Chapter 16 NotesInteractions of Living Things

16.1 NotesEverything is Connected

ecology – the study of the interactions between organisms and their environment

An environment has two parts:1. biotic – living organisms2. abiotic – nonliving, the physical factors

that affect living organisms such as water, soil, light, & temperature

16.1 NotesEverything is Connected

6 levels of environmental organization:

1. individual – a single living thing2. population – two or more organisms of the same

species that live together in the same area at the same time

3. community – two or more populations of different species that live and interact in an area

4. ecosystem – two or more populations in their abiotic environment (water, soil, light, temperature)

5. biome – the climate affects the plant community which affects the animal community (rainforest, desert)

6. biosphere – the part of the Earth where life exists

16.2 NotesLiving Things Need Energy

3 types of consumers:

1. herbivore – a consumer that eats only plants (koala)

2. carnivore – a consumer that eats only animals (lion)

3. omnivore – a consumer that eats both plants and animals (humans/bears)

16.2 NotesLiving Things Need Energy

A food chain includes:1. producer – plants that use energy in

sunlight to make food (plant)2. consumer – animals that eat plants

and/or other animals (animal)3. scavenger – animals that eat the dead

body of another animal (vulture, hyena, fox)

4. decomposer – an organism that gets energy from the remains of an animal and absorbs the nutrients (bacteria)

16.2 NotesLiving Things Need Energy

primary consumer – first consumer to eat the energy from the plant (cow)

cow eats grass herbivore

secondary consumer – second consumer to eat the energy (lion)

lion eats the cow carnivore

tertiary consumer – third consumer to eat the energy

vulture eats what’s left of the cow scavenger

16.2 NotesLiving Things Need Energy

food chain – a chain of energy in food molecules that flows from one organism to the next

food web – many food chains connected that makes energy flow from one organism to the next

energy pyramid – a diagram that shows the loss of energy at each higher level

16.2 NotesLiving Things Need Energy

habitat – an environment where an organism lives

niche – an organisms way of life in its habitat

Questions

How do animals get energy? Eating (consuming food)

Pandas and koalas eat plants. What do pandas and koalas have in common? (vocab word) They are both herbivores

Questions

What are the 4 abiotic factors in an environment? Water, soil, light, temperature

If the amount of producers went down, what would happen to the amount of carnivores? Go down also

16.3 NotesTypes of Interactions

limiting factor – one or more resources become scarce (food/water)

carrying capacity – the largest population that an environment can handle

competition – two or more organisms or populations try to use the same limited resources such as food, water, shelter, space, or sunlight

16.3 NotesTypes of Interactions

prey – animal that gets hunted (hunted)

predator – animal that hunts other animals (hunter)

coevolution – two or more species have adapted to each other

16.3 NotesTypes of Interactions

symbiosis – a close long term association between two or more species

3 types of symbiotic relationships:1. mutualism – a symbiotic relationship which both

animals benefit (coral & algae)2. commensalism – a symbiotic relationship which

one animal benefits and the other is unaffected (shark & remora)

3. parasitism – a symbiotic relationship which one animal benefits and the other is harmed (dog & tick)

16.3 NotesTypes of Interactions

parasite – an organism benefiting by harming another organism (tick)

host – an organism being harmed by a parasite (dog)

Questions

True/False Insects and rabbits play the same role in different food chains.

True because both are herbivores

Which would cause the most destruction of a food chain?

Killing the producer

Questions

Write for each animal below if they are a herbivore or a carnivore:

Panda – herbivore Grizzly bear - carnivore Koala - herbivore Bullfrog - carnivore Kangaroo - herbivore Bison - herbivore Cow - herbivore Cougar - carnivore