Relationship of Organisms

With one another and with the environment

Learning Objectives (chapter 21)

You should be able to:  State the principal source of energy input to biological systems  Describe the non-cyclical nature of energy flow  Establish the relationship of the following in food webs: producer; consumer; herbivore; carnivore; decomposer; food chain  Describe the energy losses between trophic levels and infer the advantages of short food chains.


Describe the importance of the carbon cycle.*

Lesson Objectives (chapter 22)



Describe the effects of Man on the ecosystem with emphasis on examples of international importance (tropical rainforests, oceans, important rivers) Evaluate the effects of:
  

Water pollution by sewage and by inorganic waste Air pollution by sulphur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen (acid rain) Pollution due to insecticides

Discuss reasons for conservation of species with reference to maintenance of biodiversity, management of fisheries AND management of timber production Discuss reasons for the recycling of materials with reference to named examples

Newsflash!!
Malaria once infected nine out of ten people in Brunei Darussalam. In 1955, the World Health Organisation (WHO) began spraying the insecticide dieldrin to kill the malaria-carrying mosquitoes. The program was so successful that the dreaded disease was almost eliminated. Then strange things started to happen The dieldrin killed other insects, including flies and cockroaches, living in the houses. Then the geckos which lived in the houses died after eating the dead insects. Then cats began dying after eating the dead lizards. Without cats, the rats flourished. With the rats came the plague, carried by fleas on the rats. The situation was only brought under control when WHO parachuted healthy cats onto Brunei. The roofs of the houses began to fall in. The dieldrin had killed wasps and other insects that fed on a type of caterpillar that either avoided or was not affected by the insecticide. With most of its predators eliminated, the caterpillar population grew rapidly. The caterpillars ate their favourite foods, the leaves used to thatch the roofs of the houses. Eventually, the numbers of predatory insects recovered and the spraying programme was a success story. But it does show the unpredictable results that can happen when humans interfere with ecosystems.

Activity Time!


Can you list the various ways in which the organisms in the news report interacted with each other?

Flies & cockroaches

Geckos

Cats

Rats

Fleas Wasps & other insects Leaves Caterpillars

Malaria-carrying Mosquitoes

Humans

Answers:
Geckos Cats Rats Flies & cockroaches

Fleas

Wasps & other insects

Caterpillars

Leaves

Malaria carrying-Mosquitoes

Human blood

What is Ecology?


Ecology is the study of interactions among organisms, and between organisms and the physical and chemical factors making up their external environment.

The natural environment is made up of abiotic and biotic factors found in its surroundings that affect it:  Abiotic factors:  Non-living factors which make up the physical environment  Determines the type of living organisms found in the habitat  Biotic factors:  all the living organisms which an organism interacts with in its habitat.

Ecological Terms
A place where an organism lives.

A group of individuals of the same species occupying a given area.

Consists of populations of plants and animals living together and interacting with one another under the same environmental conditions.

Formed by the interactions of communities and their physical environment.

The function of an organism or the role it plays in the habitat.

Environment
Abiotic/Physical
1. Light 2. Temperature 3. Water 4. Oxygen 5. Salinity (Salt Concentration] 6. Acidity/alkalinity (pH)
Relationships
Interdependence between various populations in any community

Biotic

Light intensity
Green plants exist only where is an adequate supply of sunlight. It affects the distribution and growth of plants and animals. Adaptation of PLANTS to light intensity: In areas where light penetration is poor, Trees grow taller Some plants make use of tall trees to reach sunlight, e.g. climbers Too much of sunlight, Retards elongation of stem Dense covering of hairs on leaf epidermis to screen off excess light and heat a layer of thick-walled cells known as hypodermis found beneath the epidermis

Light intensity
Animals need light in order to see, move, find food and detect danger.

Special adaptations:
In areas like caves where there is a lack of light, Bats have a highly sophisticated sense of hearing By emitting sounds that bounce off the objects in their path, which send echoes back to the bats. Bats detect the echoes and are able to determine the size and distance of the objects. Bats hanging in a cave

Temperature
Temperature affects the physiological activities of plants and animals.
For many flowering plants, These are some adaptive features to survive the seasonal changes: The shedding of leaves to reduce water loss Formation of seeds that are resistant to drought, heat and cold so that they are able to survive the unfavourable seasons Underground storage organs Temperature affects also the metabolic activities of the organisms because it indirectly affects rate of enzyme action on a substrate.

Temperature


More examples
During winter, polar bears curl up in temporary caves or find natural shelter to keep warm. They hibernate and live off their stored body fats which were accumulated when food was plentiful.

How do penguins survive the cold?

Thick layers of fat help to insulate them from the cold. Feathers help to trap air which is a poor conductor of heat.

Water


Essential for life.

 

Must be present in the environment of every organism. Medium for aquatic plants and animals

Availability of water depends on the distribution of rainfall in a year.

What are Xerophytes? Plants which can live in conditions of prolonged drought in their habitat. Examples: Cactus, Casuarina, marram grass, etc.

Cacti
thick waxy cuticle leaves reduced to spines few stomata fleshy stems to store water green stems which take over function of photosynthesis from leaves
To reduce rate of transpiration/ water loss from leaf surface

Adaptations of plants to dry habitats

In marram grass: Rolled up leaf to reduce surface area exposed to surrounding. Deeply grooved inner leaf surface with stomata Spines/hairs to trap water vapour diffusing out of stomata. Increase humidity around the stomata Reduces the rate of transpiration For the plant Casuarina, The leaves are reduce to tiny sheaths at the stem nodes Long green stems have stomata that lie in grooves protected by minute hairs Stem Leaves

Water
What are Hydrophytes?  Plants which live in water or very wet places.
Examples of hydrophytes: Hydrilla (completely submerged) Water lily (partially submerged) Water hyacinth (free floating) Adaptive features to wet habitat: Large surface area of leaf for photosynthesis Air spaces in leaf to help the plant float on water. Vascular bundle poorly developed as water enters the plants cell directly Upper surface of leaf protected by waterproof cuticle to prevent water from blocking the stomata

Water
Mangrove plants such as Avicennia, have roots buried in oxygen-poor mud. Adaptations: special breathing roots called pneumatophores arise from root system out of the mud surface. Has openings/pores which allow oxygen to pass downwards to the root system.

Adaptations of animals to dry habitats.

Camels Adaptive features:



Able to survive without water for weeks Humps store fats which can be broken down to provide energy and metabolic water during respiration.

Oxygen
Required for respiration What is the difference between



Land animals and plants vs. aquatic animals and plants  Oxygen from air (Land)  Oxygen dissolved in water (Aquatic) Exceptions? For example: Mudskipper.
Lives in water but is able to obtain oxygen from air.

Salinity (salt concentration)



Important factor for aquatic organisms

Freshwater aquarium (similar to pond environment) Lower salt content Freshwater plants have rigid cellulose cell walls to prevent from bursting. Protozoa such as Amoeba have contractile vacuoles to remove excess water entering by osmosis.

Marine aquarium (similar to sea environment) Higher salt content

Freshwater fish: Excessive water entering body cells by osmosis Salt loss from body cells by diffusion

Salinity

Marine Fish Water loss from body cells Salt moving into body cells from sea environment.

Kidney and accessory organs play a role in maintaining constant internal environment. But how do they do it? Marine Fish: Freshwater fish: excretes salts and small amounts of Kidney reabsorbs salts and produces water, producing highly concentrated large amounts of dilute urine urine Cells in gills uptake salt from water Cells in gills secrete salt into surroundings

Other adaptations:  Saltwater fish have waterproof coat which consists of:
 

Closely fitting scales Slimy mucous material

pH (acidity/alkalinity)
 

pH value of water in soil, ponds or sea affects the kind of organisms that live in these habitats. Affects the enzymatic activity of the cells in the organisms.

For example, pineapples and cotton plants grow best in acidic soil

pH (acidity/alkalinity)


Sea water
 

Slightly alkaline (pH~8) Remains more or less constant

Freshwater
 

pH varies from one region to another Dependent on bicarbonate ions present in the water.  In the day, photosynthetic activity of the plants use up carbon dioxide in the water making if more alkaline.  At night, no photosynthesis takes place, aquatic plants respire producing carbon dioxide which is dissolved in water, making water more acidic.

The Ecosystem
The Earth is one giant ecosystem with all living things interacting with the environment and each other, using and reusing the finite resources to live. It is a self supporting unit with the following components: A constant source of energy SUNLIGHT Food producers Food consumers Decomposers An ecosystem requires both energy and material (inorganic nutrients) to sustain itself. Energy enters an ecosystem from outside and flows through in a non-cyclic manner. Materials are obtained from physical environment and flow through the ecosystem in a cyclic manner.
http://www.open2.net/diyscience/ecosphere/index.html

Energy flow: One-way flow of energy in an ecosystem

Ecosystem
Heat energy Heat energy Heat energy

Light energy

Chemical energy

Chemical energy
Animal dies

Sun
Trapped by chlorophyll

Plants

Eaten by

Animals

Decomposers

Chemical energy
Plant dies

Non-cyclical nature of energy flow



When plants trap suns energy and pass it on to the other living organisms


Only 1% of sunlight enters the ecosystem which is trapped by plants

All the energy is eventually lost to the non-living environment as heat energy
Heat is considered a waste energy as organism cannot use it  Heat cannot reenter the ecosystem Energy flow is thus one way (non-cyclical) as it is not recycled.


Understanding Food chains and food webs



Organisms in an ecosystem can be grouped according to their functions

Organisms Producers

Functions
Mainly green plants that manufacture complex organic food substances from simple inorganic raw materials via photosynthesis Organisms that obtain energy from other organisms on which they feed. a) Herbivores Feed directly on plants b) Carnivores Feed on other organisms c) Scavengers Feed on dead/decaying organisms d) Parasites Feed on living tissues of organisms

Consumers
Primary Consumers Secondary/Tertiary Consumers

Understanding Food chain and webs

Organisms Decomposers Functions
Feed on dead organisms  Breakdown complex nutrients locked up in them into simple inorganic substances which are returned to the non-living environment to be reused.


Examples of decomposers are fungi and bacteria

Food chain


Trophic level 5

A series of organisms through which energy is transferred in material form (food) constitutes a food chain. Each stage in the food chain is a trophic level.

Trophic level 4

Trophic level 3

Trophic level 2

Trophic level 1

Food webs


A complex feeding relationship within a community where two or more food chains are linked by eating different types of plants and animals, a consumer has a better chance of survival.


If one food sources are destroyed, other food sources are available

Ecological Pyramids


Pyramid of energy





Represents the rate of energy flow in a food chain Always upright ( i.e. broad base tapering to narrow apex) Shows that amount of stored energy gets smaller at each tropic level.

Energy transfer:
Only 10% of chemical energy is converted into new tissue and made available for the next link in the food chain. - Energy is almost completely dissipated into surroundings by the 4th or 5th trophic level.

Ecological Pyramids


Pyramid of numbers

Can you name some other organisms that could be used for each of the levels in the diagram below?

Ecological pyramids
 Pyramid of biomass Since the amount of water present within the tissues of different organisms varies, biologists use the dry mass of the organism for comparison since it is believed that dry mass more closely reflects the actual amount of "living matter" in the organism. The dry mass is known as biomass.
In a grassland environment, 10,000 kg of grass and other producers (dry mass) should support about 1,000 kg (dry mass) of grasshopper and other plant eating insects.

Ponder this!
What are the advantages of having a shorter food chain?  Reduce the amount of energy lost through trophic levels  More energy is available at the beginning of the food chain  It seems like
 

It is more efficient to eat green plants for food Less efficient if crops are fed to cattle and then consumed when man feed on cattle.

But why dont we all become vegetarians instead?

 

Man is unable to digest cellulose Cattle can turn energy in cellulose into energy in protein and fat. (this can be digested by man) Important to feed on crops which man can digest directly e.g. soya products which are high in protein.

Selection of crops: