West Visayas State University/2020

NCSI 111 (People and the Earth’s Ecosystem)

Lesson 7: What are the Major Components of an

Ecosystem? [Week 7]

Introduction

Ecology is concerned with the study of interrelationships between organisms

and their environments. Two distinct components of environment can be identified:
Abiotic (nonliving or nonorganic, sometime called the physical environment) and
Biotic (living or organic). These two components, are, however, very much
interdependent and sometime it becomes difficult to separate biotic components
from the abiotic ones, especially when environment is looked at as a factor for
determining man's biology and culture.
An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and other
organisms, as well as weather and landscape, work together to form a bubble of life.
Ecosystems contain biotic or living, parts, as well as abiotic factors, or nonliving
parts. Biotic factors include plants, animals, and other organisms. Abiotic factors
include rocks, temperature, and humidity. Ecosystem is the sum total of living
organisms, the environment and the processes of interaction between the various
components of the system.
Every factor in an ecosystem depends on every other factor, either directly or
indirectly. A change in the temperature of an ecosystem will often affect what plants
will grow there, for instance. Animals that depend on plants for food and shelter will
have to adapt to the changes, move to another ecosystem, or perish.

PRIOR TO THE LESSON

Pre- Assessment

Answer the following statement. Write the letter of your choice in the space
provided before each item.

_____1. The Sun is a

a) Tertiary Producer of energy
b) Secondary source of energy
c) producer of water
d) Primary producer of energy

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_____2. The green color of plants that is produced from organelles called
a) cell membranes
b) cytoplasm
c) chloroplasts
d) vacuoles
_____3. Which statement below best describes the flow of matter and energy
through trophic levels?
a) Energy is transferred between organisms, and matter is released as heat.
b) Matter decreases by 10% as organisms consume one another.
c) Energy and matter are recycled by decomposers
d) Energy flows from one direction, and matter cycles.
_____4. Matter flows through the trophic levels of food webs when carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere is converted into a chemical compound through which
process?
a) Decomposition
b) Photosynthesis
c) Cellular Respiration
d) Nitrogen Fixation
_____5. Which one of these organisms would be classified as a tertiary consumer?
a) mouse
b) frog
c) hawk
d) snake

Answer for Pre- Assessment

1. d, 2. c, 3. d, 4. b, 5. c

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Review

Identify the following statement.

1. Composed of 78% nitrogen (N), 21% oxygen (O2), 0.9% argon, and trace
amount of other gases. _____________________
2. Comprises the Plate Tectonics which processes the shaping of the surface of
the Earth. ____________________
3. Absorb and redistribute heat on the Earth surface through ocean circulation.
_____________________
4. The set of all life forms on Earth. _____________________
5. Main source of energy of all organisms. _____________________

Answer for Review

1. Atmosphere, 2. Geosphere
3. Hydrosphere, 4. Biosphere, 5. Sun

Motivation

From this very

simple picture,
can you list all
the living and
nonliving
things?

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NEW LESSON

Major Components of an Ecosystem

Introduction

The science of ecology includes everything from global processes, the study
of various marine and terrestrial habitats, to individual interspecific interactions like
predation and pollination.
Ecosystem as the basic fundamental unit of ecology which includes both the
organisms and the nonliving environment, each influencing the properties of the
other and each is necessary for the maintenance of life. Every factor in an ecosystem
depends on every other factor, either directly or indirectly. A change in the
temperature of an ecosystem will often affect what plants will grow there, for
instance. Animals that depend on plants for food and shelter will have to adapt to
the changes, move to another ecosystem, or perish.
Ecosystems can be very large or very small. Tide pools, the ponds left by the
ocean as the tide goes out, are complete, tiny ecosystems. Tide pools contain
seaweed, a kind of algae, which uses photosynthesis to create food. Herbivores such
as abalone eat the seaweed. Carnivores such as sea stars eat other animals in the
tide pool, such as clams or mussels. Tide pools depend on the changing level of
ocean water. Some organisms, such as seaweed, thrive in an aquatic environment,
when the tide is in and the pool is full. Other organisms, such as hermit crabs,
cannot live underwater and depend on the shallow pools left by low tides. In this
way, the biotic parts of the ecosystem depend on abiotic factors.
Living and Nonliving components of an ecosystem
Two types of components make up the biosphere and its ecosystems: One
type, called abiotic, consists of nonliving components such as water, air, nutrients,
rocks, heat, and solar energy. The other type, called biotic, consists of living and
once living biological components—plants, animals, and microbes.
Biotic factors also include dead organisms, dead parts of organisms, and the
waste products of organisms. Figure 2.19 is a greatly simplified diagram of some of
the biotic and abiotic components of a terrestrial ecosystem.
Different species and their populations thrive under different physical and
chemical conditions. Some need bright sunlight; others flourish in shade. Some need

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a hot environment; others prefer a cool or cold one. Some do best under wet
conditions; others thrive under dry conditions.
The concept of ecosystem can be best illustrated by the fact that holozoic
animals cannot synthesize their food and depend upon plants either directly or
indirectly. Even plants which are capable of synthesizing their own food depend upon
the abiotic environment from which they receive light, water, carbon dioxide and
mineral salts, other inorganic and organic substances of absolute necessity for the
synthesis of food. The organic substances and some of the inorganic compounds are
accumulated in the soil by the dead and the decaying organisms and the excreta of
living individuals.
Miller and Spoolman (2009) stated that each population in an ecosystem has a
range of tolerance to variations in its physical and chemical environment, as
shown in Figure 2.22. Individuals within a population may also have slightly different
tolerance ranges for temperature or other factors because of small differences in
genetic makeup, health, and age. For example, a trout population may do best
within a narrow band of temperatures (optimum level or range), but a few individuals
can survive above and below that band. Of course, if the water becomes much too
hot or too cold, none of the trout can survive.

Active Figure 2.21: Major

living (biotic) and
nonliving (abiotic)
components of an
ecosystem in a field. See
an animation based on
this figure at
CengageNOW.

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Figure 2.22 Range of Tolerance

Abiotic Factors Can Limit Population Growth

A variety of abiotic factors can affect the number of organisms in a

population. Sometimes one or more factors, known as limiting factors, are more
important in regulating population growth than other factors are. This ecological
principle is called the limiting factor principle: Too much or too little of any
abiotic factor can limit or prevent growth of a population, even if all other factors are
at or near the optimal range of tolerance. On land, precipitation often is the limiting
abiotic factor. Lack of water in a desert limits plant growth. Soil nutrients also can
act as a limiting factor on land. Suppose a farmer plants corn in phosphorus-poor
soil. Even if water, nitrogen, potassium, and other nutrients are at optimal levels, the
corn will stop growing when it uses up the available phosphorus. Too much of an
abiotic factor can also be limiting. For example, too much water or fertilizer can kill
plants. Temperature can also be a limiting factor. Both high and low temperatures
can limit the survival and population sizes of various terrestrial species, especially
plants.
Important limiting abiotic factors in aquatic life zones include temperature,
sunlight, nutrient availability, and the low solubility of oxygen gas in water (dissolved
oxygen content). Another such factor is salinity—the amounts of various inorganic
minerals or salts dissolved in a given volume of water.

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Living Component of an Ecosystem

Ecologists assign every organism in an ecosystem to a feeding level, or
trophic level, depending on its source of food or nutrients. The organisms that
transfer energy and nutrients from one trophic level to another in an ecosystem can
be broadly classified as producers and consumers.
Producers
These are the autotrophic members of the ecosystem (the green plants)
which are capable of synthesizing food from the nonliving simple inorganic
compounds. In an ecosystem the producers may be represented by the small
microscopic plants (the phytoplankton) and algae or the rooted or large floating
plants generally growing in shallow water only. The phytoplankton are distributed
throughout the pond and as deep as light could penetrate the water. These are
found in all waters. But the large sized are of different types in different ecosystems.
The grasses are found in the grassland, trees in the forest, floating plants in pond
water and lakes. (Figure 2.23)
Consumers
These are heterotrophic organisms which are called as macro consumers or
phagotrophs. These consume the producers directly or indirectly.

Figure 2.23. Nutrient Cycling in the Forest

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I. The herbivores are the primary consumers in the ecosystem. These solely
feed upon vegetation or plants. A deer or rabbit is a primary consumer in a forest
and a rat in the gardens. Protozoans, Crustaceans and mollusks are the primary
consumers of the pond or lake or sea and feed upon the floating algae. Insects,
rodents and ruminants are the major herbivores of terrestrial environment. The
primary consumers form the food of the primary carnivores or secondary consumers.
II. The primary carnivores or the omnivorous animals constitute the category of
secondary consumers. These feed upon the herbivorous animals. These are the
wolves, dogs, cats, foxes, etc.
III. Third- and higher-level consumers are carnivores such as tigers, wolves,
mice-eating snakes, hawks, and killer whales (orcas) that feed on the flesh of other
carnivores. The carnivores have been called biophages.
Decomposers are micro-organisms (bacteria and molds) of the ecosystem. These
feed upon dead decaying living organisms (both plants and animals) and break them
into simpler compounds. These are released free in the atmosphere and are utilized
by the producers of the synthesis of their food material.
Detritus feeders, or detritivores, feed on the wastes or dead bodies of other
organisms, called detritus (“di-TRI-tus,” meaning debris). Examples include small
organisms such as mites and earthworms, some insects, catfish, and larger
scavenger organisms such as vultures.
Energy Flow and Nutrient Cycling Sustain Ecosystems and the
Biosphere
The existence of living world depends upon the flow of energy and circulation
of materials through the ecosystem. The energy is required for the performance of
all the life activities. The source of this energy is sun (Figure 2.24). The solar energy
enters the space in the form of light rays. Approximately 57 per-cent of solar energy
is in the atmosphere and scattered in space. About 36 per-cents are expended in
heating water and land and in evaporating water. Nearly 8 per cent of light energy
strikes the plants, of which

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80-85 per cent is absorbed,

and only fifty per-cent of it is utilized in
photosynthesis.
This energy is captured by
plants and is stored in the form of
potential energy in foodstuffs. These
are known as producers and represent
first trophic level in the ecosystem
(Figure 2.24). The energy stored by the
plants is passed along through the
community or ecosystem in a chain. A
Figure 2.24: Natural capital: the main
food chain consists of maximum four structural components of an ecosystem
steps, the producers, primary (energy, chemicals, and organisms).
Nutrient cycling and the flow of energy—
consumers, secondary consumers and first from the sun, then through organisms,
tertiary consumers. and finally into the environment as low-
quality heat— link these components. See
The energy flows from the
an animation based on this figure at
producers to consumers. At each CengageNOW.
transfer a large proportion (80 to 90
percent) of potential energy is dissipated as heat
produced during the process of respiration and other ways.
In this transformation of energy through ecosystem, the energy is reduced in
magnitude by about 100 from primary consumers to plant consumers and by 10 for
each step thereafter.

Activities

Activity 7.1

Make a collage on how the energy flow in a certain ecosystem, see to it that
the trophic level of the living things is correctly arranged. Share your work in the
group chat.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

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Feedback

Activity 7.2

Make a list of the food you ate for lunch or dinner today. Trace each type of
food back to a particular producer species. Describe the sequence of feeding levels
that led to your feeding.
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________

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SUBSEQUENT TO THE LESSON

Summary

Ecology is the study of the relationship of plants and animals to their physical
and biological environment. Two types of components make up the biosphere and its
ecosystems: One type, called abiotic, consists of nonliving components such as
water, air, nutrients, rocks, heat, and solar energy. The other type, called biotic,
consists of living and once living biological components—plants, animals, and
microbes.
A variety of abiotic factors can affect the number of organisms in a
population. Sometimes one or more factors, known as limiting factors, are more
important in regulating population growth than other factors are. This ecological
principle is called the limiting factor principle: Too much or too little of any abiotic
factor can limit or prevent growth of a population, even if all other factors are at or
near the optimal range of tolerance. This principle describes one way in which
population control—a scientific principle of sustainability—is achieved.
Ecologists assign every organism in an ecosystem to a feeding level, or
trophic level, depending on its source of food or nutrients. The organisms that
transfer energy and nutrients from one trophic level to another in an ecosystem can
be broadly classified as producers and consumers.
Producers, sometimes called autotrophs (self-feeders), make the nutrients
they need from compounds and energy obtained from their environment. All other
organisms in an ecosystem are consumers, or heterotrophs (“other-feeders”), that
cannot produce the nutrients they need through photosynthesis or other processes
and must obtain their nutrients by feeding on other organisms (producers or other
consumers) or their remains. There are several types of consumers: Primary
consumers, or herbivores (plant eaters). Secondary consumers, or carnivores (meat
eaters. Third- and higher-level consumers are carnivores that feed on the flesh of
other carnivores. Omnivores play dual roles by feeding on both plants and animals.
Decomposers, are consumers that release nutrients from the dead bodies of plants
and animals and return them to the soil, water, and air for reuse by producers.
Ecosystems and the biosphere are sustained through a combination of one-
way energy flow from the sun through these systems and nutrient cycling of key

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materials within them—two important natural services that are components of the
earth’s natural capital.

Reflection

How have humans altered the biome you live in?

_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________

Post Assessment

Kindly answer these questions by writing the letter of your choice in the
space provided before each item.
_____1. An ecosystem is made of both biotic and abiotic things. Which describes the
biotic part of the ecosystem?
a) plants that grow in soil
b) the animals that breathe oxygen
c) all living things in the environment
d) plants and animals that live in water
_____2. Temperature, water, soil, and air are abiotic factors in an environment. They
are not the same everywhere. What role do abiotic factors such as these
play in an ecosystem?
a) They control the changes of the seasons.
b) They prevent competition among populations.
c) They determine which plants and animals can live there.
d) They help control the effect humans might have on the ecosystem.
_____3. When scientists talk about an ecosystem and the type and number of
animals and plants that live in one, they are also concerned about limiting
factors. What are limiting factors?
a) the rate at which the plants and animals in an ecosystem reach maturity.
b) the ratio of animals that lay eggs to those that give birth to live young.
c) the things that are necessary to support a population of organisms in an
area.
d) the difference between trees that lose their leaves in an ecosystem and
those that don’t.

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_____4. A person or thing that eats

a) Producer c) Consumer
b) Comptroller d) Director
_____5. An animal that only eats plants is called a
a) Omnivore c) Univore
b) Herbivore d) Carnivore
_____6. An animal that only eats other animals is called a
a) Univore c) Carnivore
b) Omnivore d) Herbivore
_____7. An animal that eats both plants and animals is called a
a) Herbivore c) Univore
b) Carnivore d) Ominvore
_____8. Humans are carnivore.
a) True c) Neither
b) False d) None of the above
_____9. The Sun is a
a) Tertiary Producer of energy c) producer of water
b) Secondary source of energy d) Primary producer of energy
_____10. The green color of plants is produced from organelles called
a) cell membranes c) chloroplasts
b) cytoplasm d) vacuoles
_____11. Which statement below best describes the flow of matter and energy
through trophic levels?
a) Energy is transferred between organisms, and matter is released as heat.
b) Matter decreases by 10% as organisms consume one another.
c) Energy and matter are recycled by decomposers
d) Energy flows from one direction, and matter cycles.
_____12. Matter flows through the trophic levels of food webs when carbon dioxide
in the atmosphere is converted into a chemical compound through which
process?
a) Decomposition c) Cellular Respiration
b) Photosynthesis d) Nitrogen Fixation

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______13. Which one of these organisms would be classified as a tertiary

consumer?
a) mouse c) hawk
b) frog d) snake
_____14. Most producers get energy from the Sun using the process of
a) cellular respiration c) photosynthesis
b) chemosynthesis d) consumption.
_____15. Decomposers are important to ecosystems because they
a) return vital nutrients to the ecosystem
b) capture energy from the Sun
c) are producers
d) can be omnivores.

References

Miller, G. T. & Spoolman, S. E. (2009). Essentials of Ecology. Brooks/Cole,

Cengage Learning.
Miller, G. T. & Spoolman, S. E. (2011). Introduction to Environmental Science,
Second Edition. Cengage learning Asia Pte. Ltd (Philippine Branch)
Postlethwait, J. H. & Hopson, J.L. (2012). The World of Biology. Cengage learning
Asia Pte. Ltd (Philippine Branch).
Jaiswal, A. (2018). Ecology and Ecosystem. Department of Anthropology,
Pondicherry University. Central University of Tamil Nadu. Retrieved from
[Link]
and [Link]
Khan Academy (August 26, 2016). Retrieved from
[Link]
ecology/trophic-levels/v/flow-of-energy-and-matter-through-ecosystems
Bear, Robert, [Link] (1999- 2020)- Principles of Biology. Supported by William
Flora Hewlett Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Michelson 20MM
Foundation, Maxfield Foundation, Open Society Foundations, and Rice
University. Powered by OpenStax CNX. Retrieved from
[Link]

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