UNIT:2

Ecosystem
 Functioning of Ecosystem
Laws of Thermodynamics governs the
functioning of ecosystem
• Energy is neither created nor destroyed but
transformed from one form to another.
• Whenever work is done ,energy is lost in the
form of heat.
• Flow of Food/Nutrients is Cyclic.
• Flow of energy is Unidirectional.
Functioning of Ecosystem
Food Web
Ecological Pyramids
1.Number Pyramid
2.Energy Pyramid
3.Biomass Pyramid
PYRAMID OF ENERGY
PYRAMID OF BIOMASS
Inverted Pyramids
 Ecological Succession
Ecological succession is the process that describes how the
structure of a biological community (that is, an interacting group
of various species in a desert, forest, grassland, marine
environment, and so on) changes over time.
1.Primary Succession: Newly exposed or newly formed rock is
colonized by living things for the first time.
2.Secondary Succession: An area previously occupied by living
things is disturbed—disrupted—then recolonized following the
disturbance.
Disturbances could be a devastating flood,
wildfire, landslide, lava flow, or human activity (farming, road or
building construction etc.
Primary Ecological Succession