APES Unit 2 Flashcards
10% rule
between one trophic level to the next only 10% of the energy is passed on to the next
Abiotic
non-living
ammonia
NH3
Biogeochemical cycle
involves external transfers of elements among different components of a forest system
Biome
a geographic region that is characterized by a certain type of climate, plant growth, or any other distinguishing characteristic
biotic
living
cellular respiration
the process by which organisms combine oxygen with foodstuff molecules, diverting chemical energy in these substances into life-sustaining activities and discarding, as waste products, carbon dioxide and water
commensalism
a relationship in which one benefits and the other is unaffected
community
a level of population complexity that incorporates all of the populations of organisms within a given area
competition
two or more individual organisms of a single species attempting to use the same scarce resources in the same ecosystem
decomposition
organic material breaks down which returns organic carbon to the soil
ecology
the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings
ecosystem
a particular location on Earth with interacting biotic and abiotic components
food chain
a succession of organisms in an ecological community that constitutes a continuation of food energy from one organism to another as each consumes a lower member and, in turn, is preyed upon by a higher member
food web
consists of all the food chains in a single ecosystem
GPP
Gross Primary Productivity is a measure of the rate at which an ecosystem incorporates carbon from the atmosphere into biomass in a given length of time
groundwater
the water that fills all pore spaces in the sediments and rocks below the water table
hydrologic cycle
the process in which water passes from vapor in the atmosphere through precipitation and ultimately back into the atmosphere as a result of evaporation and transpiration
Laws of Thermodynamics
energy is neither created nor destroyed, but may be converted from one form to another
mutualism
symbiotic relationship in which both species involved benefit from the relationship
NPP
Net Primary Production; the amount of energy that is actually stored in the plant after respiration processes
parasitism
when a species lives on or in another and causes it harm
nitrogen fixation
the process by which certain bacteria convert nitrogen gas to ammonia
nutrient
a chemical compound contained in foods that help the body function and grow
photosynthesis
the process by which producers use solar energy to convert carbon dioxide and water in glucose
population
the individuals that belong to the same species and live in a given area at a given time
primary productivity
the rate at which energy is converted by photosynthetic and chemosynthetic autotrophs to organic substances
producers
an organism that uses the energy of the sun to produce usable forms of energy
reservoir
the water body created by damming a river or stream
resource partitioning
occurs when species competing for similar scarce resources evolve specialized traits that allow them to share resources by using parts of them, using them at different times, or using them in different ways
salinity
a measure of dissolved salts in sea water
sink
one that receives more than it provides
source
a reservoir that contributes more of a material than it receives
symbiosis
a relationship between two organisms in which one organism benefits and the other is unaffected
trophic level
trophic level
different levels of animals eating one another
turbidity
muddiness created by stirring up sediment or having foreign particles suspended
uptake
