chapter 1 Flashcards
Definition of Ecology
a broad field of scientific inquiry that focuses on..
interactions between organisms and their abiotic environments
effects of these interactions on their distribution and abundance
Ecology is…
inherently INTERDISCIPLINARY
integrating many seemingly diffuse fields such as:
Biology Sociology
Mathematics Geology
Physics Architecture
Chemistry Economics
Who coined the term ecology?
Ernst Haeckel
Ecology is the study of?
interactions between organisms and their environments
Economy of Nature
investigation of the total relationships of the animal both to its inorganic and organic environment
including its friendly and inimical relations with those animals and plants with which it comes directly or indirectly into contact
Relation between Evolution and Ecology
natural systems are formed through Evolution
Charles Darwin
-on the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection
-derived from observation
-species change to better fit their environment
Stephen A. Forbes
look at entire environment instead of one fish species to understand all of fish species
Aldo Leopold
Proper way to manage areas for healthy population
Eugene Odum
look at energy and nutrients it is the currency of ecosystem function
John Muir
prevent damn, fight for conservation of natural reservation
Theodore Roosevelt
national parks preserved
Henry David Thoreau
-valued nature
-did the waldo pond experiences
Rachel Carson
-one of the first people to realize the global dangers of pesticide abuse (DDT).
-wrote silent spring and scientist responsible
What is the environment made up of?
-is the stuff around every level that influences its properties and dynamics
-made up of two things, abiotic and a biotic environment
The ecosystem is a collection of?
of parts that function as a unit
Biotic
living components
Abiotic
nonliving (physical and chemical) components
Nutrient Cycling
Dynamic System and REPLENISHMENT help maintain nutrients as well Replenished Nutrients More Deaths More Nutrients returned to the soil
Levels of organization
-Organism
-Population: group of individuals of the same species that occupy a given area
-Communities: populations of diff. species living and interacting with an ecosystem
-Ecosystem: collected of related parts that function as a unit
-Landscape: area of land composed of communities and ecosystems
-Biomes: broad-scale regions
-Biosphere: thin layer around earth
Order of Scientific Method
Observation
Question
Hypothesis
Prediction
Hypothesis testing and repeat
Theory
Law
Observation
form a question based on that observation
Questioning
based on: Observations Natural History Behaviors Plants Animals
-Apparent Patterns
-Curiosity
Hypothesis
an educated guess about what the answer to the question might be this is a statement of cause and effect that can be tested
Experiment
unlike field study, one factor can be examined at a time
other factors are Controlled
held constant so only independent can cause change
Field Experiment
-allows investigators to manipulate one condition in a field setting
-take a single large field, subdivide it into plots, add nitrogen to some plots and not others controlling the independent variable
-measure plant growth on all the plots (dependent variable) experiment site must vary minimally in other factors
Laboratory experiment
-allows investigator greater control over the experimental conditions
-grow the grasses in a greenhouse temperature, soil moisture, and soil acidity can be kept constant investigate only the effect of nitrogen availability
-but.. Greenhouse conditions are different than those in a field
-response may be different than in a field environment
A model is
an abstract, simplified Representation of a Real System
developed from results of observations and experiments
can be descriptive (qualitative) or mathematical (quantitative)
Natural World
appears to be Chaotic
Physical Constants
what goes up must come down
energy can be neither created or destroyed only transformed
Systems are ever changing
cells, individuals, species, populations, under constant flux
Uncertainty is Inherent in Science
The Scientific Method is a Continuous Process.
-testing and correcting explanations
-refine our understanding of the world around us
-usually simplify the system being studied in order to establish cause and effect as a result only part of the picture is seen
Natural History
Basis of ALL Ecological Study
-the natural development of organism over a period of time
Physiological Ecology
Physiological- responses to temp, light, other environment conditions
Ecosystem Ecology
an abiotic, biotic world
Community Ecology
diversity
Population Ecology
population growth, death, and birth
Evolutionary Ecology
natural selection, adaptation
Landscape Ecology
land, spatial process
Conservation Ecology
maintenance of biological diversity
Restoration Ecology
restoration manage disturbed lands `
Applied Ecology
all ecology applied to real world
