ECOSYSTEMS AND

DIVERSITY
TOPIC 1: ECOSYSTEMS AND DIVERSITY
I Can…
Define species, population, community and ecosystem and explain the
interrelationships among them
Explain how terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems support a diversity of
organisms
Identify biotic and abiotic characteristics and explain their influence on
aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems
Explain how limiting factors influence organism distribution and range
Explain the fundamental principles of taxonomy and binomial
nomenclature
 LEVELS OF HIERARCHY
Ecology is the study of ecosystems, communities, populations, and
the biotic & abiotic factors that influence each…
Example: Consider the following aquatic ecosystem...
At the species level:
Which adaptations does an individual possess that
allows them to have a greater capacity for survival
& reproduction compared to others of their species?
At the population level:
Which factors affect the growth of each
population? (e.g. food, habitat, and mate availability)
At the community level:
How do populations of different species interact
with one another? (e.g. predator/prey interactions,
interspecific competition, symbiotic relationships,
etc.)
At the ecosystem level:
What biotic (living) and abiotic (nonliving) factors
are at play?
LEVELS OF HIERARCHY
 INDIVIDUAL ORGANISMS
At the level of the species, ecologists often focus on learning about how
the abiotic environment affects its behavior and physical features
(adaptations)...

E.g. Surface-dwelling fish in the Antarctic Ocean possess a number of

unique adaptations which allow them to thrive in the cold water
 POPULATIONS
Population ecologists focus on how a group of individuals of the
same species changes in size and distribution over time...

Populations may be impacted by:

competition for resources
changes in environment
 COMMUNITIES
In nature, populations are rarely isolated. Community ecologists study
the interactions among members of different populations. Competition
between species, predator-prey relationships, and resource availability all
impact community dynamics.

What factors might influence the structure of each community above?

 ECOSYSTEMS
An ecosystem ecologist studies how all of the biotic and abiotic
factors in a given area interact to shape an ecosystem. Key abiotic
factors include soil quality, water availability, temperature, and
access to sunlight.
MORAL OF
THE STORY:
Within the
biosphere,
everything impacts
everything else.
 ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY
In terrestrial ecosystems, precipitation and temperature are the main
predictors of diversity...

Which biome do we expect to have the most diversity? The least?

 TROPICAL RAINFOREST

TUNDRA
 PATTERNS IN ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY
As a result, diversity is positively correlated with proximity to the
equator...

Are there any exceptions to this generalization??

 SAHARA
DESERT:
CLOSE TO THE EQUATOR (HIGH TEMP), BUT VERY
LITTLE RAIN = LOW DIVERSITY
 AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY
Within aquatic ecosystems, diversity may be predicted by vertical stratification.
That is, the deeper you go, the less diversity you generally find...
 LIMITING FACTORS
Water, temperature, sunlight, soil, nutrients and oxygen are all examples
of abiotic limiting factors, or non-living factors which determine the size
and distribution of populations

What might be some biotic limiting factors?

 LIMITING FACTORS
BIOTIC LIMITING FACTORS:

COMPETITION FOR
RESOURCES
(INTERSPECIFIC AND
INTRASPECIFIC); E.G.
FOOD, SHELTER, MATES
PREDATION
PARASITES/DISEASE

CLASSIFYING ORGANISMS
 CLASSIFYING ORGANISMS
In order to discuss the various factors that influence population distribution
and diversity, ecologists must have a consistent method of classification to
refer to various species and their relatives. Taxonomy is the practice of
classifying living things...

DOMAINS OF LIFE
 We can further organize species within each domain based on their evolutionary
history and characteristics:

Most organisms are classified according to a binomial nomenclature; that is, their “official”
name is a combination of their genus and species. For example, humans are referred to as
Homo sapiens. “Homo” is the genus name, while “sapiens” is the species name.
CONSIDER THE CLASSIFICATION OF A BOBCAT, FOR EXAMPLE. WHAT
ORGANISMS IS IT MOST CLOSELY RELATED TO?
 DICHOTOMOUS KEYS
Because organisms within the same family can look so similar, ecologists use
dichotomous keys to help identify which species are present in a particular
area
 DICHOTOMOUS KEYS
Another example: Identify the tree species that leaf “A” is produced by…
 ECOTONES
Ecosystems rarely have sharp boundaries, organisms can
move back and forth from one ecosystem to another.

This area between ecosystems is where organisms from

both ecosystems interact with each other.
Ecotones – a transition area between ecosystems

These transition areas or ecotones contain species from

both bordering ecosystems, so they often contain greater
biodiversity than either ecosystem.
Ecosystems with greater biodiversity tend to be less
fragile
In ecotones and other diverse areas there are more
species, and a predator may have an alternative prey if
something happens to the population of its main prey.
ECOLOGICAL NICHE
 ECOLOGICAL NICHE
Each organism has its own place within an ecosystem
Ecological niche – an organism’s role in a ecosystem, consisting of
its place in the food web, its habitat, it’s breeding area and time of day
at which it is most active.
Everything it does to SURVIVE and REPRODUCE.
Each species in an ecosystem tends to have a different niche, a
different role to play.
This helps to reduce competition between species.
E.g. Even if two species eat the same food they are not in competition
because they may:
Live in different places
Eat at different times
 ECOLOGICAL NICHE
E.g. Owls and hawks feed on many of the
same organisms, but occupy distinctly
different niches.
Owls hunt down prey with in forests
Hawk hunt down prey in grassland
and open fields

Owls are active during dusk and at

night
Hawk hunt by daylight

Competition is further reduced

because owls and hawks nest in
different areas.
 ECOLOGICAL NICHE
E.g.Competition is reduced because each species
of warbler prefers to feed in a different section of
the tree
Each species of insect-eating bird feeds in a
different part of the tree
Even though all warblers eat insects, they
don’t compete much with each other because
different species of insects are found in the
feeding area of each warbler species.
In general, the higher the number of different
niches in an ecosystem, the more organisms that
will be found.
 COMPETITION FOR NICHES
When a new species enter an ecosystem, it causes a disturbance
The new species comes into competition for a niche with one or more of the
species already in the ecosystem.
Exotic species – species that are not native to an ecosystem
The introduction of new species happens naturally. Animals are mobile and can
move from one ecosystem to another.
The introduction of new species by humans to an ecosystem is one of the main
causes of species depletion and extinction
Problems with introducing Exotic Species:
No natural population controls (predators or diseases)
Native species may not b able to compete for space, food or reproductive sites.
Prey organisms may not have defense mechanisms.
COMPETITION FOR NICHES
 CARRYING CAPACITY
Populations commonly fluctuate because of an interaction of the many
biotic and abiotic limiting factors.
Biotic: competition for resources, predation, parasites/disease
Abiotic: water, temperature, sunlight, soil, nutrients, oxygen
An ecosystem is stable when none of the populations exceeds the carrying
capacity.
 CARRYING CAPACITY
Carrying capacity - the maximum number of individuals of a species that
can be supported by an ecosystem.
Carrying capacity for any species is determined by the availability of
resources (food, water)
Populations can exceed the carrying capacity of the ecosystem, but
not for long.
The number of organisms in an ecosystem is important when considering
the effects of some abiotic and biotic factors.
Population is said to be dense when there is a large number of organisms
in a small area.
CARRYING CAPACITY
 FACTORS THAT CAUSE CHANGES IN
POPULATIONS
Density-independent factors – a factor in an ecosystem that
affects members of a population regardless of population density.
Density-dependent factors – a factor in an ecosystem that affects
members of a population because of the population density.
 FACTORS THAT DETERMINE BIOTIC
POTENTIAL
Species vary in their capacity to reproduce
Biotic potential is the maximum number of offspring that a species
could produce if resources were unlimited.