Ecology

Ecology

ch.52

Ecology: the study of how organisms interact with each other and their environment

Different Scopes of Ecology

1. organismal ecology: studies how one individual organism interacts with its environment

   1. ex: how does an individual respond to climate change?

2. population ecology: studying an entire population of one species of organisms

   1. ex: how does a population fluctuate in response to climate change?

3. community ecology: studying multiple populations of organismal species in one area

   1. ex: how does climate change impact diversity of a community?

4. ecosystem ecology: studying multiple populations of both organismal species and abiotic species (i.e. sun, water, etc)

   1. how does climate change impact nutrient cycling?

Population Ecology

population ecology: the study of how populations fluctuate in response to biotic or abiotic factors

Aspects of a Population

population: a group of individuals of a single species living in the same area

• usually defined by boundaries I.E. Erie, County, PA

density: the # of individuals (of one species or population) per unit area or volume

• ex: humans/km^2 or trees/ha

immigration: the movement of individuals into a population

emigration: the movement of individuals out of a population

migration: regular long distance movement