Ecology Unit : Lesson #1 - Ecological Levels

Ecology is the study of how things interect with each other and their environment.
There are 7 ecological levels that most scientists agree on. They are:
- Organism - one individual living thing (ex: a robin)
- Population - ALL of the organisms of the same species in a particular area (ex: all robins in Rockwood Park)
- Species - ALL of the individuals of a particular type of organism (ex: all robins in the world)
- Community - several populations living in a particular area (ex: all robins, foxes and oak trees in Rockwood Park)
- Ecosystem - a set of relationships between many populations of organisms and their environment (ex: a tidal pool is a small ecosystem; a forest is a large ecosystem)
  - 2 main components of an ecosystem:
    - biotic factors - living things in an ecosystem (birds, flowers, trees, algae, even bacteria!)
    - abiotic factors - non-living things in an ecosystem (air, water, temperature, rocks, sand)
  - Ecosystems include ecotones, which are the "gray" area that lies between two ecosystems. In ecotones, organisms from the two ecosystems will interact with each other. An example of an ecotone is a field that lies between a forest and a pond.
- Biome - a collection of ecosystems that cover a large geographic area that contain many similar plant and animal species. Scientists agree that there are between 9 and 15 biomes in the world. The biomes of the world:

Biosphere - a thin layer of life that covers the Earth. It extends for several kilometers into the Earth's crust and atmosphere

Videos to watch:

This video has everything from "Organism" to "Ecosystem", explained very well!

Please download the following file
Lesson 1 Ecological Levels Check Your Understanding.docx
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and answer the questions. You may choose to type your answers OR hand write your answers on paper. This must be emailed or turned into Ms. Harris to be marked no later than the end of class on Monday, March 19th, 2012.