Introduction to Unit 10 : Important Topics To Read
Unit 10: This unit has to be prepared together for both the environmental concerns and applied ecological concepts. A very interesting and scoring unit, so avoid skipping. Listed are some of the frequently asked topics, although almost everything mentioned under the syllabus is equally important.
Syllabus of Unit 10
10. ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES
A. The Environment: Physical environment; biotic environment; biotic and abiotic interactions.
B. Habitat and Niche: Concept of habitat and niche; niche width and overlap; fundamental and realized niche; resource partitioning; character displacement.
C. Population Ecology: Characteristics of a population; population growth curves; population regulation; life history strategies (r and K selection); concept of metapopulation – demes and dispersal, interdemic extinctions, age structured populations.
D. Species Interactions: Types of interactions, interspecific competition, herbivory, carnivory, pollination, symbiosis.
E. Community Ecology: Nature of communities; community structure and attributes; levels of species diversity and its measurement; edges and ecotones.
F. Ecological Succession: Types; mechanisms; changes involved in succession; concept of climax.
G. Ecosystem Ecology: Ecosystem structure; ecosystem function; energy flow and mineral cycling (C,N,P); primary production and decomposition; structure and function of some Indian ecosystems: terrestrial (forest, grassland) and aquatic (fresh water, marine, eustarine).
H. Biogeography: Major terrestrial biomes; theory of island biogeography; biogeographical zones of India.
I. Applied Ecology: Environmental pollution; global environmental change; biodiversity: status, monitoring and documentation; major drivers of biodiversity change; biodiversity management approaches.
J. Conservation Biology: Principles of conservation, major approaches to management, Indian case studies on conservation/management strategy (Project Tiger, Biosphere reserves)
Important Topics to be studied From CSIR NET Unit 10
- The structure of an ecological organization, like organisms, population, community, ecosystem, biomes, and biosphere. It is required to have a good knowledge of the major biomes of the world.
- Structure and components of different types of ecosystems like terrestrial, forest, grassland, and aquatic.
- Rules in Ecology like Bergmann’s rule, Allen’s rule, Gloger’s rule, Yoda’s law
- Ecosystem ecology – types and mechanisms of succession, changes involved, energy cycling and minerals flow, primary production, Gross Primary Productivity, Net Primary productivity, decomposition, food web, the food chain.
- Pyramids of energy and population, thermal stratification in the lentic ecosystem
- Population Ecology – r and k selection, Hardy Weinberg Law, gene pool, Concepts and rate of change in gene frequency through natural selection, survivorship curves, population characteristics and regulation, population growth curves, metapopulation, terms like demes, dispersal, intergenic extinction, age-structured population are important.
- Biosphere reserves and sanctuaries in different states of India, the difference between adaptation and acclimatization, recent concerns like anthropological activities, global warming, environmental pollution, monitoring, its effects on biodiversity, Project Tiger.
REFERENCE BOOKS For CSIR NET UNIT 10
- Basic Ecology: Fundamentals of Ecology by Eugene P. Odum
- Ecology Environmental Science and Conservation by Sp Singh Js Singh
