Ecology is the science of the relationships between organisms and their environments. It includes the study of biomes, ecosystems, biological and geological systems, biotic and abiotic factors, biological classification, autotrophs and producers, consumers, decomposers, food chains and webs, resources, habitats, niches, limiting factors, carrying capacity, and the environmental impacts of human activity. Humans can cause ecological imbalance through introduced species, fossil fuel use, habitat destruction, pollution, overhunting, and overgrazing.

1. ECOLOGY
Unit Review

2. ECOLOGY
 The science of the relationships between
organisms and their environments.

3. ENVIRONMENT

4. BIOMES

5. ECOSYSTEM

6. BIOLOGICAL SYSTEM/ GEOLOGICAL SYSTEM

7. BIOTIC/ABIOTIC
 Biotic – means all the LIVING things in an
ecosytem.
 Abiotic –means all the NON-LIVING things
in an ecosystem. The prefix A- in front of a
word turns its meaning into the opposite.

8. BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
 This is how scientists classify organisms

9. BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
 An example of biological classification

10. VERTEBRATE
 An organism with a backbone

11. INVERTEBRATE
 An organism without a backbone

12. AUTOTROPHS (AKA PRODUCERS)
 Autotrophs, also
known as
Producers, can make
their own food from
sunlight.
Producers are
plants, algae, and
some kinds of
bacteria

13. IN ECOLOGY “MAKING YOUR OWN FOOD”
Means THIS ….
NOT
this
…

14. CONSUMER

15. SCAVENGERS ARE CONSUMERS

16. DECOMPOSERS

17. ENDOTHERMIC/ EXOTHERMIC
Endothermic reactions take in energy from the surroundings
Exothermic reactions transfer energy to the
surroundings

18. DIVERSITY AKA BIODIVERSITY

19. PREDATOR/PREY

20. SYMBIOSIS
 From the Greek word meaning “living together”
and can be used to describe any association
between two organisms living in close
association with each other.

21. COMMENSALISM
 Individuals of one species benefit, while
individuals of the other species do not
benefit and are not harmed

22. MUTUALISM
 an association in which both organisms
benefit

23. PARASITISM
 one organism [the parasite] benefits, and
the other [the host] is adversely affected
[weakened, sickened, damaged etc].

24. FOOD CHAIN/FOOD WEB
Remember the arrows show the direction of the transfer of
energy

25. RESOURCES
Food … Water …. Air … Shelter

26. HABITAT
 the place or environment where a plant or
animal naturally or normally lives and
grows.

27. NICHE
 the status of an organism within its environment and community
(affecting its survival as a species). No two species can occupy the
same niche at the same time for an extended period

28. LIMITING FACTORS
 Not enough
 Food (prey)
 Water
 Shelter
 Too many Predators

29. CARRYING CAPACITY

30. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT/RISK
 Equilibrium = balance.
Human interference
often knocks
ecosystems in the
environment out of
balance.
 We must balance the
benefits and risks of
any action we take …
otherwise known as
trade-offs

31. WAYS IN WHICH HUMANS CAUSE IMBALANCE
 Introduced species
 Using non-renewable fuel sources (fossil
fuels)
 Damaging/destroying habitat
 Polluting the environment with
trash, chemicals, and gas emissions
 Overhunting
 Overgrazing

32. INTRODUCED SPECIES
 Synonyms: non-indigenous, exotic, non-
native, invasive
Starling Hydrilla
Buffelgrass
Zebra mussels Purple loosestrife

33. FOSSIL FUELS
• Oil
(gasoline)
• Coal
• Natural Gas
• Fossil fuels come from ancient deposits of fossilized
plants
• NON-renewable, when they are gone … they gone
forever

34. HABITAT DESTRUCTION

35. HABITAT
RESTORATION
If we use our
scientific
knowledge …
we can fix
some of the
damage we
have done …

36. POLLUTION

37. GREENHOUSE GAS
 Any gas that increases the ability of our
atmosphere to retain the heat of the sun

38. GREENHOUSE EFFECT

39. OVERHUNTING & OVERGRAZING

40. THIS IS WHY ECOLOGY IS IMPORTANT …