Life Cycle

Living organisms, including human beings, undergo a progressive sequence of

changes starting from the fertilization stage. During this process referred to as the
life cycle, the organism normally produces a new generation of individuals
capable of repeating the same process of changes (Brosnan and Hopson, 1990).

by Mira Animo
Reproduction in Organisms
1 Sexual Reproduction
Involves the fusion of gametes or specialized sex cells, derived from two different individuals. A
haploid gamete is not capable of developing further unless it fuses with another haploid gamete.

2 Asexual Reproduction
There are no gametes involved nor participation of two individuals.

3 Reproductive Processes
More than a proliferation of new generations of organisms. The fusion of gametes, in sexual
reproduction, results in the mixing of genetic material from two different individuals, introducing
new characteristics in the resultant offspring.
Development Process

1 Life Cycle Stages 2 Growth Manifestation 3 Environmental

An organism changes from
a fertilized egg into an
adult, involving growth,
cell movements, and
differentiation.
Increase in size as the
organism undergoes the
process of development,
involving cell division,
assimilation, and cell
expansion processes.
Influence
Varied ecological
influences affect the
growth and development of
plants and animals.
Community Relationships
Natural Community
Created when certain species
assemble or live together and
mutually adjust to each other,
forming an integrated
community also referred to as
biotic community.
Ecological Complex
Plants and animals interact with
each other and with the physical
factors present in the habitat,
forming an ecosystem.
Interdependence
Mutualism brought about by the
interdependence among animals
upon green plants and vice versa
leads to the creation of an
integrated community.
Freshwater Communities

3 4
Invertebrate Communities Vertebrate Communities
Habitat surveys of streams and lakes include The brown trout (Salmo trutta), a cosmopolitan fish
influences of the surrounding catchments to find out living in lakes and rivers, is composed of species that
correlations between the abiotic character of the either migrate to the sea or remain in the freshwater
catchment of the plant and animal communities. habitat.
Freshwater Trophic Structure
Shredders Chew, mine, bore and gouge large particles such as
leaves, stems, and branches which may be fresh or
dead.

Grazers/Scrapers Graze and scrape the periphyton off other surfaces.

Collectors/Filterers Filters particulate matter fresh or dead from the

water.
Marine Communities
Abiotic Effects
Intertidal organisms are subjected to varied tidal environment, rhythms of their
submergence and emergence, and physico-chemical factors such as spray and salinity
gradients.

Biotic Effects
Zonation is attributed to the biotic interactions as the primary effects are modified by
some abiotic factors.

Succession in Marine Habitat

Succession takes place following a series of disturbances on a rocky shore that pave
the way for a change in species composition and subsequent colonization of a new
space.
Reproduction and Recruitment
Vegetative Propagation
Exemplified by fragmentation or cuttings, involving the separation of a vegetative part from a
parent plant to develop into a new independent plant.

Asexual Reproduction
Marine algae form special reproductive spores called zoospores, usually without cell walls but
capable of developing their own cell covering.

Sexual Reproduction
Ranges from simple to complex, involving the fusion of gametes known as syngamy.