E c o l o g y

The  study of the interactions that take the place amoug organisms and their enviorment


What is an Ecosystem?

An ecosystem is all the organisms in an area, working together with their non living resources. Organisms all have very different ecosystems. For example: The ecosystem of the Wood Frog would be the Northern part of the United States in swamps, bogs, and wooded areas.

Limiting Factors

The definition of a limiting factor is anything that prevents the number in a population. An example of a limiting factor could be: A group of rabbits are living in one area, then a week later a pack of wolves settle in the same area and start eating and hunting the rabbits. Thus the wolves would be the limiting factor because they are shortening the population of the rabbits. There are different kinds of limiting factors, another one instead of predators is abiotic resources. Abiotic resources are the non living things in an ecosystem. Animals lives depend on the amount of abiotic resources in their ecosystem. Some examples of abiotic resources are: Water, Air, Soil, and Space.

Diversity in Animals

All animals are different. There are four groups in an animals food habit. The animal is either a carnivore, herbivore, omnivore, or a decomposer. A carnivore is an animal that only eats meat; carnivores can range from lions, tigers, sharks, etc. A herbivore is an animal that only eats plants; these can range from panda bears, cows, and goats. Omnivores are a mixture of carnivores and herbivores, these animals eat both plants and meat. A good example of an omnivore would be a human or a pig. Lastly, Decomposers. When animals die, you dont think that they just rot there do you? well they dont, decomposers are there to break down the nurtients to help the plants grow strong.

Carnivore	Herbivore	Omnivore	Decomposer

Symbiotic Relationships
A relationship in which an organism lives on, near, or in another organism.

Symbiotic Relationships have three parts: Mutualism, Commensulism, and Parasitism. Mutualism is a symbiotic relationship in which both aniamls benifit. Commensulism is when one animal benifts and the other is not effected. Parasitism is when one animals benifits and the other is harmed. Here are some examples are all three. Mutualism:  Clownfish and sea anemones are an excellent example, sea anemones provide good homes for the clownfish, and the clownfish cleans the sea anemones. Commensulism: When cows move about in the fields, they stir up the insects living in the the grass, this is good for the egret that eats the insects. Parasitism: A cat and a flea is a good example alse. The flea feeds on the blood of the cat, and the cat is left to scratch and suffer the consiquesces.

Animal Page

Food Web