How does changing an ecosystem affect what lives there? This unit on ecosystem dynamics and biodiversity begins with students reading headlines that claim that the future of orangutans is in peril and that the purchasing of chocolate may be the cause. Students then examine the ingredients in popular chocolate candies and learn that one of these ingredients--palm oil--is grown on farms near the rainforest where orangutans live. This prompts students to develop initial models to explain how buying candy could impact orangutans.

OpenSciEd content is highly rated in EdReports and is aligned to NGSS standards.

Biology 2e is designed to cover the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester biology course for science majors. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology includes rich features that engage students in scientific inquiry, highlight careers in the biological sciences, and offer everyday applications. The book also includes various types of practice and homework questions that help students understand—and apply—key concepts. The 2nd edition has been revised to incorporate clearer, more current, and more dynamic explanations, while maintaining the same organization as the first edition. Art and illustrations have been substantially improved, and the textbook features additional assessments and related resources.

By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:

Describe the basic ecosystem types
Explain the methods that ecologists use to study ecosystem structure and dynamics
Identify the different methods of ecosystem modeling
Differentiate between food chains and food webs and recognize the importance of each

In this video, Paul Andersen explains how ecosystems respond to disruptions. Disruptions can cause changes in the number and variety of organisms. It can also lead to migration, extinction or even speciation. Ecosystems that have higher biodiversity are able to respond to large disruptions over time. [6:52]

Ecosystems are "dynamic." This means that ecosystems change over time. Both natural forces and human actions cause ecosystems to change. Learn more about succession in this learning module produced by CK-12.

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