BSC 2011 Lecture 30: Ecology Lecture 1
16 Jul 2016
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Document Summary
The scienti c study of relationships between organisms and their environments (haeckel) Key concept: ecological systems vary over space and time, solar energy input and topography shape the earth"s physical environments (climate) Scales of ecological organization: organism survival and reproduction, population groups of individuals of the same species interacting, community interactions among populations of different species, ecosystem communities plus their abiotic environment, biosphere all organisms and environments of the planet. Variations in solar energy drive patterns of weather and climate. Climate: long term trends in temperature, wind, precipitation based on averages and variation measured over decades, determines where organisms live, resource availability, rate of pop. growth, key to understanding all ecological phenomenon. !1: temperature, wind, humidity and precipitation at a particular time and place (short. Earth"s energy budget: energy in-solar radiation, incoming radiation-mostly short wave-visible, 31% re ected by clouds/surface, 20% absorbed by atmosphere, 49% absorbed by earth, transpiration-water loss from plants.
