essential factor in natural selection. It
leads to the evolution of better adaptations within a
species. With this, members of such species are less
likely to survive and may gradually to extinction.
• Interspecific competition. It occurs between
members of different species. For example, predators
of different species might compete for the same prey.

b. Predation. The ecological process by which energy is transferring

from living animals to other animals basing on the predator's
behavior that can capture and kills the prey before eating it.
c. Parasitism. When organisms (mosquitoes or protozoans) are densely
populated, they can easily transmit internal and external parasites to
one another through contact with the animal skin and their body
fluids. Parasites can thrive in densely packed host populations, but if
the given parasite is too virulent, it will begin to decimate the host
population. A decline or decrease in the host population will reduce
the parasite population because the greater distance between host
organisms will make transmission more difficult.
d. Disease. Spread quickly through densely packed populations due to
the closeness of each organism to one another. Populations that
rarely come into contact or expose with one another are less likely to
share bacteria (E. coli), viruses (hepatitis), and fungi (mushroom).
Much like the host-parasite relationship of the two organisms, it is
beneficial to the disease not to kill off its host population because it
makes it more difficult for the condition to survive.

HABITAT

It describes the place or set of environmental conditions in which a particular

organism lives and provides the animal or plant with food, water, space, and shelter.
The ecological niche is a species role and environment. A more practical term,
ecological niches, represents either the role played by a species in a biological community
or the entire set of environmental factors that determine a species distribution. Over time,
niches change as species develop new strategies to exploit resources. Species of higher
intelligence or complex social structures, such as elephants, chimpanzees, and dolphins,

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learn from their social group how to behave and can invent new ways of doing things when
presented with novel opportunities or challenges.
The idea that “complete competitors cannot coexist” was proposed by the Russian
Microbiologist G. F. Gause (1910–1986) to explain why mathematical models of species
competition always ended with one species disappearing. Two animal species can inhabit
the same ecological niche for a long time, as stated in the competitive exclusion principle.
A niche evolution resource is partitioning a process in which one is efficient than
the other organisms. Partitioning it will allow several species to utilize different parts of the
same support and coexist within a single habitat Species can specialize in time, too.

SPECIATION

It is a process by which barriers to gene flow evolve between populations due to

ecologically-based divergent selection (Rundle and Nosil 2005). It occurs when a group
within a species separates from other members of its species and develops its unique
characteristics. As an interbreeding species population becomes better adapted to its
ecological niche, its genetic heritage gives it the potential to change further as
circumstances dictate. Also, speciation maintains species diversity. Darwin believed that
new species arise only very gradually, over immensely long times. In some organisms,
however, adaptive changes have occurred fast enough to be observed.

Mechanism of Speciation

1. Allopatric (allo=other, patric=place) Speciation (geographic isolation). It

occurs in geographically isolated populations, and the separation is due to
different geographical events. The species arise in non-overlapping geographic
locations.

2. Reproductive isolation. It happens when two groups of individuals evolved

from the same parental population do not interbreed.

3. Peripatric (peri=near, patric=place) Speciation.

4. If the small subset of a large population becomes isolated at the periphery of the
original population's range and over generations, the small group becomes
reproductively isolated from the original community—this type of speciation also
known as the founder effect.

5. Parapatric (para means "beside," Patric means "place") speciation.

Individuals organisms are more likely to mate with their geographic neighbors.
It also results in a reduced gene flow within the population, no specific barrier to
gene flow, and the mating behavior is NOT random.

6. Sympatric (sym means same, Patric = place) speciation. The species split into
two groups that diversify and become genetically isolated while remaining in the
same place.

7. Behavioral isolation. It is sometimes called ethological separation, and this

happens when two populations of the same species develop some differences
in behavior. A typical example is mating rituals. Also, the original Galapagos
finches separating from the rest of the mainland could no longer share genetic

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material and became reproductively isolated. The barriers that divide

subpopulations are not always physical. For example, two virtually identical tree
frogs (Hyla Versicolor, H. chrysoscelis) live in similar eastern North America
habitats but have different mating calls.

Once isolation imposed, the two populations begin to diverge in genetics

and physical characteristics. Genetic drift ensures that the DNA of two formerly
joined populations eventually separates; in several generations, traits lost from a
population during the natural course of reproduction. Under more extreme
circumstances, a die-off of most isolated populations strips much of the survivors'
variation in traits. In isolation, selection pressures shape individuals' physical,
behavioral, and genetic characteristics, causing population traits to shift over time.
From an original range of components, the following natural selections are:

1. Directional selection. It occurs when a single phenotype is favored, causing the

allele frequency to shift in one direction continuously.
2. Stabilizing selection. It results in a decrease of a population 's genetic variance
when natural selection favors a typical phenotype and selects against extreme
variations. And it can narrow the range of a trait.
3. Diversifying or Disruptive selection. The average or intermediate phenotypes are
often less fit than either extreme phenotype. They are unlikely to feature prominently
in a population, and it can cause traits to diverge to the extremes.

EVOLUTION
It is a process of genetic change from generation to generation, occurring in
populations or higher-order groupings of organisms. Ample evidence from both laboratory
experiments and nature shows evolution at work. Geneticists have modified many fruit fly
properties, including body size, eye color, growth rate, life span, and feeding behavior
using artificial selection. The evolutionary change is also occurring in nature—a classic
example in some of the finches on the Galapagos Islands of Daphne.

https://www.sciencealert.com/that-classic-image-everyone-uses-to-illustrate-evolution-is-just-plain-wrong

On the other hand, evolution sometimes works in our favor. We've spread several
persistent organic pollutants (called POPs), such as pesticides and industrial solvents,
throughout our environment. The best thing to get rid of them is with microbes that can
destroy or convert them to a nontoxic form. It turns out that the best place to look for these
species is in the most contaminated sites. The presence of a new food source has stimulated
the evolution of organisms that can metabolize it. A little artificial selection and genetic
modification in the laboratory can turn these species into handy bioremediation tools.

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TAXONOMY

It is the study of naming, describing, and classifying organisms, including the rules,
theories, principles, and procedures. A Swedish Botanist named Carolus Linnaeus
developed Binomial Nomenclature, a two-word naming system for naming all species on
Earth. The first part or portion of the scientific name is the genus that is always written first
and capitalized, and appears in italics or underlined. The second word of the scientific name
is the species, and appears in italics or using underline. An example is Homo sapien or
Homo sapien. Scientists communicate about species using these scientific names instead
of common names (e.g., lion, dandelion, or ant lion), to avoid confusion. The common name
can refer to any number of species in different places, and a single species might have many
familiar names.

https://byjus.com/biology/taxonomy-biological-classification/

SYMBIOSIS

In contrast to predation and competition, some interactions between organisms can

be non-antagonistic, even beneficial. In such relationships, called symbiosis, two or more
species live intimately together, with their fates linked. Symbiotic relationships often
enhance the survival of one or both partners. In lichens, a fungus and a photosynthetic
partner (either an alga or a cyanobacterium) combine tissues to mutual benefit. This
association is called mutualism. Some ecologists believe that cooperative, mutualistic
relationships may be more important in evolution than commonly thought. Survival of the
fittest may also mean the survival of organisms that can live together. Symbiotic
relationships often entail some degree of coevolution of the partners, shaping—at least in
part—their structural and behavioral characteristics. Symbiosis involves intimate
relationships among species.

https://slideplayer.com/slide/6052987/

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Commensalism is a type of symbiosis in which one member benefits and the other
neither harm nor benefit.

Parasitism is one of the symbiotic relationships wherein a particular species or

organism dependent on the host.

COMPETITION

It occurs when organisms of the same or different species trying to use an ecological
resource in the same area and the same period. It is a type of antagonistic relationship
within a biological community. Organisms compete for resources in limited supply, such as
energy and matter in usable forms, living space, and specific sites to carry out life’s activities.
For example, plants compete for the growing area to develop root and shoot systems to
absorb and process sunlight, water, and nutrients. Competition shapes a species
population and biological community by causing individuals and species to shift their focus
from one segment of a resource type to another. There are two types of competitions:
intraspecific and interspecific. Intraspecific competition is a group of the same species
that compete for access to essential resources (food, water, shelter). Interspecific
competition competes between different species.

PREDATION

It is the interaction between two species in which one species, the predator, feeds on
the other species, the prey. It describes interactions that have a positive influence on one
species and a negative impact on the other species. Predation affects species relationships.
Predation is a powerful but complex influence on species populations in communities. It
affects:

1. all stages in the life cycles of predator and prey species

2. many specialized food-obtaining mechanisms
3. the evolutionary adjustments in behavior and body characteristics help prey escape
by eating, and predators catch their prey more efficiently.

Predation also interacts with the competition, such as predator-mediated

competition. A superior competitor in a habitat builds up a larger population than its
competing species. Predators take note and increase their hunting pressure on the superior
species, reducing its abundance and allowing the weaker competitor to increase its
numbers. To test this idea, scientists remove predators from communities of competing
species. Often the superior competitors eliminated other species from the habitat.
Predator-prey relationships exert selection pressures that favor evolutionary adaptation,
which the process that species go through to become accustomed to an environment.

KEYSTONE SPECIES

Keystone species have disproportionate influence. Keystone species play a critical

role in a biological community that is unequal to its abundance. Initially, the keystone
species are considered top predators, such as wolves, lions, and tigers. These predators
somehow controlled the herbivore population and reduced herbivore consumption of

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plants. The keystone species role is grain into interactions of other species, which can be
challenging to unravel. Competitive relationships change due to the use of the keystone
species influence. In some communities, it is possible to call it a "keystone set" of organisms.

COMMUNITY PROPERTIES

The tolerance limits, species interactions, resource partitioning, evolution, and

adaptation—play essential roles in determining the characteristics of populations and
species.

PRODUCTIVITY

The rate of biomass production, which is a sign of the conversion rate from solar to
chemical energy of a community, is called primary productivity. Net primary production
is the remaining energy after respiration. Atmospheric temperature, light (wavelengths)
levels, nutrient availability, and moisture are the component that would affect the rate of
photosynthesis. A small percentage of sunlight is needed to produce energy-rich
compounds for the ecosystem. The surface of the leaf reflects around ¼ and ¾ of the light
that reaches it. The light that is successfully absorbed by leaves converting into heat, which
either radiates away or lost through evaporation. Chloroplasts only use around 0.1 to 0.2
percent of the energy consumed to synthesize carbohydrates.

ABUNDANCE AND DIVERSITY

In a biological community, abundance expresses the total number of organisms.

On the other hand, the number of different species, genetic variation present, or ecological
niches refer to diversity. The overall diversity of a specific community often inversely relates
to the abundance of a particular species, which means that communities with many different
species will only have few members per species. A general rule, around the equator, is very
diverse, but less abundant within species, while going to the pole, it is less diverse but very
abundant within species. Abundance and diversity relate to productivity; both depend on
the total availability and reliability resources, the interaction between species, and
adaptations of the member species in an ecosystem.

COMMUNITY STRUCTURE

Ecological structure refers to patterns of the spatial distribution of individuals and

the populace within a given community and the interaction of a specific community to its
surroundings. At the local level, individuals of a particular population can be clumped
together, distributed randomly, or in highly regular patterns, even if it is a relatively
homogenous environment. Some species create clusters that serve as mutual assistance,
reproduction, protection, or access to a particular environmental resource. For
example, a dense school of fish could cluster very close together to increase their chance
of survival when escaping predators. Plants can also group to protect themselves.

The wind's groves can't destroy the evergreen trees at the topmost part of a
mountain and along the shoreline. They are offering mutual protection from strong winds
not only to each other but also to other organisms finding shelter within them.

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Most environments are patchy at some scale. Organisms cluster or disperse

according to patchy availability of water, nutrients, or other resources. Distribution in a
community can be vertical as well as horizontal. For instance, the tropical forest has many
layers, each with different environmental conditions and combinations of species. Distinct
communities of smaller plants, animals, and microbes live at different levels. Similarly,
aquatic communities are group into layers based on light penetration in the water,
temperature, salinity, pressure, or other factors. Community structure describes the
spatial distribution of organisms.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ECOSYSTEMS

There are several fundamental characteristics that ecosystems exhibit. Their structure or
processes can group these characteristics.

Ecosystem Structure. Ecosystems have two major parts: living and nonliving
components. The nonliving part is the physical-chemical environment, including the
local atmosphere, water, and mineral soil (on land) or other substrates (in water). In
contrast, the living part, referred to as the ecological community, is the interaction
of different species.

Ecosystem Processes. Two basic processes must occur in an ecosystem: cycling of

chemical elements, and flow of energy. These two processes are requisite for all life,
but not one species can do all essential chemical cycling and energy flow.

COMPLEXITY AND CONNECTEDNESS

The complexity and connectedness of a community are usually related to diversity.

Both are important to help us visualize and understand functions within the community. In
ecological terms, complexity represents the number of species within each trophic level
and how many trophic levels are in a community. Diversity of a community does not
necessarily mean it is complex since species can be clustered in only a few trophic levels,
and results in a simple food chain. On the other hand, an involved, highly interconnected
community does not necessarily need to have multiple trophic levels since it can be divide
into different subdivisions. A highly interlinked community such as this can form a very
elaborate food web.

RESILIENCE AND STABILITY

A lot of biological communities tend to be constant and relatively stable over time.
Stability and resilience produce communities that are resistant to disturbance. On the flip
side, when removing keystone members in a highly specialized, diverse ecosystem can
eliminate other associated species. Diversity is appraised to be essential and received the
right amount of attention. Mainly, the impact of humans on diversity is the primary concern
of ecologists. There are three kinds of stability or resiliency in ecosystems:

1. Constancy – Composition and function do not fluctuate or change.

2. Inertia – Resistance to disruptions

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3. Renewal – Ability to return to normal after disturbance

EDGES AND BOUNDARIES

One of the essential aspects of community structure is its partition between one
habitat to another. These relationships are called edge effects. The edge of the land of
habitat is sometimes relatively distinct and sharp. There is a dramatic change when crossing
borders of the woodland patch into grassland or even cultivated fields, from the dark, quiet
forest into a sunny, open space. Ecologists call the boundaries between adjacent
communities ecotones.

When a community is sharply separate from its neighboring community, it is called

a closed community. While communities that have a gradual change of boundaries,
wherein many species crosses, are call open communities. White-tailed deer and
pheasants, considered to be popular game animals, have adapted to disturbances caused
by humans, and are found abundant in boundary zones between different habitats. The
best way to protect these rare and endangered species is by preserving large habitat blocks
and linking smaller ones with migration corridors.

DYNAMICS OF COMMUNITIES

Nature of Communities

F. E. Clements (1874-1945), a biogeographer, stated about the idea of the climax

community of an organism. He considered the process to be a relay wherein species take
over each other in a predictable manner – fixed, regular order. He theorized that every
habitat has a characteristic climax community, which is determined mostly by the climate.
In dunes, the community that developed last and lasted the longest was called the climax
community. If the community is left undisturbed, it will mature into a specific set of
organisms; each one can perform its optimal functions. For Clements, a climax community
represents the maximum stability and complexity possible. The development of climax
communities resembled an organism's maturation.

They argued that both communities and organisms started out being simple and
primitive, slowly maturing until it develops into a highly integrated and complex community
- it is the organismal theory of community. Still, it was opposed by Clements’
contemporary, H. A. Gleason (1882-1975). Gleason saw community history as an
unpredictable process. He argued that species are individual, each establishing in an
environment according to its ability to colonize, tolerate the environmental conditions, and
reproduce. It includes the association of animals and plants of the environment and the
species in the given area.

. Imagine this; it's a time-lapse movie of a busy airport terminal. Passengers arrive
and depart; groups form and dissolve; patterns and assortments which thought to be
significant did not mean much after some time. Gleason proposed in our mindset that
ecosystems are uniformed and stable because our lifetimes are too short. Our geographic
scope is also limited to understand their actual dynamic nature.

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Ecological Succession

One of the most important ecological processes is succession, and its patterns have
many management implications. In any habitat, the history of biological communities is
distinguishable. The method of ecological series reveals that history. Organisms settle
down into an area and cause a change in the environmental conditions.

In primary succession, land free of soil – a sandbar, rock face, mudslide, and
volcanic flow – is found occupied by new living organisms where there used to be
none. The first colonists are pioneer species, mosses, microbes, and lichens since
they can stand up against unfavorable conditions. Primary succession aims to
establish and develop a new ecosystem when one was not present before.

Disrupting an existing community will cause a new community to rise from the
biological legacy of the previous one. This process is called secondary succession.
Both kinds of sequences lead to changes in the environment by altering food
supplies, light levels, soil, and microclimate. Secondary succession is the
reestablishment of a new ecosystem after perturbations. Remnants of the previous
biological community, such as organic matter and seeds, may still be found during
secondary succession.

Patterns in Succession
Succession follows specific general patterns. Ecologists focused on three cases
involving forests when the series was first studied. First, on dry dunes along the shores of
Great Lakes in North America, next was in a northern freshwater bog, and lastly, in an
abandoned farm field.

Introduced Species

Succession requires both the recurrent introduction of new community members

and the disappearance of formerly existing species. New species move in as the
environment provides appropriate living conditions. Others move out or even die as the
community is altering to the introduced species that can cause changes. Moreover, new
species can launch in a stable and established community. These species introduce to
address the problems previously generated and worsened due to earlier introductions.

BIOMES

Biomes are diverse biological communities where various plants and animal species
share common characteristics for the environment they are thriving in. They are formed in
response to a shared physical climate and on the world's different continents. While these
local communities have distinctive characteristics, they can understand concerning a few
general groups with the same climate conditions, patterns of growth, and vegetation types.

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https://socratic.org/questions/how-do-biomes-change-with-latitude-1

Tropical Moist Forest

The tropical moist forest supports the world's one of the most complex and
biologically rich biome. These forests do share standard features such as rainfall and
unchanging temperatures. One type of moist forest is the cool cloud forests found in high
mountains where fog and mist provide sufficient moisture for the vegetation. On the other
hand, the tropical rainforest has an abundant rainfall per year (more than 200 cm.) and warm
to hot temperatures all year round.

TROPICAL MOIST FOREST in Cayo District, Belize

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Hoplopyga-liturata-habitat-in-in-tropical-moist-forest-in-Cayo-District-
Belize_fig14_288699564
Both of these tropical moist forests have an old, thin, acidic, and nutrient-poor soil.
However, the presence of species on these forests is overwhelming in the canopy of the
tropical rainforest, where millions of insect species are present. In mountainous regions,
temperatures are more relaxed, and precipitation is usually more significant at high
elevations. Communities can transition quickly from warm and dry to cold and wet as you
go up a mountain. Vertical zonation refers to the vegetation zones defined by altitude.

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Tropical Seasonal

Although the temperatures are hot throughout the year, wet and dry seasons are
the distinct characteristics of many tropical regions. These are the areas that support
drought-tolerant forests that are dormant and appear to be brown during the dry season;
however, they will turn into the vibrant green during rainy months. Tropical seasonal forests
have annual dry seasons but with periodic rain to support tree growth. The trees and shrubs
that grow in these forests are drought-deciduous in which during drought or water is
unavailable, will lose their leaves and cease to grow. Moreover, seasonal forests are often
open woodlands that grade into savannahs.

http://w3.marietta.edu/~biol/biomes/tropdry.htm

Tropical Savannas and Grasslands

Both grasslands and savannahs are areas with too little rainfall to support forests.
However, unlike grasslands, the savannahs have thin tree cover. Like tropical seasonal
forests, most tropical savannahs and grasslands have a rainy season, but typically, rains are
less abundant than in a forest. The plants in these areas have adaptations to survive
drought, heat, and even fires. Many of these plants have long-lived roots that seek deep
groundwater and can persist even the leaves and stems die.

https://grasslandsbiomeproject6.weebly.com/tropical-savanna.html

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Deserts

Deserts occur when rainfall is rare and unpredictable (less than 30 cm) and hot or
cold yet always dry. The vegetation in deserts is remarkably diverse, although sparse. Well-
adapted plants have water-storing leaves and stems, thick epidermal layers to prevent
excessive water loss and salt tolerance. Most desert plants and animals are adapting to
prolonged droughts, and both extreme heat and cold. Whenever spring rainfalls, most of
these plants blossom and rapidly dispose of seeds.

The Dessert of the North”La Paz Sand Dunes”, Ilocos Norte, Philippines.
https://www.vigattintourism.com/tourism/articles/The-Dessert-of-the-North-La-Paz-Sand-Dunes

Temperate Grasslands

As in tropical latitudes, temperate (mid-latitude) grasslands occur where there is

enough rain to support abundant grass but not enough for forests. Generally, grasslands
are involved with diverse grasses and flowering herbaceous plants or forbs that create a
colorful grassland during summer. Vegetation can be less than a meter in dry grasslands
while in more humid areas, the vegetation can exceed two meters. The accumulation of
dead leaves during the annual winter produces thick and organic-rich soil where roots can
dig deep to survive drought, fire, and extreme heat and cold.

https://study.com/academy/lesson/temperate-grassland-biome-climate-plants-animals-locations.html

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Temperate Shrublands

Dry environments can be biologically rich, where they can support drought-adapted
trees, shrubs, and grasses. In Mediterranean areas, hot season coincides with dry season
creating warm, dry summers and cold, moist winters. Dense thickets are forming from
evergreen shrubs with small, leathery, hard, and waxy (sclerophyllous) leaves—a cluster of
shrub oaks, dry-resistant pines, or other small trees in sheltering valleys. Due to fuel-rich
plant assemblage, periodic fires burn ferociously, allowing plant succession and spring
flowers to bloom abundantly. Temperate shrublands or chaparral (Sp. Thicket) have
summer droughts.

Temperate Forests

Temperate forests can be evergreen or deciduous. Temperate, or

midlatitude, forests occupy a wide range of precipitation conditions, mainly
between 30 and 55-degrees. In general, we can group these forests by tree type,
which can be broadleaf deciduous (losing leaves seasonally) or evergreen
coniferous (cone-bearing).

Deciduous Forests. Broadleaf forests occur throughout the world, where

rainfall is plentiful, in mid-latitudes, deciduous forests located in the forest
lose their leaves during winter. The loss of green pigments in plants
produces brilliant colors in the forest during the autumn season. Broadleaf
forests are evergreen or drought-deciduous, such as Southern live oaks
usually found at a lower latitude. Deciduous forests can regrow very fast since
they inhabit warm, moderate climates.

Coniferous Forests. These forests grow in a wide range of temperatures and

moisture conditions. They occur in a limited moisture area that may
experience cold climates such as winter wherein moisture is unavailable
(frozen), and hot climates might have a seasonal drought. It also includes
sandy soils that hold little moisture that is often occupied by conifers. Water
loss of these trees reduced by thin, waxy leaves common to pine needles.
The coniferous forest of the Pacific coast grows in extremely wet conditions.
Rainy forests often enclosed in fog, cool in temperature, and the most humid
coastal forests are known as temperate rainforest. Condensation in the
canopy (leaf drip) is a significant source of precipitation in the understory.

Boreal Forests

Since conifers can survive winter cold, they tend to limit the existence of
boreal forest or northern forest between about 50° and 60° north. Numerous
qualities and types of boreal forest in the mountainous areas are at a lower latitude
where dominant trees are pines, hemlocks, spruce, cedar, and fir. Boreal forest,
such as taiga (snow forest), known by its Russian name, describe as extreme, and
ragged edge where forest progressively gives way to open tundra. In this area,
extreme cold and short summer limit the growth rate of trees. About 10 cm diameter

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of trees may be over 200 years old in the far north. Boreal forests occur at high
latitudes.

https://depositphotos.com/stock-photos/boreal-forest.html

Tundra

Tundra. It is a treeless landscape located in the mountaintops or high

latitudes, and the growing season of this biome is only two to three months. It may
have frost any month of the year, and most of the year, temperatures are below the
freezing point where only small, hardy vegetation can survive. Tundra can freeze in
any month.

Arctic Tundra. It is an extended biome that has a short growing season.

Hence, it has low productivity. During midsummer, however, 24-hour
sunshine supports the booming of plant growth and plenty of insects life.
Arctic tundra is essential for birds as well as to global biodiversity.

https://alaskaconservation.org/protecting-alaska/priorities/protecting-lands-waters/arctic/

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Alpine Tundra. It has a similar environmental condition and vegetation to

the arctic tundra. It occurs on near mountaintops, and these zones have a
short and extraordinary growing season. Often one sees a mind-blowing
abundance of flowers in alpine tundra. Hence, everything must bloom
immediately to create seeds in half a month before the arrival of snow.
Numerous alpine tundra plants have deep pigmentation and weathered
leaves to secure against the sunlight in the thin mountain atmosphere.
Compared to other biomes, the tundra has relatively low diversity.

https://sites.google.com/site/biomesapes/home/tundra/alpine-tundra

MARINE ECOSYSTEMS

The diversity of organism in oceans and seas are no seen effectively. However, they
are also as diverse and complex as terrestrial biomes. The oceans cover three-fourths of the
Earth's surface, and it has an essential role but often unrecognized compared to terrestrial
ecosystems. Most of the marine species depend on photosynthetic organisms the same as
terrestrial animals.

https://sciencing.com/marine-ecosystem-classification-38170.html

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Open Oceans

The open ocean is usually associated with a biological desert since it

generally has low productivity. But like terrestrial deserts, the open ocean has areas
of productive richness and diversity. Fish and plankton abound in regions such as
the equatorial Pacific and Antarctic oceans, where currents distribute nutrients.
Phytoplankton, free-floating photosynthetic plants, microscopic algae are essential
to support the marine food web. Oceanographers have discovered thousands of
variety of organisms, and most of them are microscopic organisms. Open ocean
(middle of the Pacific ocean) communities vary from surface to hadal zones.

Coastal Zones

Shoreline communities vary in terms of depth, light, nutrient concentrations,

and temperature. Estuaries have high biological productivity and diversity due to
the abundant nutrients that came from the land. However, excessive loads of
nutrients may stimulate bacterial growth that consumes oxygen in the water, which
is more than 200 "dead zones” occur in coastal zones. Coastal zones support
vibrant, diverse biological communities.

Corals reefs are known in marine ecosystems because of their exceptional

biological productivity and their diverse, beautiful organisms—reefs form
clusters as colonial animals (coral polyps) that live symbiotically with
photosynthetic algae. Calcium-rich coral skeletons build-up to make reefs,
atolls, and islands. Reefs protect shorelines and shelter of countless species
of fish, worms, crustaceans, and other life-forms. Reef-building corals exist
where water is shallow and clear enough for sunlight to reach the
photosynthetic algae. However, the biggest threat to reefs is global warming.
Elevated water temperatures cause coral bleaching, in which corals expel
their algal partner and then die.

Mangroves are trees that grow in saltwater. They take place along calm,
shallow, tropical coastlines around the world. Swamps help stabilize
shorelines, and they are also significant nurseries for fish, shrimp, and other
commercial species.

Estuaries are bays where river water meets the sea; hence, there is a mixing
of saltwater and freshwater. Salt marshes are shallow wetlands flooded
regularly or occasionally and drained by seawater, usually on shallow
coastlines, including estuaries.

In contrast to the shallow, calm conditions of estuaries, coral reefs, and

mangroves, tide pools may experience violent, wave-blasted shorelines that
support enchanting life-forms. Tide pools are depressions in a rocky
shoreline that are flooded at high tide but retain some water at low tide.
These areas remain rocky, where wave action prevents most plant growth or
sediment (mud) accumulation.

Barrier islands are low, narrow, sandy islands that form parallel to a
coastline. They occur where the continental shelf is shallow, and rivers or

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coastal currents provide a steady source of sediments. They protect brackish

(moderately salty), inshore lagoons and salt marshes from storms, waves, and
tides.

FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS

Freshwater environments are not that wide as the marine ecosystem, but they are
abundant and center of biodiversity. Most of the terrestrial communities rely relatively on
freshwater habitats. In the desert, isolated pools, streams, and even underground water
systems support astounding biodiversity and land animals with water.

https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=28066

Lakes
Like marine environments, freshwater lakes have distinct vertical zones.
Close to the surface, a subcommunity of plankton, primarily microscopic plants,
animals, and protists (single-celled organisms such as amoebae), float freely in the
water column. Some insects may live at the air-water interface such as water strider
and mosquitoes. The fish move through the water column, sometimes close to the
surface and sometimes at depth. Finally, a variety of snails, burrowing worms, fish,
and other organisms occupy the bottom or benthos. They make up the benthic
community. They are reducing the levels of oxygen in the benthic environment,
primarily because there is little mixing to introduce oxygen to this zone. Anaerobic
bacteria (not using oxygen) may exist in low-oxygen sediments. In the littoral zone,
arising of plants such as cattails and rushes grow in the bottom sediment.

Lakes, unless shallow, have a warmer upper layer mixed with wind and
warmed by the sun. This layer is the epilimnion. The epilimnion is the hypolimnion
(hypo = below), a colder, deeper layer that is not combined. You may have found
the sharp temperature limit known as the thermocline between these layers on the
off chance that you have swum in a moderately deep lake. Underneath this limit, the
water is a lot colder. This limit is likewise called the mesolimbic.

Local conditions that influence the characteristics of an aquatic community

include:

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1. Excess nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates

2. suspended matter, such as silt that affects light penetration
3. depth
4. temperature
5. currents
6. bottom characteristics, such as muddy, sandy, or rocky floor
7. internal currents
8. connections to, or isolation from, other aquatic and terrestrial systems
Wetlands

Wetlands are shallow biological systems where the land surface is saturated or
lowered in the late part of the year. Wetlands have vegetation that is adjusted to
develop under saturated conditions. These are shallow and beneficial. These
relatively small systems rich in biodiversity and are essential for both breeding and
migratory birds. Wetlands catch, and often purify industrial and farm wastewater,
while bacteria and plants consume the nutrients and pollutants in the water. Its
biodiversity as wetlands. Wetlands may gradually convert to terrestrial communities
as they with sediment, and as the vegetation slowly fills in towards the center. This
process often accelerated by increased sediment loads from urban development,
farms, and roads.

Swamps are wetlands with trees.

Marshes are wetlands without trees.
Bogs are areas of concentrated land, and usually, the ground is comprised
of deep layers of accumulated, undecayed vegetation known as peat.
Fens are similar to bogs except that they are mainly fed by groundwater, so
they have mineral-rich water and exceptionally adapted plant species. Bogs
are primarily fed by precipitation.

Swamps and marches provide a significant degree of ecological sustainability. Bogs

and fens, mostly nutrient-poor and have limited environmental efficiency.

HUMAN DISTURBANCE

Humans have become dominant organisms over most of the Earth, damaging or disturbing
more than half of the world's terrestrial ecosystems to some extent. The conversion of
natural habitat to human uses is the most significant single cause of biodiversity losses.

Self-Help: You can refer to the sources below

to help you further understand the lesson.

Marten. G.G. 2008. Human Ecology: Basic Concepts for Sustainable Development.
Earthscan, USA

Cunningham, W. P., and Cunningham, M., 2010. Environmental Science: A Global Concern.
11th Edition. McGraw Hill, New York.

Botkin, D., and Keller, E., 2011. Environmental Science: Earth as a Living Planet. 8th Edition.
John Wiley and Sons, USA

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Activity 3.
1. How species and communities evolve? Does evolution significantly influence the
structure of the future community and population structure?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
2. What is adaptation? How organisms adapt in a pressing environmental situation?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
3. Are natural resource have effect on the species composition, structure, and function.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
4. Why speciation happens? How speciation affects biological diversity.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
5. What is ecological succession? Does succession happen in an urban environment?
If yes, how? If no, why?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
6. Why organisms compete? Can competition favors or eliminate biological species.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
7. Differentiate primary succession and secondary succession. What are their
similarities and differences?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
8. What are biomes? Identify and discuss at 3 types of biomes and their significant
features. and How these biomes support biological communities.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
9. Differentiate marine ecosystems from terrestrial ecosystems?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
10. What is coral bleaching? How these phenomena affect biological diversity in marine
ecosystems.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

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Activity No. 3. In this activity, you require to elaborate your answer once again to each of
the questions provided below.

1. How human disturbance affects ecosystems?

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

2. Identify physical and biological factors that are most important in shaping the biotic
community.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

3. Did population growth, development, and economic activity threaten ecological

communities.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

4. What are the factors that limit ecosystem functionality?

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

5. Develop a conceptual framework that depicts the relationship between physical,

chemical, and biological factors in shaping communities and maintaining biological
diversity. Discuss your framework comprehensively.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

Discussion of the Framework:

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Activity No. 3. The approaches of environmental studies viewed as a very complicated

process. With the human population on many ecosystems that are widely dispersed around
the globe also have detrimental impacts on biological communities as well about
sustainability. Ecosystems and communities have evolved to keep abreast of the changing
activities within a specific geographical unit. The physical, chemical and biological
attributes of different communities will determine how our ecosystems will be in the many
years to come. In this part, you require to draw conclusions, perspectives, and arguments
about ecological system functions and communities' patterns from the unit lesson. I will
supply the first two items, and you will continue the rest.

1. Human introduction and removal of biological species in a community have a

profound effect on the community structure and its ecosystem functions. It is
significant to consider long-term studies and investigation before embarking on this
undertaking. It might hamper ecological services performed by organisms, neither
limits ecosystems functionality, adding a new set of organisms in a community.

2. Species interactions are important in the process of natural selection. Through these
processes, the unique set of organisms and environmental conditions will determine
key organisms that can continue to flourish and pass off their genes to their
offsprings, which will be the second line of resilient organisms that will shape a new
set of biological communities.

YOUR TURN

3. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
4. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
5. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
6. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
7. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
8. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
9. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
10. ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

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Q and A LIST

Do you have any questions for clarification?

Questions/ Issues Answers

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

KEYWORDS INDEX

Evolution Natural selection Symbiosis

Limiting Factor Ecological niche Keystone species
Adaptation Speciation Ecological structure
Acclimation Genetic drift Ecotones

BIG PICTURE IN FOCUS: U.L.O. -1. Discuss the distribution, movement, , and fate of
toxins in the environment, explain some principles of toxicology, and summarize their
implications for the agriculture sector.

In this section, the essential terms relevant to the study environmental science ULO-
1 will be operationally defined to establish a standard frame in the field of natural sciences
about the global issues of environmental toxicology. Pollution as well occurrence of global
diseases affecting human health and also the implications of toxic substances to the food
and agriculture sector. You will encounter these terms as we go through environmental
science studies with how people, and development and intimately connected, and the
implications to ecological health and safety. It involves a broader understanding of toxic
and hazardous substances and their corresponding disposal and treatment processes.
Please refer to the definition in case you will encounter difficulty in the knowledge of
environmental science concepts.

1. Toxicology. A scientific discipline that overlaps with biology, chemistry,

pharmacology, and medicine involves studying the adverse effects of chemical

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