Field of Mars Environmental Education Centre

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Emailfieldofmar-e.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Natural interactions

Natural interactions

An ecosystem is impacted by natural forces and is always changing. It is more dynamic than many people realise.

When we study ecosystem dynamics we investigate what are the changes and patterns of change.

An interaction occurs when two or more objects or forces have an effect upon one another.

When studying interactions and how they change many people organise their thinking around the concept of "biotic and abiotic factors" where the biotic factors refer to all the living things present, and the abiotic factors refer to all the non-living components like physical conditions and chemical agents.

The photos below show some examples of the natural interactions that shape this dynamic environment. See if you can identify some the biotic and abiotic factors at play.

Loose sandy and loamy soils
Image: Loose sandy and loamy soils are low in nutrients and dry out quickly however they support a diverse community of native plants. The sandy soils are usually covered in thick leaf litter and a dense layer of ground cover vegetation, ideal habitat for ground dwelling native fauna.
Eucalyptus canopy
Image: Sclerophyll vegetation typically has plants with hard, short and often spiky leaves, which is a condition closely associated with the low levels of nutients in the soil. Low nutrient soils are undesirable for agriculture, so native vegetation has remained relatively intact.

Sandstone eroded puddle
Image: Eroded depressions in sandstone benches form freshwater rain-pools after rain but may dry out quickly in hot, dry conditions.
Sandstone outcrop
Image: Weathered rock outcrops of Hawkesbury sandstone are often separated by deep cracks filled with leaf litter.

Possum drey
Image: Ringtail possums use bark, leaf litter and small sticks to build dreys (nests) in dense thickets of vegetation.
lorikeet in hole
Image: Many species of birds and brushtail possums rely on "hollows" in mature trees for nesting.

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We’d like to acknowledge the Wallumedegal Peoples of the Darug Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we stand and pay our respects to Elders past and present.

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