ACTIVITY 1
ORGANISM-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTIONS ACROSS ECOSYSTEMS OF ALL SIZES
ABSTRACT
The ecological hierarchy was being studied through an observation in a certain area.
Interactions between the ecological components (both biotic and abiotic) were identified.
Diverse group of species were observed as the scaling in the sampling site increases.
III. INTRODUCTION
The term scale has many meanings, and it is strongly dependent on context
(Goodchild, 2001a). For instance, in human-geography, the term scale has been reckoned to
have three aspects, namely size (e.g. census tract, province, continent), level (e.g. local,
regional, national), and relation (as a complex mix that includes space, place and
environment) (Howitt, 1998). In the context of digital technology, Goodchild (2001b)
categorized four meanings for the term scale: (1) implication of level of spatial detail, (2)
representative fraction, (3) spatial extent and (4) process scale. In the context of remote
sensing, previous studies emphasized that for the objects and phenomena in the real world,
is their inherent existence over certain ranges of scale (Koenderink, 1984; Lindeberg & Ter
Haar Romeny, 1994). Objects appear in different ways depending on the scale of
observation. An evident example to clarify the object scale-dependency is the concept of a
branch of a tree, which is meaningful to discuss it at a scale of a centimetre to maximum
meter, and it is meaningless to discuss it at the scale of a nanometre or a kilometre. At the
latter scales, it is more relevant to talk about the molecules that form the leaves of the tree
or the forest in which the tree grows (Lindeberg, 1994).
In geoscience disciplines (also known as Earth-sciences), scale concepts are well
recognized as a critical factor when studying patterns in nature and the processes that cause
them. A number of different types of scale have been identified in an attempt to improve
the reliability of outputs from spatial planning models (Bierkens, Finke, & De Willigen., 2000;
Gibson, Ostrom, & Ahn, 2000; Peterson & Thomas Parker, 1998; Sheppard & McMaster,
2008; Withers & Meentemeyer, 1999; Wu & Qi., 2000). Nevertheless, a degree of confusion
and ambiguity remains in a number of definitions of scale used in different scientific fields,
for example, in research dealing with spatial heterogeneity, spatial patterns and their
underlying processes, changes in physical entities, and population distributions, to mention
just a few examples (Gibson et al., 2000; Marceau, 1999; Steele, 1991; Turner, 1989; Wiens,
1989). The ambiguities in definitions of scale relate mainly to confused general concepts and
to the absence of an accepted, uniform terminology (Quattrochi & Goodchild, 1997;
Sheppard & McMaster, 2008; Turner, 1989; Withers & Meentemeyer, 1999; Wu, Jones, Li, &
Loucks, 2006). Ecological processes and organisms have characteristic scales. Scale is simply
the dimension in time or space over which variation is perceived. The scale at which a
biologist perceives an organism can have important consequences for the conclusions drawn
from those observations. In the laboratory, we will observe a small part of our world at
different scales in an attempt to better understand how scale affects our perceptions.
Another important concept that we will investigate is the idea of units of ecological
study. Units of ecological study can be arranged in a hierarchical fashion. Ecologists studying
this unit ask different kinds of questions and may use different approaches. An organism is
the fundamental unit of ecology; an individual living being bounded by a covering which
separates it from its environment. Organismal ecologists focus on how the organism
interacts with its environment to survive and reproduce. A population is a group of
organisms of the same species that live in a particular area. Population ecologists focus on
changes in the number of individuals over time. A community is many populations of
different species living in a particular area. Community ecologists focus on the consequences
of interactions among populations. An ecosystem contains communities of organisms and
the physical and chemical components of their environment. Ecosystem ecologists focus on
movement of energy and matter through different compartments.
Objectives:
1. To explore the concepts of scale and perspective and how these ideas apply to the
study of ecology.
2. To understand and practice observing ecological interactions.
IV. METHODOLOGY
The lab activity was conducted at Purok 4, Rosales compound, Bagontaas,
Valencia City on September 2, 2020. The sample site for the activity is located nearby
an abandoned building at Rosales compound.
A. Observations
1. Choose a comfortable seat away from areas of activity and sit alone for 15
minutes without talking, moving, or making any noise. Since you are going to remain
motionless for a while, be sure to sit in a comfortable position. The purpose of this
observation period is to give yourself time to carefully observe the area and to think
about how to apply ecological principles to what you see. Observation includes all
senses: looking about, listening, smelling the air, feeling textures, (and tasting if you
want to). Since you will be quiet for so long, you may well see and/or hear birds or
small mammals. You will most likely see insects. Even if you see no animals, the
vegetation will give you plenty to think about.
2. Concentrate on the area within 40-50 meters of you.
B. Heterogeneity at different spatial scales
1. Toss a pencil into the air; the point of the pencil will indicate a haphazardly
chosen sampling site.
2. Stand at this point. With an imaginary cube 1 cm on each side, with its bottom
resting on the ground and one corner at the pencil point, categorize the dominant
things in your sample. Look for the largest objects in the sample volume.
3. Estimate the number of categories of individual items you notice in a one-minute
visual sweep of the sample volume. For instance, you see live plant leaves or stems,
pebbles, pieces of dead leaf, soil particles, etc.
4. Do the same thing at larger scales. Additional scales are cubes 10 cm 3, 1m3, 10m3,
100m3.
5. Repeat the one-minute visual sweep and categorization of dominant things for
each successively larger cube. Categories of dominant things will probably differ for
each scale.
6. Record your observation.
7. Take a picture of yourself while conducting the experiment and document the
results.
8. Prepare a laboratory report following the prescribed format.
V. RESULTS
Scale 1 m3 10 cm3 1 m3 10 m3 100 m3
Dominan
t things Carabao Carabao Carabao Carabao Carabao
grass grass grass grass grass
Individual
items sunlight sunlight sunlight sunlight sunlight
air air air air air
insect insect pebbles pebbles pebbles
Ulasimang Ulasimang rock rock rock
Bato Bato Ulasimang dried leaves dried
Bato winged leaves
grass winged
Mimosa grass
pudica Moringa
Ulasimang olefeira
Bato lemon
grass
Ulasimang
Bato
VI. DISCUSION
Biotic and abiotic components are very important factors in an ecosystem. The
result of this lab activity shows that carabao grass is the most dominant in the sampling site.
In smaller scale, there is no any individual item observed. When the same process
mentioned in the above methodology is applied to the next scales, organisms observed in
the sampling site varies depending on the scales. It only implies that the larger an area to
observe is, the diverse organisms can be found. Certain plant and certain animals can exist
depending on the habitat they can live. One of the most important concepts associated with
the ecosystem is niche. A niche refers to the role of a species in its ecosystem. It includes all
the ways that the species interacts with the biotic and abiotic factors of the environment.
This lab activity gave us the chance to appreciate everything that surrounds us by using our
different senses. This activity helped us to realize that everything in the environment, from
the tiniest insect to the largest plants and animals are interconnected to one another.
VII. LITERATURE CITED
The purpose of this lab activity is to allow us explore the concepts of scale and
perspective and how this idea apply to the study of ecology. This activity help us
understand and practice observing ecological interaction happening in the ecological
hierarchy. It can also help us learned that a given habitat may contain many different
species but each species must have a different niche. Two different species cannot
occupy the same niche in the same place very long.
Reference:
Jen Klug and Tod Osier. 2002. Ecology Laboratory Manual. Fairfield
University, CT, USA.
G. Tyler Miller, Jr. and Scott E. Spoolman. Essentials of Ecology, 5 th Edition.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333694028_Scale_matters_a_survey_of_the_co
ncepts_of_scale_used_in_spatial_disciplines
