Ecology
Map
Arrows point from what you learn first to what it opens. Point at a concept to light up its chain and where it comes back deeper. Right-click a concept (or press and hold it) for its lessons and stories.
- Proven to depth123
- Open
- Locked
- Comes back deeper
Learning path
In the order the concepts build on each other.
- EcosystemsReadyA community of living things together with the non-living things around them - water, soil, air, light, temperature - all acting on each other, from a puddle to a forest.
- What animals needLockedAnimals need food, water, air and shelter - and unlike plants they can't make their own food, so they must find it.Opens after: Life processes
- BiodiversityLockedThe variety of life at three levels - within species, between species and of ecosystems. People depend on it for food and medicine, and it is now being lost faster than at any time in the last 10 million years.Opens after: Species, Ecosystems
- Food websLockedEnergy enters an ecosystem through producers such as plants and passes to the consumers that eat them, losing most of itself at every step. Food chains cross into a food web, so a change to one living thing spreads to many.Opens after: Ecosystems
- HabitatsLockedThe natural home of a living thing, which provides the food, water, shelter and space it needs.Opens after: What animals need, What plants need
- DecomposersLockedFungi, bacteria and small animals such as earthworms that break down dead plants, dead animals and waste, returning their materials to the soil and air so new life can use them again.Opens after: Food webs
- InterdependenceLockedLiving things depend on each other - for food, shelter, pollination and spreading seeds - so a change to one affects many others.Opens after: Habitats
- Caring for natureLockedHow people's choices affect habitats and living things, and what we can do to protect them.Opens after: Interdependence
Connections to other domains
- Habitats needs What plants needEnergy for Life
- What animals need needs Life processesLife and Its Variety
- Biodiversity needs SpeciesLife and Its Variety