ecosystem topic will help you in understanding the basic means and other components like structure, functions, types, ecological pyramid, energy flow in ecosystem and many more environment related studies.

1. Made By:- Maitry Agrawal
Subject :- Environmental Studies
B.Sc. Clinical ResearchAnd Healthcare Management 2nd year
ICRI - JNU

2.  Definition
 concept of an ecosystem
 Structure and function
 Producers, consumers and decomposers
 Energy flow in ecosystem
 Ecological succession
 Food chain, food webs and ecological pyramids
 Introduction to forest ecosystem
 Types and features of forest ecosystem
 Structure and function of forest ecosystem

3.  Introduction to grassland ecosystem
 Types and features of grassland ecosystem
 Structure and function of grassland ecosystem
 Introduction to desert ecosystem
 Types and features of desert ecosystem
 Structure and function of desert ecosystem
 Introduction to aquatic ecosystem
 Types and features of aquatic ecosystem
 Structure and function of aquatic ecosystem

4.  An ecosystem is a large community of living
organisms (plants, animals and microbes) in a
particular area.The living and physical components
are linked together through nutrient cycles and
energy flows.
 Ecosystems are of any size, but usually they are in
particular places.
 Examples of ecosystems are: aquatic ecosystem,
coral reef, desert, forest, human ecosystem,
marine ecosystem, rainforest, savanna, plants,
animals, soil organisms and climatic conditions.

5.  The term ecosystem was firstly coined in 1935 by
the Oxford ecologist ArthurTansley to
encompass the interactions among biotic and
abiotic components of the environment at a given
site. Or simply we can also say that ecosystem is
basic unit of nature on the face of earth.
 The living and non-living components of an
ecosystem are known as biotic and abiotic
components, respectively.

7.  It regulates the essential ecological processes,
supports life systems and renders the stability.
 It is also responsible for the cycling
of nutrients between biotic and abiotic
components.
 It maintains a balance among the various tropic
levels in the ecosystem.
 It cycles the minerals through the biosphere.
 The abiotic components help in the synthesis of
organic components that involves the exchange of
energy.

8.  Producers are organisms that can make their own
energy through biochemical processes, which are
just processes in living things that involve chemical
reactions. Also called autotrophs, the usual
way producers make energy is through
photosynthesis.
 Examples:- plants, lichens and algae, which
convert water, sunlight and carbon dioxide into
carbohydrates.

9.  Consumers are a very important part of
the ecosystem.
 Consumers are those organisms that get their
energy from eating other organisms. eat other.
They may eat plants or they may eat animals.
 Primary consumers eat producers, and are
herbivores like deer or squirrels.
 Secondary consumers eat primary consumers and
often are carnivores like wolves or cougars.

10.  Decomposers and scavengers break down dead
plants and animals.They also break down the
waste (poop) of other organisms.
 Decomposers are very important for
any ecosystem. If they weren't in the ecosystem,
the plants would not get essential nutrients, and
dead matter and waste would pile up.
 Some of the most common decomposers are
bacteria, worms, slugs, snails, and fungi like
mushrooms.

12.  Ecological succession is the observed changes in
an ecological community over time.These changes
are fairly predictable and orderly.Within an
ecological community, the species composition will
change over time as some species become more
prominent while others may fade out of existence.
As the community develops over time, vegetation
grows taller, and the community becomes more
established.

13.  Primary succession is initiated when a new area that
has never previously supported an ecological
community is colonized by plants and animals.This
could be on newly exposed rock surfaces from
landslides or lava flows.
 Secondary succession occurs when an area that has
previously had an ecological community is so
disturbed or changed that the original community was
destroyed and a new community moves in.This is
often the result of natural disasters, such as fires,
floods, and winds, as well as human interference, such
as logging and clear-cutting.

17.  An ecological pyramid is
a graphical
representation of the
relationship between
different organisms in
an ecosystem. Each of
the bars that make up
the pyramid represents a
different trophic level,
and their order, which is
based on who eats whom,
represents the flow of
energy.

18.  A forest ecosystem describes the community of
plants, animals, microbes and all other organisms in
interaction with the chemical and physical features of
their environment: specifically, a terrestrial
environment dominated by trees growing in a closed
canopy – a forest, in other words.
 The organisms involved in a forest ecosystem
definition are interdependent on one another for
survival and can be broadly classified according to
their ecological role as producers, consumers and
decomposers.

19.  Tropical rain forest:-
 These types of forest ecosystem are characterized by broadleaf evergreen
trees, vines, tree ferns and palms.
 Tropical Seasonal Forest:-
 Located on the edges of rainforests are the tropical seasonal forests that
receive dwindling and irregular rainfall.
 Temperate Evergreen and Deciduous Forest Biome:-
 Needle leaf and broadleaf trees inhabit the forests.They are called
temperate forests because of their weather conditions.
 Boreal forest
 Also known as the needle leaf forest, located in Canada,Alaska, Siberia,
Russia and Europe.
Savanna andWoodland
 Susceptibility to fires and the ability to rejuvenate and re-grow. Prevalent
in south america, africa and australia, savannas and woodlands are
characterized by vast areas of grasslands etc.

20.  High animal and vegetal biodiversity
 Evergreen trees
 Dark and sparse undergrowth interspersed with
clearings
 Scanty litter (organic matter settling on the
ground)
 Presence of “strangler” creepers
 Presence of “buttresses” (i.e. Large winged ribs at
the base of trunks) and spindly roots in trees living
in often-flooded areas.

22.  Goods such as timber, food, fuel and bio products.
 Ecological functions such as carbon storage,
nutrient cycling, water and air purification, and
maintenance of wildlife habitat.
 Social and cultural benefits such as recreation,
traditional resource uses and spirituality.

23.  Grassland Ecosystem is an area where the vegetation
is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous (non-
woody) plants.
 It is also called transitional landscape because
grassland ecosystems are dominated by the grass with
few or no trees in the area where there is not enough
for a forest and too much of a forest.
 These are known by different names in different
region of the world like steppes in Europe and
Asia, pampas in South America, Veldt in South
Africa and Downs in Australia

24.  Tropical grassland:-
 Tropical grasslands are warm all year round with established rainy
and dry seasons. During the rainy season, tropical grasslands receive
between 50 and 130 centimeters of rain.
 Temperate Grassland:-
 Temperate grasslands also have two seasons, growing and dormant.
Temperate grasslands receive between 25 and 75 centimeters of rain
a year.
 Other Notable Grasslands:-
 Other notable grassland ecosystems are flooded grasslands, polar
or tundra grasslands, montane grasslands and xeric or desert
grasslands.

25.  Vegetation structure that is dominated by grasses
 Semi-arid climate.
 Rainfall and soils insufficient to support significant
tree growth.
 Most common at mid-latitudes and near the
interiors of continents.
 Grasslands are often exploited for agricultural use.

26.  The primary function of an ecosystem is
productivity.
 It provides forage for livestock, protection and
conservation of soil and water resources,
furnishing a habitat for wildlife, both flora and
fauna.
 Food Chain in an ecosystem.
 Nutrient cycle in an ecosystem, it is important that
the constituent materials move in a cyclic manner.

27.  A desert ecosystem is defined by interactions
between organism populations, the climate in
which they live, and any other non-living influences
on the habitat. Deserts are arid regions which are
generally associated with warm temperatures,
however cold deserts also exist.
 Examples :-the west coasts of continents, such as
the Namib in Africa, or the Atacama in Chile,
forming coastal fog-deserts

28.  Hot and Dry Desert Ecosystem-
 These kinds of the desert ecosystem have hot and dry climatic
conditions through the air and have very low annual rainfall.
 Semi-arid desert ecosystem-
 This kind of ecosystem has hard rocks, stable ground, less sand
dunes.Temperature is not as extreme as a hot and dry desert
ecosystem.
 Coastal desert ecosystem-
 Such desert ecosystems are found near the coastal lines of big water
bodies like oceans and seas and are generally affected by the ocean
currents.Winter fogs are common here.
 Cold desert ecosystem-
 This desert ecosystem comprises of abundant rainfall throughout
the winters and less in summers and generally has chilling winters
with snowfall.

29.  Aridity
 Less rainfall/ precipitation
 Extreme temperature
 Velocity of wind
 Scarcity of water
 The quality of the soil
 Biodiversity in a desert ecosystem
 The population density
 Plants grow very slowly

30.  ABIOTIC COMPONENTS
 Climate factors (rainfall, temperature, light)
 BIOTIC COMPONENTS
 Producers :- trees, grass etc.
 Consumers :- squirrels, fox, rabbits
 Decomposers :- bacteria, fungi

31.  It includes the flora and fauna.
 Deserts typically have a plant cover that is sparse
but enormously diverse.
 Almost all of the animals living in the desert have
adapted to be able to better survive in the desert.

32.  An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem in a body
of water. Communities of organisms that are
dependent on each other and on their environment
live in aquatic ecosystems.The two main types
of aquatic ecosystems are
marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystems.
 Examples :-lakes, ponds, rivers, oceans and
streams, wetlands, swamp, etc.

33.  Ponds and Lakes
• Ponds and lakes are relatively still bodies of water with little or no
current, generally isolated from other bodies of water such as rivers
and oceans.
 Rivers and Streams
• Rivers and streams are moving bodies of water that flow from a
source, such as a spring or melting glacier, to a mouth, which could
be at an ocean, a larger stream or river or some other type of
reservoir.
 Oceans
 Oceans are some of the most diverse and geographically expansive
ecosystems on earth. Ocean ecosystems are divided into four zones:
intertidal, pelagic, benthic and abyssal.

34.  Coral Reefs
 Coral reef ecosystems are situated in the ocean; but due to
their physical and biological composition, they are very
distinct from other marine ecosystems. Coral reefs form in
shallow waters with warm temperatures.

35.  It is a fresh water and free flowing water system.
 Due to mixing of water, dissolved oxygen content
is more.
 River deposits large number of nutrients.
 Abiotic Components:Temperature, Light,
Nutrients
 Biotic Components: Producers(phytoplankton,
Algae),primaryConsumers(insect, Snails),
Secondary Consumers(bird, Mammals),
Decomposers(bacteria, Fungi)

37.  Aquatic ecosystems perform many important
environmental functions.
 The health of an aquatic ecosystem is degraded when
the ecosystem's ability to absorb a stress has been
exceeded.
 Physical alterations include changes in water
temperature, water flow and light availability.
Chemical alterations include changes in the loading
rates of biostimulatory nutrients, oxygen consuming
materials, and toxins.
 Human populations can impose excessive stresses on
aquatic ecosystems.