Basic Ecology Flashcards
The scientific study of the relationships between organisms and their enviroment
Ecology
What do ecologist study?
the interactions that determine the distribution and abundance of a type of organism in a particular area
Of or having to do with life or living-organisms, particularly in their ecological relationships
Biotic
Of or pertaining to the physical enviroment
Abiotic
What are the two basic ways that ecologists asses patterns and change?
spatial change and temporal change
What is species distribution?
where species are located on Earth
What is species abundance?
the number of individual species found in an area
Ecology came from the term…
oekologie
Who first used the term oekologie?
German Biologist Ernst Haeckel
What does the greek word oikos stand for?
house
What does the Greek word logos stand for?
study of or science of
The first level of Ecological organization is what?
individual
The study of populations of organisms, which often seeks to find answers to questions about how and why the locations and numbers of populations change over time
population ecology
Two or more interacting populations of plants and animals of different species in the same area
community
A community of organisms and the physical environment in which they live
ecosystem
What 2 non-living things do organisms depend on?
water and sunlight
The study of the way climate alters the distribution of communities, the rates at which nutrients and water enter a community, and the way that soils and precipitation patterns alter the relationships between plant communities and other organisms
ecosystem ecology
Patchworks of multiple communities and ecosystems, typically studied at larger spatial scales
landscapes
What happens to a landscape ecosystem at higher elevations?
temperatures are lower and the air is thinner
What 2 things affect organisms in landscapes?
temperature and air pressure
These are large scale regions dominated by similar types of ecosystems
biomes
List 5 types of biomes
tropical grasslands, deserts, temperate forests, arctic tundra
This consists of all living organisms on the planet and the physical enviroment
biosphere
This is an educated guess based on prior experience and knowledge about what is driving an observation, and is testable
hypothesis
This is the process by which scientific inquiry takes place
scientific method
List the scientific method steps..
- Ask a question
- State a measurable hypothesis
- Conduct an experiment
- Analyze the results
- Make a conclusion
- Hypothesis accepted or rejected
