Principles of Ecology

On that day, Dr Wan told us to sit in a group and discuss each other about the topic that has been given to us. We were required to understand the topic because later on we will move to each group and teach them what we had understand. While the other group must find some interesting facts to add on the topic. After learning this topic, we able to understand the principles of ecology, to list and interpret the hierarchy in ecology, to describe the factors determining the distribution of organisms, to explain the contribution factors leading to homeostasis and to describe type of interactions. 

Ecology is the systemtic study of organisms and their interations with the environment that reveals the relationships between living and nonliving parts of the environment.

Hierarchy in Ecology

Homeostasis is a dynamic balance of processes, materials and organisms in the ecosystem and biosphere. Roles of microbes in the ecosystems are oxygen producer (half of the oxygen on earth is produced by trees in the rain forest, the other half by blue-green algae in the ocean), fix nitrogen in the atmosphere into usable form, recyclers of dead materials, source of food in food chain, contribute to evolution and remove weaker species through infections. There are three types of physical interactions which are endosymbiosis, ectosymbiosis and  endo/ectosymbiosis.

Beneficial/harmful effects