Chapter 50 introduction to ecology and the biosphere. In this chapter, you should be able to: Distinguish among the following types of ecology: organismal, population, community, ecosystem, and landscape; explain how dispersal may contribute to a species’ distribution; distinguish between the following pairs of terms: biotic and abiotic factors, macroclimate and microclimate patterns;. | Chapter 50 An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere Overview: The Scope of Ecology Ecology Is the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment These interactions Determine both the distribution of organisms and their abundance Ecology Is an enormously complex and exciting area of biology Reveals the richness of the biosphere Figure Concept : Ecology is the study of interactions between organisms and the environment Ecology Has a long history as a descriptive science Is also a rigorous experimental science Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Events that occur in ecological time Affect life on the scale of evolutionary time Organisms and the Environment The environment of any organism includes Abiotic, or nonliving components Biotic, or living components All the organisms living in the environment, the biota Environmental components Affect the distribution and abundance of organisms Figure Kangaroos/km2 > 20 10–20 5–10 1–5 –1 20 10–20 5–10 1–5 –1 < Limits
