ED1231 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Overgrazing, Coral Reef, Natural Capital
Environmental Science, Technology and Enterprise
Lecture Three – Week Three - Ecosystems
Links to WA Curriculum
- WAC: Science (Learning Area)
o Science understanding (Strand)
▪ Biological science (Sub-strand)
▪ Through this substrand, sudents investigate living things, including animals,
plants, and micro-organisms, and their interdependence and interactions within
ecosystems
▪ They explore theur life cycles, body systems, structural adaptations and
behaviours, how these features aid survival, and how theur characteristics are
inherited from one generation to the other
Ecosystems
- Organism → population → community → ecosystem → biosphere
o Increasing level of biological completely
- Organism
o An individual living being
- Population
o Individuals of the same species living together in a particular place and potentially
interacting with each other
- Community
o Populations of different species living in a particular place
- Ecosystem
o Combined community and abiotic environment
o Set area
- Biosphere
o Total space on earth
o The part of the earth’s air, water, soil, where life exists
Miller & Spullman reading W1 for google docs
What makes up ecosystems?
- Biotic factors (living)
o Living things
o Plants = autotrophs
o Animals/Decomposers = Heterotrophs
- Abiotic
o Non living
o Rainfall, water
o Temperature
o Soil nutrients
o Sunlight
o Air
o Salinity
Natural vs. agricultural ecosystems
- Natural ecosystem
o Matter (includes carbon, nitrogen, water, minerals) is cycled with nutrients being
returned to the environment through the action of decomposers
- Agricultural Ecosystems
o Man has varying inputs/outputs, removal of matter from the ecosystem, balance of
‘cycle’ disrupted, species altered (population and variety), nutrients not cycled and
require constant replacement
- Examples of ecosystems
o Bush land
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Wac: science (learning area: science understanding (strand, biological science (sub-strand) Through this substrand, sudents investigate living things, including animals, plants, and micro-organisms, and their interdependence and interactions within ecosystems. They explore theur life cycles, body systems, structural adaptations and behaviours, how these features aid survival, and how theur characteristics are inherited from one generation to the other. Organism population community ecosystem biosphere. Individuals of the same species living together in a particular place and potentially interacting with each other. Community: populations of different species living in a particular place. Ecosystem: combined community and abiotic environment, set area. Biosphere: total space on earth, the part of the earth"s air, water, soil, where life exists. Miller & spullman reading w1 for google docs. Biotic factors (living: living things, plants = autotrophs, animals/decomposers = heterotrophs. Abiotic: non living, rainfall, water, temperature, soil nutrients, sunlight, air, salinity.
