What are the major Structure of an ecosystem and its components
components of an
ecosystem?
1. Herbivores – primary consumers
(plant eaters): rabbit
2. Carnivores – Secondary consumers
(meat eaters): frog Proteins, Macro and
Tertiary consumers: snake carbohydrat micro-
es nutrients
3. Omnivores – Eating both plants and animals: humans, rat, fox
4. Detritivores – Feeding on dead organisms: beetles, termites, ants
Abiotic components of an ecosystem
• All non-living components form the abiotic components
• The Abiotic (Physical and chemical) factors are:
Physical Factors:
• Sunlight, its intensity and duration -- necessary for photosynthesis
• Annual rainfall (water) -- all living things require some water to different extent
• Temperature -- all living things have a range of temperatures in which they can survive;
• Oxygen -- many living things require oxygen; it is necessary for cellular respiration,
others are actually killed by the presence of oxygen (certain anaerobic bacteria)
• Soil– The type of soil, Its pH,
• Amount of water it holds,
Chemical Factors:
• Available nutrients, like C, N, P, K, H, O and S, Organic substances present in soil
etc determine what type of organism can successfully live in or on the soil;
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BIOTIC COMPONENTS
Producers
• Producers are plants and some bacteria that are
capable of producing their own food from nature
• Producers are also called autotrophs
• Producers are of two types
• Photoautotrophs: Produce using sunlight
• Chemoautotrophs: From chemicals
• Deep ocean water Sulphur bacteria use heat to convert hydrogen
sulfide and carbon dioxide to produce organic compounds
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Distinguish among producers (autotrophs), consumers (heterotrophs), and
decomposers and give an example of each in an ecosystem.
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1a
• Sulfur, Iron, H2 & NH3
• Bacteria decompose these chemicals using Fe catalyst
• Methanogens, Halopiles and sulfur
• Oxidation and reduction reactions
• Convert Inorganic and Organic source
• Utilize to plants
BIOTIC COMPONENTS
Examples for Chemotrophs
• Green Sulfur bacteria
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2 Heterotrophs
• Organisms that do not make their own food
• Another term for Heterotroph is consumer because they
consume other organisms in order to live
• Ex. Rabbits, Deer, Mushrooms
Types of Heterotrophs are given below:
– 4. Scavengers feed on the tissue of dead organisms (both plants and
animals). Ex. Vultures and Hyena.
– 5. Detritivores – Feed on the debris left over by scavengers. Ex. Ants.
3 Decomposers: absorb any dead material and break it down into
simple nutrients or fertilizers. Bacteria and Mushrooms
Consumers
Consumers are animals that obtain their energy from producers and other animals
And they are classified as
• Herbivores: They feed directly on producers
and called primary consumers
• Carnivores: Meat eaters
• They feed on other consumers
• If they feed on herbivores they are secondary
• If they feed on other animals they are tertiary and
so on..
• Ominvores:They feed on both plants and animals
• Detrivores: They feed on parts of dead
organisms, wastes of living organisms: eg: Beetles,
termites, crabs, ants… 31
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Decomposers
• Decomposers, also called recyclers
• are fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms that
decompose organic matter to reusable inorganic form
• They derive their nutrition by breaking down the complex
organic species to simple organic compounds and ultimately
into inorganic nutrients
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Habitat
• should not be confused with ecosystem
• Habitat is the physical area in which living organisms live.
• The habitat of an organism may include many different areas.
• Think of the various places you might find a mouse;
• In a field,
• In a garden and
• in the walls of your house.
• Animals that migrate will have different habitats during different seasons.
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