Module1.1-Beneficial-Arthropods-Biocon-Agents.pdf

the importance of using natural organisms such as predators, parasitoids, entomopathogens, and antagonist pathogens in managing agricultural pests.

1. MODULE 1-INTRODUCTION
TOPIC 1.
Biological World
and Its Balancing
Mechanisms

2. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
WHAT IS ECOSYSTEM?
isa geographic area where plants, animals and
other organisms, as well as weather and
landscape, work together to form a bubble of life.
Ecosystems contain biotic (living) factors, as well as
abiotic (nonliving) factors

3. 1.Biological World and Its Balancing
Mechanisms

4. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
WHAT IS ECOLOGY?
Is a branch of science that involves the
study of living organisms and their
sorroundings.

5. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
WHAT STUDY ECOLOGY?
To understand how the different organisms ;
grow,populate/reproduce,Endof life/die
Interact with other organisms ( pest,
parasite, predator)
Evolve/adapt to other factors ( climate,
risks, limitations)

6. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
Ecosystem vs. Ecology

7. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
The holistic view of an ecosystem

8. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
•Abiotic factors:
Non-living components such as
sunlight, water, soil, and nutrients. These
form the environmental base for all life.
•Biotic factors:
Living components, including all the
organisms in the ecosystem.

9. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
Producers and consumers:
Producers (like plants) convert sunlight
into energy, forming the base of the food
web. Consumers (like herbivores and
carnivores) transfer this energy through the
ecosystem.
This cycling ensures the continuous
availability of energy and nutrients.

10. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
•Energy flow:
The one-way transfer of energy,
originating primarily from the sun, through
different trophic levels.
•Nutrient cycling:
The movement and recycling of
chemical elements like carbon, nitrogen, and
phosphorus between the living and non-
living components of the ecosystem.

11. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
•Energy and nutrient cycling:
(Biogeochemical cycles )
ensure that essential materials are
continually reused and redistributed.
For example, decomposers break down
dead organic matter, returning nutrients to
the soil for producers to use.

12. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms

13. 1.Biological World and Its Balancing
Mechanisms
•SPECIES
Groups of actually or potentially interbreeding
natural populations that are reproductively isolated
from one other groups.
•POPULATION
A collection of individuals of one species that
exist in some define geographical area.
•COMMUNITY
A group of population that exist in some define
geographical area.

14. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
Balancing Mechanisms:
1.Trophic levels: Hierarchical levels in an
ecosystem, from producers to various levels of
consumers.
2.Predator-prey relationships: Interactions
where one species (the predator) hunts and
kills another (the prey) for food.
3.Competition:Interactions where organisms
compete for limited resources like food, water,
or territory.

15. Biological World and Its Balancing
Mechanisms
•Predator-prey dynamics: This is a classic negative
feedback loop.
For example, an increase in prey population provides
more food for predators, causing the predator population
to increase. The larger predator population then reduces
the prey population, which in turn leads to a decrease in
the predator population.
This dynamic prevents any single species from
dominatingand exceeding the ecosystem's carrying
capacity.

16. 1.Biological World and Its
Balancing Mechanisms
4.Biodiversity: A diverse food web with
many species and connections offers
stability.
If one species is affected by a
disturbance, other connections can
compensate, increasing the ecosystem's
resilience.