ECOSYSTEM

 Meaning of Ecosystem

An ecosystem can be quite large or very small. It can be a big forest, ocean or a small compost pit or an aquarium. To be truly ecological systems one must be properly able to sustain life in this unit.

Along with this, all the contents of this ecosystem should be re-used in a cyclical form. That is, whatever is left in this system can be used by the second and eventually it can also be used by the first organism. For example, the carbon dioxide released by our breath goes into the air, which plants then convert into oxygen which is necessary for us.

Keeping all these circumstances in mind, we can find many ecosystems of different sizes and types around us. An ecosystem may be connected in some way to other systems around it, or several ecosystems can form a larger ecosystem.

Ultimately, all the ecosystems on Earth can be seen to be connected to each other in some form and together they form the biosphere - the biosphere - it is the largest ecosystem in which all earthworms (all animals, flora, fauna, Etc.) are part.

There is a fact that this biosphere, which is the only part of the earth where all life exists, is only a negligible part of the whole planet. It extends a few hundred meters below sea level and a few kilometers up. All the life of the earth is limited inside this shell by this thin, which includes the land of the upper part of the earth and the upper part of the ocean and the lower part of the atmosphere.

However, the availability of sun rays determines the depth of life found in the ocean i.e. to what depth does the sun's rays reach for life in the ocean and the availability of other factors of life such as oxygen etc. from life in the top layer. It seems.

Composition of Ecosystem:

Each ecosystem is composed of two types of components:

i. Biological component
ii. Abiotic component. 

i. Organic component or living component:

Under the biological component, various types of plants, animals and micro-organisms are included. In ecosystems, animal and plant communities live together which are related in some way or the other.

On the basis of nutrition, biological components can be divided into three parts:

               a. Manufacturer
               b. Consumer
               c. Decomposer

a. Manufacturer:

Green plants make their own food by using the energy of the sun through photosynthesis. Such components in an ecosystem are called producers or autotrophs.

b. Consumer:

Under this, they come alive who cannot make their own food and they depend on plants and other organisms for their food. For this reason, they are called the host components of the ecosystem. They consume food prepared by producers or other organisms, hence they are also called consumers.

Consumer organisms are mainly classified into three categories:

(a) Primary consumer (vegetarian):

Organisms that receive food from green plants, ie growers, are called primary consumers or herbivores. Such as - cow, buffalo, goat, deer, rabbit, elephant, grasshopper etc.

(b) Secondary consumer (non-vegetarian):

Organisms that depend on the primary consumer for their food are called secondary consumers. Such as - lion, fox, frog, lizard etc.

(c) Tertiary consumers:

This category also includes carnivorous organisms that obtain food from other carnivorous organisms or secondary consumers. Such as snake, vulture, eagle, lion etc.

c. Decomposer:

Under this comes microorganisms which decompose the dead bodies of various types of organisms (plants and animals) such as: fungi and bacteria. These microorganisms decompose the complex organic materials present in the dead body into simple substances. These simple substances reach the jhoom and again become available for use to the plants. Thus this cycle goes on. Decomposers are also called as living organisms due to dependence on dead organisms.

ii. Abiotic components

All inanimate substances found in the ecosystem are called its abiotic components.

In terms of structure, inorganic components can be divided into three parts:

a. Inorganic substances:

These are the nutrients of autotrophic components like green plants that they get from the environment. These include various water salts and gases such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, etc.

b. Organic material:

These include proteins derived from dead plants and animals, carbohydrate fat etc. By the action of fungi and bacteria, these organic materials are converted into inorganic materials and the plants use them again. In this way, various organic materials establish relationships between biological and abiotic components of the ecosystem.

c. Climate related factors:

Physical factors include air, heat, light, rain, fog, frost, humidity etc. All of the above substances must be in constant flow in the ecosystem. Thus we came to know that all the biological and abiotic components work together in the ecosystem of the environment.

Functions of Ecosystem:

The ecosystem is always functional, as the flow of various substances in the ecosystem is in the form of a cycle. 

All the components of the ecosystem work together as follows:

i. Green plants produce food by photosynthesis and are called producers. Organisms that receive food from these producers are called primary consumers or vegetarians.

ii. Primary consumers serve to provide nutrition to the secondary consumer.

iii. Tertiary consumers receive nutrition from secondary consumers.

iv. Decomposers (bacteria, fungi, etc.) perform the task of decomposing dead bodies of organisms (plants and animals) of all levels.

In this way, the living beings receive various elements from the atmosphere, hydrosphere, stratosphere, and after reaching different levels, after some time, the elements are released again into the chambers. In this cycle, both organic and non-organic components are constantly interacting.

Importance of Ecosystem:

The components of the various ecosystems found in the biosphere are interrelated and thus the balance of the environment is maintained, hence the importance of the ecosystem is in keeping the environment balance. We know that no living organism can survive alone. Can you imagine what would happen if you were not productive in nature? All living beings depend on other living beings in one way or the other.

Due to ecosystems there is neither excess nor deficiency of any organism in the environment. Thus the food chains and food webs found in the ecosystem have a special importance in maintaining the stability and balance of the environment.