Recognise an ecosystem as the relationship between organisms and their environment.
Illustrate the levels of organisation in an ecosystem. Ecology
Living things are affected by where they live. Their survival depends on the food and shelter available, as well as the other living things in the area.
Ecology is the study of how living things interact with their environment and each other.
Habitats
The place where an organism lives is its habitat. For example, a pond, a hedge or a meadow.
A population is a group of organisms of the same species living in the same habitat. For example, a population of frogs might live along a stretch of river.
A community is all of the different populations that live in a habitat. For example, the stretch of river may also provide a habitat for a population of willow trees and kingfishers.
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is all the communities interacting with each other, and with their environment.
Over time, the number and types of species in an ecosystem reaches a steady state. This steady state is known as the balance of nature.
An ecosystem that extends over a very large area is called a biome. Rainforests, coral reefs and deserts are biomes.
The activity of organisms in one ecosystem will affect those in neighbouring ecosystems.
All of the Earth’s ecosystems together form one large ecosystem known as the biosphere. The biosphere extends from the bottom of the deepest ocean to the top of the highest mountain.
z Fig. 6.1.1 The organisation of an ecosystem 95 95 Community Population Individual
