Project Description
For this project we were tasked with researching either an ecosystem or a specific species. We chose to research the ecosystem of Borneo, Large island in the Indonesian archipelago. During this we also learned about the natural processes in environments and connecting it to our research. The natural processes we learned were the Carbon Cycle, Nitrogen Cycle, Photosynthesis, Cellular Respiration, Water Cycle, and Food Webs. In addition to learning about the ecosystem and natural processes, we also learned about the human impacts on the environment and other problems happening to the environment. The final product of this project was a solution and action to help solve the problems of Borneo. To help Borneo, we decided to make a website to spread awareness about the issues facing Borneo, posters to lead to the website, and make a slideshow presentation.
Key Terms
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Ecology and Organization
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General Vocabulary
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Types of Relationships
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Cycles and Processes
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Ecology- The study of the interactions between living things and their environments. In our project we researched how all the organisms were connected with each other in things such as food webs.
Organization of Ecology- This is the organization of the sub groups of ecology that are parts of larger ecological groups. From big to small the groups is, biosphere, biome, ecosystem, community, population, and individual. Out of the organization on ecology, we researched the ecosystem Borneo.
Organization of Ecology- This is the organization of the sub groups of ecology that are parts of larger ecological groups. From big to small the groups is, biosphere, biome, ecosystem, community, population, and individual. Out of the organization on ecology, we researched the ecosystem Borneo.
Biosphere- Every surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth that is occupied by living things. Borneo is part of this biosphere
Biome- A group of ecosystems with similar climates and environments. The Biomes are tundra, desert, temperate grasslands, taiga, savanna, topical rainforest, chaparral, temperate deciduous forest, grasslands, and forest. Borneo is in the rainforest biome. Ecosystem- A group of abiotic and biotic communities interacting with each other. Borneo is the ecosystem we researched. Community- Populations of different species interacting with each other. An example from Borneo is different populations of monkeys, trees, fruits, and other animals and plants. Population- A group of individuals of the same species in one area. An example of a population is the Clouded Leopards in Borneo. Individual- A single living organism. This can be a single clouded leopard. |
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Abiotic Factor- A nonliving factor in the ecosystem. This can be a rock or condition of the soil.
Biotic Factor- A living factor in the ecosystem. Examples of this is durian and clouded leopards.
Carrying Capacity- The population size that an ecosystem can support. This can be increased or reduced by the limiting factors of the ecosystem. An example of carrying capacity in Borneo is the amount of flying squirrels cannot increase due to the amount of food provided by the ecosystem.
Limiting Factors- Factors that limit the size of the populations. There are two types of limiting factors are density dependent limiting factors and density independent limiting factors. Examples of this is the amount of food can limit a population, and natural disasters can cause a portion of a population to die off.
Density Dependent Limiting Factors- A limiting factors that only goes into affect depending on the population size. A few examples of this is food and space. Food is density dependent because the amount of food only becomes a problem when the population is too big to feed. Space is also population dependent because the space only becomes a problems when the population is too big for the amount of space provided by the ecosystem.
Density Independent Populations- A limiting factors that limiting the population regardless of population size. Examples of these are climate and natural disasters.
Biomass- The mass of all the organisms in an ecosystems.
Disturbance of Homeostasis- When the homeostasis, or balance of the ecosystem, is made unstable from some factor. An example of this when humans destroy a forest and the balance of the animals in the ecosystems become unstable.
Biotic Factor- A living factor in the ecosystem. Examples of this is durian and clouded leopards.
Carrying Capacity- The population size that an ecosystem can support. This can be increased or reduced by the limiting factors of the ecosystem. An example of carrying capacity in Borneo is the amount of flying squirrels cannot increase due to the amount of food provided by the ecosystem.
Limiting Factors- Factors that limit the size of the populations. There are two types of limiting factors are density dependent limiting factors and density independent limiting factors. Examples of this is the amount of food can limit a population, and natural disasters can cause a portion of a population to die off.
Density Dependent Limiting Factors- A limiting factors that only goes into affect depending on the population size. A few examples of this is food and space. Food is density dependent because the amount of food only becomes a problem when the population is too big to feed. Space is also population dependent because the space only becomes a problems when the population is too big for the amount of space provided by the ecosystem.
Density Independent Populations- A limiting factors that limiting the population regardless of population size. Examples of these are climate and natural disasters.
Biomass- The mass of all the organisms in an ecosystems.
Disturbance of Homeostasis- When the homeostasis, or balance of the ecosystem, is made unstable from some factor. An example of this when humans destroy a forest and the balance of the animals in the ecosystems become unstable.
Symbiosis- A relationship between two species and how they interact. An example of this is how clouded leopards eat flying squirrels.
Mutualism- A relationship between two species that benefits both species. An example is the flowers and bees where the flowers get pollinated and the bees get food.
Predation/Parasitism- A relationship where one species is positively affected while the other is negatively affected. An example is how clouded leopards eat flying squirrels.
Commensalism- A relationship where one species is positively affected and the other is neither negatively or positively affected. An example is barnacles and whales where the barnacles get food from whales leftovers and the whales don't do anything.
Competition- A relationship that negatively affects both of the species. An example is the clouded leopard and the sun bear going after the same prey.
Mutualism- A relationship between two species that benefits both species. An example is the flowers and bees where the flowers get pollinated and the bees get food.
Predation/Parasitism- A relationship where one species is positively affected while the other is negatively affected. An example is how clouded leopards eat flying squirrels.
Commensalism- A relationship where one species is positively affected and the other is neither negatively or positively affected. An example is barnacles and whales where the barnacles get food from whales leftovers and the whales don't do anything.
Competition- A relationship that negatively affects both of the species. An example is the clouded leopard and the sun bear going after the same prey.
Presentation
Our Website
Reflection
Overall the project's product turned our very well however the overall affect of the project was very small. The posters, slideshow, and website turned out very neat and effectively represents to information we were trying to show. However, the information would not get very far due to the fact we did not do much outside of school and therefore can really only affect those who went to our school and no one who was doing stuff outside of the school. Two things that I improved during this project was my collaboration and critical thinking. I was able to improve on my collaboration by working with my teammates in each portion of the project. Critical thinking was improved because the whole team had to think thoroughly on a solution for the problem that would work for everyone in the team. A couple things I could have improved on was to be more culturally competent and character. I could have been more culturally competent by keeping up with the current problems of Borneo. Character could have been improved by adding more things in the project that made it more personally unique to the group rather than just plainly reciting our information during the presentation. Two pits of the project was the pacing of the presentation process and hanging of the posters. We could have started the presentation earlier instead of making it as late as we did. In addition we also forgot to hang up the posters however it was very minor and did not quite effect the actual project. Two peaks of the project was the website and the research. The website of the project was very organized and neatly made, while also leading the visitors to the link for the World Wild Foundation. The research was also done in groups and split up neatly and had all the links to the sources. Overall this was a very enjoyable project.