Reflection for Week 3/10-3/14

Last week in biology we learned about some of the basics of ecology. Ecology is the study of interactions between living organisms and their physical environment. Ecologists study many levels of organization. From smallest to largest the levels are labeled as individual, population (group of species living in one area), community (groups of different populations living in one area), ecosystem (interactions between a community and its environment), biome (group of ecosystems with the same climate), and biosphere (part of Earth in which life exists). We covered the topic of ecosystems. Within an ecosystem there are abiotic, non-living, and biotic, living, factors. Examples of abiotic factors are rocks, water, and temperature. Between living organisms you can find energy relationships. Producers, also known as autotrophs, make their own food through photosynthesis or by using chemical energy. The niche, or job, of a producer is to capture energy and transform it into organic energy that can be used by living organisms. Producers can be photoautotrophs meaning they use light energy, or chemoautotrophs in which they use chemical energy. Consumers, or heterotrophs, on the other hand feed off of other living organisms. There are different levels of consumers, or trophic levels. The first level consists of herbivores who only feed off of plants, or the producers, and are called primary consumers. Carnivores (only eat meat) and omnivores (eat plants and meat) make up the secondary and tertiary levels. These levels can be shown in a food chain which is a diagram showing the flow of energy in feeding relationships. Energy in ecosystems flows in one direction, from the producers to the consumers, and each level depends on the one above it for energy. Food chains can then be combined into a more realistic and complex path called a food web. Another topic we covered is the cycles of matter. There are four main cycles consisting of nutrients and matter that recycle throughout the ecosystem. One of the most common cycle is the water cycle. The water evaporates or transpires into the atmosphere, and then condenses as it becomes colder. Once the water vapor cools and condenses into a liquid it will precipitate. After the water falls to the ground, seepage or runoff will occur leading back to evaporation and transpiration. The carbon cycle is important because every living thing is made up of carbon, and alike to water, it cycles between and within many ecosystems. The nitrogen cycle allows plants and animals to obtain this protein creating device through nitrogen fixation and nitrification. The fourth important cycle is the phosphorus cycle, and this recycled nutrient is used to make DNA.

Weekly Reflection : Ecology

For the week of 3/10/2014 - 3/14/14, I learned about ecosystems.
     An ecosystem is the interaction of a community with its environment. I also learned about abiotic factors (physical, nonliving parts of an ecosystem{aka rocks, water, air, temperature}.), and biotic factors (relationships between living things {organisms}.). Within biotic factors there are energy relationships between organisms. Producers or autotrophs make their own food and other food, there are the green plants. Then there are the consumers that feed on other organisms. One example of that is a heterotroph because they can not make their own food. There are three different types of consumers. One type is the herbivore that feeds on only plants, they are primary consumers. Another type is the carnivore which feeds on other animals. Secondary consumers feed on herbivores, and tertiary consumers feed on secondary consumers. The last type of consumer is the omnivore, which eats both plants and animals. There are also decomposers which break down dead organisms meaning recycled materials in the ecosystem. Producers, consumers, and decomposers are all part of the food chain. The food chain shows the feeding relationships within an ecosystem.
     Energy within an ecosystem orginally comes from the sun. Energy flows from producers to consumers. A couple types of producers or autotrophs are phototrophs (use light energy), and chemoautotrophs (use chemical energy). Next in energy flow is detritivores or scavengers that feed on dead plant and animal remains. Then its is decomposers which are fungi and bacteria. One subheading from energy would be the feeding relationships. Energy flows in one direction from producers to various levels of consumers. Two charts that show feeding relationships are the food web and the food chain. The food web is a more realistic and complex path through the ecosystem. While a food chain is a simple energy path through an ecosystem. Each different level within those two charts is called a trophic level. There are four different cycles of matter. Water is the first and then it is carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous.

Reflection Blog on Ecology

Last week I learned about the ecosystem. The ecosystem is the interaction of a community with its environment. I learned about abiotic factors, which are physical, non-living parts of an ecosystem. Examples of abiotic factors are rocks, water, air, and temperature. Biotic factors are relationships between living things. I also learned about producers, that produce food. Autotrophs make their own food. Consumers feed on other organisms. Heterotrophs cannot make their own food, and herbivores feed only on plants. A carnivore feeds on animals. I also learned about decomposers. Decomposers break down dead organisms, and recycle materials in the ecosystem. Examples of this is bacteria, mold, and fungi. Food chains are a diagram showing the feeding relationships. For example grass, mice, and hawks. Last week I also learned about energy flow in an ecosystem. Energy comes from the sun. Energy flows in one direction from producers to various levels of consumers. A food chain is a simple energy path through an ecosystem, while a food web is a more realistic and complex path through an ecosystem of many food chains. There are tropic levels. Each level in a food chain or food web is a trophic level. Producers are always the first tropic level. The second tropic level are the herbivores. Carnivores and omnivores make up the remaining tropic levels. The Cycles of matter are water, carbon, and nitrogen cycle. The water cycle is evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, runoff, seepage, and root uptake. I learned also about nitrogen fixation. Nitrogen fixation is nitrogen molecules converted into ammonia. Nitrification is nitrifying bacteria convert ammonia into nitrates. The roots of the plants then use these nitrates in the soil to make proteins. Denitrification is bacteris converting the nitrates in the soil back to nitrogen gas, releasing gas back into the atmosphere.