• a branch of biology • It deals with the relations of organisms to one

another and to their physical surroundings.

Biomes

• Usually a biome is named after its predominant vegetation

• A biome is way to describe a large group of similar ecosystems. Biomes have similar weather, rainfall, animals, and plants

Tundra• The average temperature in

the tundra is around -18 degrees F.

• The tundra gets around 10 inches of precipitation per year.

• The tundra has few nutrients to support plant and animal life.

• Permafrost - Below the top soil, the ground is permanently frozen year round.

Taiga• Cold weather – average

temperature of 32 degrees F.

• Dry - Average precipitation is between 12 and 30 inches per year.

• This forest is covered with evergreen trees

• Thin layer of soil• a long winter and a short

summer

Grasslands• The temperate grasslands

have seasons including a hot summer and a cold winter. Can be -40 – 70 degrees F.

• The amount of rain is not enough to grow tall trees and produce a forest, but it is enough to not form a desert. 10-35 inches

• Grasslands are wide expanses of land filled with low growing plants such as grasses and wildflowers.

Desert

• Drastic temperature changes from 20 degrees-130 degrees

• 10 inches or less rain in a year.

• Little to no plant life, mostly cacti

• Deserts are characterized in an overall lack of water.

Rainforest•The temperature is generally between 70- 90 degrees F.•75-100 inches of rain•Lots of different types of plant life•The rainforest can be divided up into three layers: the canopy, the understory, and the forest floor.

Deciduous Forest• The temperature is generally

between -20- 90 degrees F.• 30-60 inches of rain• Fertile soil so lots can grow

there. Mostly oak and maple trees

• Four seasons - There are four distinct seasons: winter, spring, summer, and fall. Each season is about the same length of time.

Individual

• One single organism

Population

• All of the same type of organism

Community

• Multiple populations interacting

Ecosystem

• A community interacting with all of the biotic and abiotic factors

• An ecosystem is an interacting community of organisms, plants and animals, and their physical environments, from soil minerals to geography to weather patterns

• a specific area where the organisms work together as a unit. It could be any size from a tiny pool of water to hundreds of square miles of desert

• Ecosystems contain biotic or living, parts as well as abiotic factors, or nonliving parts which interact

• Every factor in an ecosystem depends on every other factor, either directly or indirectly

Biotic

• These are living things in the ecosystem• Biotic factors include plants, animals, and

other organisms.

Abiotic

• These are non-living things• Abiotic factors include rocks, temperature,

and humidity. Sunlight, Precipitation, Water or moisture, Soil or water chemistry (e.g., P, NH4+)

Niche

• An organisms job in the ecosystem and how it interacts with other biotic and abiotic factors

Predator and Prey• predation is a

biological interaction where a predator (an organism that is hunting) feeds on its prey (the organism that is attacked).

• Predators may or may not kill their prey prior to feeding on them, but the act of predation often results in the death of its prey

Commensalism

• one individual benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed

Mutualism • both or all individuals

benefit from the relationship

Parasitism • one individual, the parasite, benefits from

another individual, the host, while harming the host in the process.

• Parasites feed on host tissue or fluids and can be found within (endoparasites) or outside (ectoparasites) of the host body

Interaction Species 1 Species 2

Mutualism + +

Competition - -

Parasitism, Predation, and Herbivory

+ -

Commensalism + neutral