Environment - Basics

1. Introduction
Background

2. Analysis
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2011 2012 2013 201 4

3. What is Environment ?
 Surroundings or conditions in which an organism lives
or operate.
climate , weather , Natural resources
survival , development , Evolution
Components of Environment.
• Biotic
• Abiotic

4. Components of Ecosystem
Components of
Ecosystem
Biotic components
Abiotic
components
Physical factors
 Temp
 Humidity
 Light
 Atmospheric pressure
Inorganic substances
 Water
 Oxygen
 Carbon dioxide
 Nitrogen
Organic substances
 Proteins
 Carbohydrates
 Lipids
Consumers
(Animals)
Decomposers
(Microorganisms)
Producers
(Green plants)

5. What is an Ecosystem ?

6. Types of an Ecosystem

7.  The term ‘ecosystem’ was coined by A.G. Tansley in 1935.
 Study of Ecosystem is known as Ecology – First coined by
German biologist Ernst Haeckel in 1869.
 Ecological Niche : The term niche means the sum of all
the activities and relationships of a species by which it uses
the resources in its habitat for its survival and reproduction.
 The process by which communities of plant and animal
species in an area are replaced or changed into another over
a period of time is known as ecological succession.
Primary succession
Secondary succession

8. Major Habitats :A habitat is an ecological or environmental
area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant , or other type
of organism
Terrestrial Estuarine
Ocean Freshwater
Home Range : Home range is the area in which an
animal lives and travels
Ecotone : An ecotone is a transition area between two
biomes

9. Biomes : continuous area of similar Climatic or geographic
conditions

10. Levels of Ecological Organization

11. Biosphere
Hydrosphere
Atmosphere
Lithosphere
Biosphere

12. Energy Flow Through Ecosystem
 Food chains and energy flow are the functional properties
of ecosystems which make them dynamic. The biotic and
abiotic components of an ecosystem are linked through
them.

13. Transfer of food energy from green plants (producers) through a
series of organisms with repeated eating and being eaten is called
a food chain . Each step in the food chain is called trophic level

14. Types of food chain
 Grazing food chains
 Detritus food chain
FoodWeb
 Trophic levels in an ecosystem are not linear rather
they are interconnected and make a food web. Thus
food web is a network interconnected food chains
existing in an ecosystem.

16. Ecological pyramid
 Ecological pyramids are the graphic representations of
Trophic levels in an ecosystem.

17. Pyramid of numbers

18. Pyramid of biomass : Represents total standing crop
biomass at each level ,Standing crop biomass is the amount of the living matter at any
given time

19. Upright pyramid of Biomass

20. Pyramid of energy

21. Biomagnifications

22. Question – Answer
Q : 1 A pesticide which is a chlorinated hydrocarbon
sprayed on food crop. The food chain is : Food crop –
Rat – Snake – Hawk .In this food chain , the highest
concentration of the pesticide would accumulate in
which of the following ? Pre (2010)
a) Food crop c) Snake
b) Rat d) Hawk

23. Q-2 What would happen if phytoplankton of an
ocean is completely destroyed for some reason ?
Pre. (2010)
1) The ocean as a carbon sink would be adversely affected
2) The food chains in the ocean would be adversely affected
3) The density of ocean water would drastically decrease
Select the correct answer using codes given below:
a) 1 and 2 only b) 2 only
c) 3 only d) 1,2 and 3

24. Q : 3 Vultures which used to be very common in Indian
countryside some years ago are rarely seen nowadays.
This is attributed to Pre.(2012)
a) The destruction of their nesting sites by new invasive
species
b) A drug used by cattle owners for treating their
diseased cattle
c) Scarcity of food available to them
d) A widespread , persistent and fatal disease among
them

25. Q: 4 With reference to food chains in ecosystems,
consider the following statements :
1 A food chain illustrates the order in which a chain of
organisms feed upon each other.
2 Food chains are found within the populations of a
species.
3 A food chain illustrates the numbers of each
organism which are eaten by others. Pre. (2013)
Which of the statements given above is /are correct ?
a) 1 only b) 1 and 2 only
c) 1 , 2 ,3 d) none of these

26. Q : 5 Which of the following terms describes not only
the physical space occupied by a organism , but also
it’s Functional role in the community of organisms ?
a) Ecotone b) Ecological niche
c) Habitat d) Home range

27. Q 6: Which one of the following is the process
involved in photosynthesis? (2014)
a)Potential energy is released to form free energy
b)Free energy is converted into potential energy and
stored
C) Food is oxidized to release carbon dioxide and water
d) Oxygen is taken, and carbon dioxide and water vapour
are given out

28. Q : 7 Lichen succession Lichens, which are capable
of initiating ecological succession even on a bare
rock, are actually a symbiotic association of
(2014)
a) algae and bacteria
b) algae and fungi
c) bacteria and fungi
d) fungi and mosses

29. Q: 8 Which of the following adds/add carbon dioxide to
the carbon cycle on the planet Earth? (2014)
1)Volcanic action
2)Respiration
3)Photosynthesis
4)Decay of organic matter
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
a) 1 and 3 only
b) 2 only
c) 1, 2 and 4 only
d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

30. Q: 9 Which one of the following is the correct sequence
of ecosystems in the order of decreasing productivity ?
a) Oceans , Lakes , grasslands , mangroves
b) Mangroves , oceans , grass-lands , lakes
c) Mangroves , grasslands , Lakes , oceans
d) Oceans , mangroves , lakes , grasslands

31. Q: 10 Many transplanted seedlings don’t grow
because
a) The new soil does not contain favourable minerals
b) Most of the root hairs grip the new soil to hard
c) Most of the root hairs are lost during transplantation
d) Leaves get damaged during transplantation

32. Q:11 With reference to the food chains in
ecosystems , which of the following kinds of
organism know as decomposer ?
1 Virus
2 Fungi
3 Bacteria
Select the correct answer using the codes given below.
a) 1 only b) 2 & 3 only
c) 1 & 3 only d) 1,2 & 3

33. Water Cycle

34. Carbon cycle

35. Nitrogen cycle