Ecosystems
The continuous interaction between biotic and abiotic factors forms an ecosystem. Biotic factors include all living things, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms, while abiotic factors include sunlight, water, air, and soil.
Ecology is the study of ecosystems. The term combines two Greek words: oikos, meaning house or dwelling place, and logos, meaning the study of. So, ecology is the study of organisms at home.
Ecosystems come in all sizes, from vast oceans to tiny ponds.
They also exist everywhere—from tropical rainforests and arid deserts to your backyard.
But what keeps an ecosystem running?
It all starts with producers, like plants, that make food through photosynthesis. Energy then moves through different levels —herbivores eat plants, omnivores and carnivores eat these herbivores, and decomposers break down organic matter, returning nutrients to the ecosystem.
While energy flows through an ecosystem, essential nutrients like carbon, water, and nitrogen are continuously recycled through natural cycles, ensuring they never run out.
Ecosystems
An ecosystem is a community of living organisms interacting with their physical environment. Ecosystems include biotic (living) components like plants, animals, and microorganisms, and abiotic (non-living) elements such as water, soil, and climate. These interactions create a dynamic balance where energy flows through food webs, and matter cycles through photosynthesis, decomposition, and nutrient cycling.
Science and Engineering Practices (SEP): Analyzing and Interpreting Data
Analyzing and interpreting data is essential for understanding how ecosystems function and respond to environmental changes. By studying food webs, energy flow, and ecological interactions, scientists can identify patterns and relationships that regulate ecosystem stability. By distinguishing between correlation and causation, researchers can identify the true factors that influence population dynamics and resource availability.
You can apply these analytical skills by collecting and interpreting data from ecosystem investigations. Examining trophic levels, environmental changes, and biogeochemical cycles helps provide evidence of how energy and matter move through ecosystems, supporting biodiversity and ecological balance.
Activity Ideas:
- Creating a food web model – Construct a food web using images or cards representing producers, consumers, and decomposers, showing how energy moves through an ecosystem.
- Ecosystem Simulation – Use digital tools or physical models to simulate how changes in one part of an ecosystem affect the entire system (e.g., removing a predator).
- Field study of a local ecosystem – Observe and document organisms and environmental factors in a nearby park, garden, or pond, analyzing how biotic and abiotic elements interact.
Crosscutting Concept (CCC): Cause and Effect
Understanding cause-and-effect relationships in ecosystems helps predict how changes to one part of the system can impact the whole. The cause is an environmental or biological change, and the effect is the resulting impact on ecosystem balance, biodiversity, or species interactions. These relationships highlight how ecosystems are interconnected and how even small disturbances can have widespread consequences.
- Cause: Climate change leads to rising global temperatures
Effect: Altered migration patterns, habitat loss, and species extinction. - Cause: Pollution in water bodies
Effect: A decline in aquatic species, disruption of food chains, and contamination of drinking water sources. - Cause: The introduction of an invasive species
Effect: A decline in native species due to increased competition and predation. - Cause: Deforestation removes large areas of trees.
Effect: Loss of biodiversity, increased carbon dioxide levels, and disrupted water cycles.
By studying ecosystems, students gain insights into the interconnectedness of life, the importance of biodiversity, and the critical role ecosystems play in sustaining life on Earth.
The continuous interaction between biotic and abiotic factors forms an ecosystem. Biotic factors include all living things, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms, while abiotic factors include sunlight, water, air, and soil.
Ecology is the study of ecosystems. The term combines two Greek words: oikos, meaning house or dwelling place, and logos, meaning the study of. So, ecology is the study of organisms at home.
Ecosystems come in all sizes, from vast oceans to tiny ponds.
They also exist everywhere—from tropical rainforests and arid deserts to your backyard.
But what keeps an ecosystem running?
It all starts with producers, like plants, that make food through photosynthesis. Energy then moves through different levels —herbivores eat plants, omnivores and carnivores eat these herbivores, and decomposers break down organic matter, returning nutrients to the ecosystem.
While energy flows through an ecosystem, essential nutrients like carbon, water, and nitrogen are continuously recycled through natural cycles, ensuring they never run out.
The continuous interaction between biotic and abiotic factors forms an ecosystem. Biotic factors include all living things, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms, while abiotic factors include sunlight, water, air, and soil.
Ecology is the study of ecosystems. The term combines two Greek words: oikos, meaning house or dwelling place, and logos, meaning the study of. So, ecology is the study of organisms at home.
Ecosystems come in all sizes, from vast oceans to tiny ponds.
They also exist everywhere—from tropical rainforests and arid deserts to your backyard.
But what keeps an ecosystem running?
It all starts with producers, like plants, that make food through photosynthesis. Energy then moves through different levels —herbivores eat plants, omnivores and carnivores eat these herbivores, and decomposers break down organic matter, returning nutrients to the ecosystem.
While energy flows through an ecosystem, essential nutrients like carbon, water, and nitrogen are continuously recycled through natural cycles, ensuring they never run out.
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