Biology Ecology Flashcards
___ is the study of the interactions between organisms and their environment
ecology
The ___ encompasses all that is external to the organism and is necessary for its existence
environment
An organism’s environment contains two components: the physical or nonliving (___) environment, and the living (biotic) environment
abiotic
The abiotic environment includes climate, ___, availability of light and water, and the local topology
temperature
The ___ environment includes all living things that directly or indirectly influence the life of the organism, including the relationships that exist between organisms
biotic
The ___ is the individual unit of an ecological system, but the organism itself is composed of smaller units
organism
___ are formed from tissues, tissues from cells, cells from many different molecules, molecules from atoms, and atoms from subatomic particles
organs
A ___ is any group of similar organisms that are capable of producing fertile offspring
species
A ___ is a group of organisms of the same species living in the same habitat
population
A niche defines the functional role of an organism or ___
population
The niche is distinct from the habitat - the latter is the physical ___ where an organism lies
place
The niche is so specific that a ___ can be identified by the niche it occupies
species
The concept of ___ embodies every aspect o an organism’s existence
niche
A ___ consists of populations of different plants and animal species interacting with each other in a given environment
community
The term ___ is used to include only the population and not their physical environment
biotic community
An ___ includes the community and the environment
ecosystem
___ is the orderly process by which the structure of an ecological community evolves over time
ecological succession
___ occurs in areas uninfluenced by a pre-existing community, while secondary succession occurs in areas where a pre-existing community has been disrupted
primary succession
Each community stage, or ___, in an ecological succession is identified by a dominant species - the one that exerts control over the other species that are present
sere
A ___ occurs in which a population alters the environment in such a way that the original conditions giving rise to that population are recreated.
stage
A ___ is the living (biotic) part of an ecosystem in which populations exist in balance with each other and with the environment
climax community
A climax community persists until a major climactic or geological change disturbs the ___ factors or a major biotic change (disease, mutation, etc.) affects the populations
abiotic
An ecosystem or ___ encompasses the interaction between living, biotic, communities and the nonliving, abiotic, environment
ecological community
(self-sustaining and stable ecosystem) the abiotic factors and the ___ are relatively stable
biotic community
(self-sustaining and stable ecosystem) there is a constant energy source and a biotic community incorporating this ___ into organic compounds
energy
(self-sustaining and stable ecosystem) materials are cycled between the abiotic factors and ___
biotic community
Ecosystems within a specific ___ region form biomes
geographic
The conditions in different geographic and climate regions select for plants and animals possessing ___ adaptations
suitable
___ are characterized and named according to the climax vegetation of the region
land biomes
The ___ is the vegetation that becomes dominant and stable after years of evolutionary development
climax vegetation
Since plants are important as food producers, they determine the nature of the inhabiting animal population, and thus the climax vegetation determines the ___
climax animal population
(desert biome) examples of ___ include the Sahara in Africa and the Gobi in Asia
deserts
(grassland biome) ___ that do inhabit the grasslands frequently have developed long legs, and many are hoofed
land animals
(rainforest biome) the floor is inhabited by ___, which live off of dead organic matter
saprophytes
(temperature deciduous forest biome) These ___ are found in the northeastern United States and in Central Europe
biomes
(temperature coniferous forest biome) ___ inhabitants include beavers, bears, sheep, squirrels, and birds
animal
(taiga biome) ___ exist in the extreme northern parts of Canada and Russia
taigas
(tundra biome) The ___is a treeless, frozen plain found between the taiga and the northern ice sheets
tundra
(polar region) ___that do inhabit polar regions generally live near the oceans and include penguins and polar bears
animals
___ have little controlling influence on communities of aquatic biomes compared to their role in terrestrial biomes
plants
Aquatic areas are the most stable ___: the conditions affecting temperature, the amount of available oxygen and carbon dioxide, and the amount of suspended or dissolved materials are stable over very large areas with little tendency to change
ecosystems
(marine biomes) The ___ connect to form one continuous body of water, which controls the Earth’s temperature by absorbing solar heat
oceans
(marine biomes - intertidal zone) the ___ exposed at low tides that undergoes variations in temperature and periods of dryness
region
(marine biomes - neritic zone) the ___ on the continental shelf that contains ocean with depths up to 600 feet and extends several hundred miles from the shores
region
(marine biomes - pelagic zone) typical of the open seas, this can be divided into ___ and aphotic zones
photic
(marine biomes - photic zone) the ___ of the open sea extending to a depth of 250-600 feet
sunlit layer
(marine biomes - aphotic zone) the region beneath the ___ zone that receives no sunlight
photic
(freshwater biomes) in rivers and streams, strong, swift currents exist, and thus selection favored the survival of fish that developed ___ and plants with root-like holdfasts
strong muscles
The ___ is a relatively thin zone extending a few feet beneath the Earth’s surface, several miles into the deepest sea, and several miles into the atmosphere
hydrosphere
___ possess waxy cuticles on leaf surfaces and stomata on the lower leaf surfaces only
nondesert plants
The temperature of a geographic ___ depends upon its latitude and altitude
location
(substratum - soil or rock) affected by ___ or pH which determines what types of plants grow in what types of soil
soil acidity
(substratum - soil or rock) the ___ of soil and its clay content determine the water-holding capacity of the soil
texture
(substratum - soil or rock) ___, including nitrates and phosphates, affect the type of vegetation that can be supported
minerals
(substratum - soil or rock) ___ quantity is determined by the amount of decaying plant and animal life in the soil
humus
Herbivores have long ___ tracts that provide greater surface area and time for digestion
digestive
___ capable of digesting cellulose inhabit the digestive tracts of herbivores and allow the breakdown and utilization of cellulose
symbiotic bacteria
___ occupying the same niche compete for the same limited resources: food, water, light, oxygen, space, minerals, and reproductive sites
organisms
When competing for the same resource, one species may be competitively superior to another and drive the second to ___
extinction
(competition) one ___ may be competitively superior in some regions, and the other may be superior in other regions under different environmental conditions
species
(competition) The ___ would rapidly evolve greater differences in their niches (divergent)
two species
(competition) ___ belonging to the same species utilize the same resources; if a particular resource is limited, then these organisms compete with one another
individuals
(cooperation) ___ within a population can provide protection from predators and destructive weather, acquisition of prey and resources, recognition of offspring, and transmission of learned responses
cooperative behavior
(symbiosis - commensalism) One organism is benefited by the ___, and the other is not affected
association
(symbiosis - mutualism) A ___ relationship from which both organisms derive some benefit
symbiotic
(symbiosis - parasitism) A ___ benefits at the expense of the host
parasite
(predation) ___ are free-living organisms that feed on other living organisms
predators
Examples of predators include the hawk, lion, ___, and Venus flytrap
human
___ include those protists and fungi that decompose (digest) dead organism matter externally by secreting digestive enzymes and then absorbing the nutrients; they constitute a vital link in the cycling of material within the ecosystem
saprophytes
___ are animals that consume dead animals
scavengers
A ___ is a single chain showing the transfer of energy
food chain
The levels of a food chain are called ___ and describe the number of steps an organism is from the start of the food chain
trophic levels
(food chain - primary producers) The autotrophic green plants and ___ bacteria are the producers
chemosynthetic
(food chain - primary producers) the ___ of the sun is captured and stored in the C-H bond
radiant energy
(food chain - primary consumers) primary consumers are animals that consume ___(herbivores)
green plants
(food chain - secondary consumers) ___ are animals that consume the primary consumers (carnivores)
secondary consumers
(food chain - tertiary consumers) These are animals that feed on ___ (also called carnivores)
secondary consumers
(food chain - decomposers) Decomposers break down the ___ and dead tissues to simpler compounds, such as nitrates and phosphates, which are returned to the environment to be used again by living organisms
organic wastes
(food web) The food web is not simply a linear ___ but an intricate collection of interconnected food chains
chain
(food web) The greater the number of ___ in a community food web, the more stable the community
pathways
A ____, or ecological pyramid, graphically represents the feeding relationships between trophic levels
food pyramid
___ higher in the food chain derive their food energy from organisms at lower levels
organisms
Each level of the food chain utilizes some of the ___ it obtains from food for its own metabolism (i.e., to support life functions and loses some additional energy in the form of heat
energy
Since loss of energy due to ___ means a loss of energy at each feeding level, the producer organism at the base of the pyramid contains the greatest amount of energy
heat
Since the ___ at the base contains the greatest amount of energy, this means less energy is available for the primary consumer and still less for the secondary and tertiary consumers
producer
Additionally, because ___ is lost form one level to the next, each level can support a successively smaller biomass (pyramid of biomass)
energy
___ organisms that are highest in the food chain are usually larger and heavier than those further down
consumer
Since organisms that highest in the ___ are usually larger, for the lower organism to have a greater total mass, there must be a greater number of lower-level organisms
food chain
(nitrogen cycle) Elemental ___ is chemically inert and cannot be used by most organisms
nitrogen
(nitrogen cycle) Lightning and nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the roots of ___ change the nitrogen to usable, soluble nitrates
legumes
(nitrogen cycle) The ___ are absorbed by plants and are used to synthesize nucleic acids and plant proteins
nitrates
(nitrogen cycle) ___ eat the plants and synthesize specific animal proteins from the plant proteins
animals
(nitrogen cycle) ___ locked up in waste and dead tissues is released by the action of bacteria of decay, which convert the proteins into ammonia (NH3)
nitrogen
(nitrogen cycle) Some ammonia is nitrified to nitrites by chemosynthetic bacteria and then to usable ___ by nitrifying bacteria
nitrates
(nitrogen cycle) Some ___ is broken down to release free nitrogen, which returns to the beginning of the cycle
ammonia
(carbon cycle) gaseous CO2 enters the living world when plants use it to produce ___ via photosynthesis
glucose
(carbon cycle) ___ eat plants and use the digested nutrients to form carbohydrates, fats, and proteins characteristic of the species
animals
(carbon cycle) the metabolically ___ CO2 is released into the air
produced
