Introduction to Ecosystems

Topics Covered

• Introduction to the concept of an ecosystem and the problems of scoping a useable definition. Applying the definition to an example of a small ecosystem.
• Following a food chain that links a group of organisms. Exploring those links in specific examples and what these reveal. Studying examples of adaptations to particular habitats and extreme conditions, displayed by animals and plants.
• Investigating the diversity of life within different ecosystems and the small organisms that form the base of food chains.
• Undertaking a small project on observing and identifying organisms in a neighbourhood ecosystem and contributing to an online community.
• Using case studies, exploring the impact that humans can have on ecosystems and whether damaging impacts can be reversed. Examples of conservation and the problem of habitat restoration, illustrated by the conservation efforts to maintain a spider population.
• Conserving lowland gorillas, China’s Loess Plateau and the Galápagos world heritage site.
• How the problems of the Galápagos illustrate how fragile ecosystems can become and how important it is to understand such systems if we are to maintain them in balance.