Bio1100
Chapter 17
Ecosystems, communities, and species interactions
Ecology
is the study of interactions of living organisms with one another (community) and their physical environment (
ecosystem
).
Ecosystems that occupy large areas are called
biomes
.
Terrestrial
biomes
Aquatic
biomes
Energy
flows
in one direction through
trophic
levels of an ecosystem, forming a complex
food
web
.
Unlike energy, the physical components of ecosystems are
reused
in
chemical
cycles
.