Unit 2: Ecology and

Ecosystems

Dr. JAYEETA SAMANTA

What is Ecology?
It is the study of relationships between living organisms and their
environment, the interaction of organisms with each other and the pattern
and cause of the abundance and distribution of organisms in nature.

The term ecology was coined by German biologist Ernst Haeckel

combining two Greek words oikos meaning house or dwelling place and
logos meaning the study of. It denotes the relationship between the
organisms and the environment.

HYDROSPHERE (WATER)

ORGANISMS LITHOSPHERE (LAND)

ATMOSPHERE (AIR)
LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION:

The basic level of ecological organization

starts with the individual (a single plant,
insect or bird). The next level is population
which is a collection of individuals of the
same species within an area or region. The
next more complex level of organization is
the community which is made of different
populations of interacting plants, animals
and microorganisms within some defined
geographical area. The next level of
organization is ecosystem that consists of
different communities of organisms
associated within a physically defined space.
Terrestrial ecosystem can be grouped into
geographic unit termed landscapes
containing several different types of
ecosystems or into units of similar nature
termed biomes (deciduous forest, grassland,
coniferous forest etc.).
• Biocoenosis frequently used in European and Russian literature is
roughly equivalent to community.

• Biogeocoenosis is equivalent to ecosystem.

• Autecology is the study of interaction between organisms and their

environment at the level of an individual, a population or an entire
species.

• Synecology is the study of a biotic community as a whole , specially

the links between and among organisms.
 The ecosystem concept
• The term ecosystem was coined by A. G. Tansley, 1935.
• Ecosystem is a functional unit comprising all the organisms in a
particular place interacting with one another and with their physical
environment , and interconnected by an ongoing flow of energy and a
cycling of materials.
• It is a functional unit of nature.
• All ecosystems are “open” systems in the sense that energy and
matter are transferred in and out.

Ecosystem components
• Ecosystem consists of abiotic (non-living) and biotic (living)
components.
• Abiotic components include various physical and chemical factors.
• Physical factors: light, temperature, precipitation, air, soil, fire, water.
• Chemical factors: pH, salinity, nutrient contents, moisture contents
(for terrestrial ecosystem), amount of toxic substances, level of
dissolved oxygen (for aquatic ecosystem).
• Biotic components are classified as autotrophs and heterotrophs.

• Autotrophs are organisms that can manufacture the organic compounds

they need as nutrients from simple inorganic compounds obtained from
their environment. They are also called producers.

• 2 kinds of autotrophs: photoautotrophs and chemoautotrophs.

Photoautotrophs make their organic nutrients through photosynthesis.
Some specialized bacteria can extract inorganic compounds from their
environment and convert them into organic nutrient compounds without
using sunlight. They are chemotrophs.

• Heterotrophs are organisms which cannot synthesize the organic

nutrients they need and get them by feeding on the tissues of producers
or other consumers. Eg. Fungi, animals and most bacteria.

• 2 kinds of heterotrophs: consumer and decomposer. Consumers feed

on producers and other consumers. Classes of consumers: herbivores
(primary consumers) feed directly on plants, carnivores (secondary
consumers) feed on animals, omnivores eat both plant and animals,
detritivores eat detritus that is dead bodies and waste products,
decomposing organic material.
Ecosystem function:

Ecosystems normally include primary producers, decomposers and

detritivores, herbivores, carnivores and parasites plus the physico-
chemical environment that provides the living conditions and acts both as
a source and a sink for energy and matter. The key functional aspects of
ecosystem are:
1. Productivity and energy flow
2. Nutrient cycling
3. Decomposition
4. Water dynamics

Productivity

The rate of biomass production per unit area is called productivity.

Primary productivity is the rate at which biomass (biomass is a
measure of the mass of the living organic material in a specific area or
ecosystem) is produced per unit area by plants, the primary producers.
The total fixation of energy by photosynthesis is referred to as gross
primary productivity (GPP). The proportion which remains after
respiration losses in the plant is termed net primary productivity (NPP).
Thus, the difference between GPP and respiration is NPP. NPP represents
the actual rate of production of new biomass that is available for
consumption by heterotrophic organisms (bacteria, fungi and animals).
Standing crop is the measure of total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs
present at a given time. The rate of production of new biomass by
heterotrophs is called secondary productivity. The rate of storage of
organic matter not used by heterotrophs during the period under
consideration is termed as net community productivity.

Experiment to demonstrate measurement of GPP and NPP in an

aquatic ecosystem

One takes a series of glass bottles with stoppers and half of them are
wrapped with some material such as tinfoil so that no light penetrates.
These are called light and dark bottles respectively. The bottles are filled
with water taken from a particular place (pond) that contains aquatic
organisms (plants and animals). The oxygen concentration in each bottle is
measured, the bottles are sealed and then suspended for few hours at the
same depth from which the water was originally taken. After 1 hr, the oxygen
concentration is again measured in each bottle. In the light bottle, there is
photosynthesis (GPP) as well as respiration (R). The difference between the
two processes is NPP=GPP-R. In the dark bottle, there is only respiration.
Let us assume,
Initial oxygen concentration= 8 mg/L
Oxygen concentration in light bottle after 1 hr= 10 mg/L
Oxygen concentration in dark bottle after 1 hr= 5mg/L
The oxygen increased in light bottle compared to the initial is due to
photosynthesis, and the oxygen decreased in the dark bottle due to
respiration. With this information, we can calculate the respiration, NPP
and GPP for our system:

Light-Initial = 10-8= 2 mg/L/hr = NPP

Initial-Dark = 8-5= 3 mg/L/hr = Respiration

Light-Dark = 10-5= 5 mg/L/hr = GPP

 Energy Flow in an Ecosystem
Energy flow is the key function in the ecosystem. The storage and
expenditure of the energy in the ecosystem is based on two basic laws of
thermodynamics.

The first law of thermodynamics states that when energy is converted from
one form into another, energy is neither gained nor lost. It is also called
the law of conservation of energy. Energy cannot be created or destroyed,
only converted from one form to another.

The second law of thermodynamics states that every transformation

results in a reduction of the free energy of the system. Energy
transformation cannot be 100% efficient.

General principles of energy flow:

The behaviour of energy in ecosystems is referred to as energy flow
because energy transformations are directional, in contrast to the cyclical
behaviour of nutrients. The conversion of solar radiation to chemical
energy by photosynthesis is the starting point of energy flow within
ecosystems.
Second law of thermodynamics acting in an ecosystem.
Autotroph and detritus based ecosystem:

The autotroph based ecosystems depend directly on the influx of solar

radiation. The solar energy is captured by photosynthetic autotrophs and
secondarily captured via herbivory and carnivory. The organic matter
produced by photosynthesis within an ecosystem’s boundaries is called
autochthonous production.

Detritus based ecosystem:

Some ecosystems are less dependent on solar energy incorporation and

more dependent on influx of dead organic matter or detritus produced in
another ecosystem. Eg. Ecosystems such as caves are completely devoid
of direct solar energy and are instead dependent on the influx of detritus.
Organic matter imported from elsewhere is called allochthonous production.
 Food chains
A classic paper by Lindeman (1942) laid the foundations of ecological
energetics. He quantified the concept of food chain and food web by
considering the efficiency of transfer between trophic levels- from incident
radiation received by a community through its capture by green plants in
photosynthesis to its subsequent use by herbovores , carnivores and
decomposers. The relationship between constituents of one trophic level
and constituents of adjacent trophic levels is described as food chain.

Why are food chains relatively short?

Hypothesis1 : The energetic hypothesis says that the length of a food

chain is limited by the inefficiency of energy transfer along the chain. Only,
about 10% of the energy stored in the organic matter of each trophic level
is converted to organic matter at the next trophic level.

Hypothesis 2: The dynamic stability hypothesis states that long food

chains are less stable than short chains. It predicts that food chains should
be shorter in unpredictable environment.
Food Chain
Types of food chains:

Grazing food chain:

This food chain derives energy directly from the sun. The food chain
begins with primary producers. Primary consumers or herbivores
form the second link. Secondary consumers or primary carnivores form
the third link. Tertiary consumers or secondary carnivores are animals
that receive their organic energy by consuming primary carnivores.

Autotroph Herbivore Primary Secondary

carnivore carnivore
Detritus food chain:
It begins with dead organic matter as the source of energy. Various species
of microscopic fungi, bacteria and other saprophytes play important role in
decomposing organic matter.

In terrestrial and shallow water ecosystems, grazing food chains dominate.

In case of tidal marshes, almost 90% of the primary production occurs
through the detritus food chains.
 Food web
Food chains are oversimplified versions of the reality of feeding
relationship. Instead there are interconnecting pathways as well as
number of species involved in each trophic level. These complex
pathways resemble a web rather than a simple chain and are refereed to
as food webs. Thus, a food web is a pictorial representation of the
feeding relationship between organisms in an ecosystem and consists of
interlocking food chains.
Food web
 Energy flow model
There are two aspects with respect to energy flow in the ecosystem.

First, the energy flows one way, from producers through herbivores to
carnivores. It cannot be transferred in the reverse direction.

Second, the amount of energy flow decreases with successive trophic

levels.
 Ecological pyramid
The different trophic levels of an ecosystem are related to one another and
can be summarized in the form of ecological pyramids. The base of each
pyramid represents the producers or the first trophic level while the apex
represents tertiary or high level consumers. Other consumer trophic levels
are in between.

Pyramid of numbers
A graphic representation of the total number of individuals of different
species belonging to each trophic level in an ecosystem is known as
pyramid of number. Eg, grassland ecosystem. However, some pyramids of
number may be inverted, not upright. Eg, if we depict the situation of a
single tree along with its dependent insects, we would get an inverted
pyramid.

Pyramid of biomass
It represents the total dry weight of living beings of different species at each
trophic level at a particular time. In some cases, it may be inverted. Eg,
aquatic ecosystems where microscopic phytoplanktons are primary
producers.
Pyramid of energy
An energy pyramid reflects the laws of thermodynamics, with loss of energy
being depicted at each transfer to another trophic level, hence the pyramid
is always upright.
Suggested readings