Science 11: GAS-11

Name: Jherome D. Castulo Score: _____

1. What is ecology?

Ecology is a branch of biology concerning the spatial and

temporal patterns of the distribution and abundance of organisms,
including the causes and consequences.

2. What is environment?

The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living

things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The
term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth.

3. Give the difference between the 2 major components of ecosystem.

Biotic components, or biotic factors, can be described as any living component that affects
another organism or shapes the ecosystem. This includes both animals that consume other
organisms within their ecosystem, and the organism that is being consumed. Biotic factors also
include human influence, pathogens, and disease outbreaks. Each biotic factor needs a proper
amount of energy and nutrition to function healthily.

In biology and ecology, abiotic components or abiotic factors are non-living chemical and
physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the functioning of ecosystems.
Abiotic factors and the phenomena associated with them underpin biology as a whole.
4. Give at least 5 examples of biotic components.

 Water,
 light,
 wind,
 soil,
 humidity,

5. Give at least 5 examples of abiotic components.

 temperature
 light
 water
 water salinity
 ocean currents

6. Give the following:

a. 5 examples biotic factors

 Plants
 Animals
 Fungi
 Bacteria
 Protists
b. 5 examples abiotic factors

 Type of soil
 Light penetration
 Water depth
 Oxygen content
 Turbidity

7. What is environmental resistance?

An organism is restricted by environmental resistance, any factor that inhibits the increase
in number of the population. These factors include unfavorable climatic conditions; lack of
space, light, or a suitable substrate; deficiencies of necessary chemical compounds or minerals;
and the inhibiting effects of predators, parasites, disease organisms, or unfavorable.
8. Give at least 5 examples environmental resistance.

 Predators
 Disease
 Flood
 Lack of food
 Competition

9. Give the difference between the two major classifications of ecosystems:

A. Terrestrial ecosystems

A terrestrial ecosystem is a land-based community of

organisms and the interactions of biotic and abiotic
components in a given area. Examples of terrestrial
ecosystems include the tundra, taigas, temperate
deciduous forests, tropical rainforests, grasslands, and
deserts. The type of terrestrial ecosystem found in a
particular place is dependent on the temperature range,
the average amount of precipitation received, the soil type,
and amount of light it receives.

B. Aquatic ecosystems

An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem in a body of

water. Communities of organisms that are dependent on
each other and on their environment live in aquatic
ecosystems. The two main types of aquatic ecosystems
are marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystems.

10. Give examples of terrestrial ecosystems.

 Taigas
 The tundra ecosystems
 Deciduous forest ecosystems

11. Give examples of aquatic ecosystems.

 Ponds
 Rivers
 Lakes
 Ocean
12. Explain how human activities affect the natural ecosystem.

Agriculture

With the ever-increasing number of the world’s population, there is similarly a soaring
demand for sufficient food. The population growth rate is hence driving the world to clear forests
in order to create more room for agriculture. Based on data by the UN Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO), more than 40% of earth’s surface now supports agriculture, and a bigger
fraction of these lands were formerly covered by forests. The result is devastating, as discussed
below:

Destruction of Wildlife

Forests are critical habitats for wildlife, and as ecosystems supporting the intricate
relationship between the living and non-living things, they have been adversely affected by
agricultural practices. A larger percentage of Europe, for example, was densely covered with
temperate forests, but with time it has been cleared to make room for farmland.

Aquatic Resources Degradation

The injection of vast amounts of phosphorous and nitrogen nutrients into natural soils, lands
and water systems due to fertilizer use have created far-reaching effects, altered ecosystems,
and rapidly expanded aquatic dead zones.

Global Warming and Climate Change

Population growth-influenced deforestation is to blame for three billion tons of CO2 released
into the atmosphere each year, which is equivalent to the destruction of 13 million hectares of
land annually as put forward by the Union of Concerned Scientists. This rate of deforestation
affects the ecosystem by raising global temperatures and disrupting the cycle of condensation
and evaporation.

Deforestation

Deforestation occurs when a forest or stand of trees is removed, converting the land to a non-
forest use. This changes the ecosystem drastically and results in a dramatic loss of biodiversity.
With an exponential expansion in human beings, more food, materials, and shelter are being
manufactured at stupendous rates, mostly stemming from forestry. Deforestation can be the
result of timber harvesting or of clearing land for agricultural, commercial, or residential use.

Plastic Production

The invention of plastic has created one of the most problematic pollution problems ever
witnessed on the face of earth. Waste plastic is everywhere on earth, even in the oceans.
Plastics remain in the environment for thousands of years and have long-lasting consequences
on the fragile ecosystems and regulatory cycles.