The Ecosystem

Bal Bharati Public School, Navi Mumbai
Subject: Biology
Class: X
Topic: The Ecosystem
Ecosystem and its types
All the interacting organisms in an area together with the non-living
constituents of the environment form an ecosystem.
There are different types of ecosystems. They are :-
i) Natural ecosystems :- like forests, deserts, grass lands,

mountains, ponds, lakes, rivers, oceans etc.
ii) Artificial ecosystems :- like gardens, parks, crop fields, aquarium,

zoo etc...
Components of Ecosystem
An ecosystem consists of two main
components.
1. Biotic components :-are the living

components like
plants, animals
and microorganisms.
They consist of:
i) Producers :- All green plants and certain

bacteria which can produce
food by photosynthesis
Components of Ecosystem (Contd.)
ii) Consumers :- These organisms which consume the food produced, either
directly from producers or indirectly by feeding on other
consumers
a) Herbivores : organisms which get their food directly from plants
b) Carnivores: organisms which get their food indirectly from plants
c) Omnivores: organisms which get their food directly or indirectly from plants.
d) Parasites: organisms that lives in or on another organisms and gets its food
from it.
Herbivores
Omnivores
Components of Ecosystem(contd.)
iii) Decomposers :- are microorganisms which decompose dead plants
and animals. They decompose complex organic
substances into simple inorganic substances in the soil
which are again used by plants.
Components of Ecosystem(contd.)
2. Abiotic components :-
These are the non living

components of our
environment like air, water,
soil, minerals, sunlight ,
temperature, rainfall, wind
etc.
Food Chain
A food chain is the flow of food energy from one organism to the next and to
the next and so on. It always start with a producer (plants) and end with a
carnivore. In a food chain an organism gets food from one group of organisms.
Examples:
eaten by eaten by
1. Grass Deer Lion
(producer) (primary consumer) (secondary consumer)
eaten by eaten by eaten by
2. Grass Insects Frog Snake
(producer) (primary consumer) (secondary consumer) (tertiary consumer)
eaten by eaten by eaten by eaten by

3. Grass Moth Frog Snake Hawk
(producer) (primary consumer) (secondaryconsumer) (tertiaryconsumer) (quarternary consumer)
Food Web
Food web is a group of several interconnected food chains. In a food
web an organism gets food from more than one group of organisms.
Trophic levels
Each step in a food chain where transfer of
food energy takes place is called trophic
level.
• The first trophic level consists of
producers.
• The second trophic level consists of
primary consumers.
• The third trophic level consists of
secondary consumers.
• The fourth trophic level consists of tertiary
consumers.
Since the transfer of food energy decreases
at every trophic level, the number of trophic
levels are limited and do not exceed four or
five.
Energy flow in trophic levels
• Green plants (producers) absorb
about 1% of solar energy falling on
the leaves and stores it as food
energy during photosynthesis.
• During the transfer of food
energy from one trophic level to
the next, 90% of the energy is lost
to the environment and only 10% is
transferred to the next trophic
level.
• So there is a decrease in the
amount of food energy transferred
at every trophic level by 10%. This
is known as the 10% law.
Biological magnification
• Harmful chemicals like insecticides and
pesticides which are used to protect
crops from insects and pests are
absorbed by plants and enter the food
chain.
• Since these chemicals are non
biodegradable, they get accumulated at
every trophic level and their
concentration increases.
• Since human beings occupy the highest
trophic level, the concentration of these
harmful chemicals is maximum in our
bodies.
• The increase in concentration of harmful
chemicals in the bodies of organisms at
higher trophic levels is called biological
magnification.
Let us Recapitulate....
• All the interacting organisms in an area together with the non-living constituents
of the environment form an ecosystem.
• An ecosystem consists of biotic and abiotic components. These components of an
ecosystem are interdependent.
• The organisms are grouped as producers, consumers and decomposers according
to the manner in which they obtain their sustenance from the environment.
• The producers make the energy from sunlight available to the rest of the
ecosystem.
• There is a loss of energy as we go from one trophic level to the next, this limits
the number of trophic levels in a food-chain.
• The flow of energy is unidirectional.
Assignment-1
1. Define an ecosystem. State its types with examples.
2. What are the two components of ecosystem? Give two examples of each.
3. Classify organisms according to the manner in which they obtain their
sustenance from the environment. Give two examples of each.
4. What happens when an organism dies?
5. What are trophic levels? Give an example of a food chain from marine
ecosystem and state the different trophic levels in it.
6. What will happen if we kill all the organisms in one trophic level?
7. Explain 10% law of energy flow in an ecosystem.
8. Food chains generally consist of only three or four steps. Give reasons.
9. The flow of energy in an ecosystem is unidirectional. Justify this statement.
10. What is biological magnification? Will the levels of this magnification be
different at different levels of the ecosystem?
Links
• What Is An Ecosystem?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU8J3w09Z70
Different Types of Ecosystem
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6YrPt1ygX8
• Food Chain and Food Web
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brF0RWJyx9w
• The Flow of Energy in an Ecosystem - Our environment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9x_4GiFW98A
• Biomagnification
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85I7oPWUuak
• Bio Magnification - Our environment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqaBy7bmc9E

The Ecosystem

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Ecosystem

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Ecosystem

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Bal Bharati Public School, Navi Mumbai

There are different types of ecosystems. They are :-

i) Natural ecosystems :- like forests, deserts, grass lands,

ii) Artificial ecosystems :- like gardens, parks, crop fields, aquarium,

1. Biotic components :-are the living

i) Producers :- All green plants and certain

b) Carnivores: organisms which get their food indirectly from plants

These are the non living

eaten by eaten by eaten by eaten by

You might also like