Chapter 13 - Principles in Ecology Flashcards
What is ecology? 13.1
The study of interactions among organisms (plants and animals) and their environment
Eco comes from Greek word “oikos” – house
-logy comes from “logos” – study of
Ecology means “study of the house” as coined by Ernst Haeckel
What are the levels of organization in ecology in order? 13.1
Organism Population Community Ecosystem Biome
Organism 13.1
Individual living thing
ex. lion
Population 13.1
group of same species that live in one area
ex. pride of lions
Community 13.1
Collection of interacting populations
ex. Lions, antelope, zebras, elephants, grasses, etc.
Ecosystem 13.1
Interactions of biotic and abiotic factors in an area
What are biotic vs. abiotic factors? 13.2
Biotic factors—living or once living things (ex. Animals, plants, microorganisms, etc…)
Abiotic factors—nonliving things (ex. Sunlight, temperature, soil, etc…)
Biome 13.1
Regional or global community of organisms which is usually characterized by the climate conditions and plant communities that thrive there
What are keystone species? 13.2
One that has an unusually large effect on its ecosystem. (ex. Beaver) (ex. Killing too many deer during hunting season)
Autotrophs vs. Heterotrops 13.3
Autotrophs—“self feeder”
Heterotrophs—“different feeder”
Producers 13.3
Obtain energy from the sun or chemicals and convert it to a useable form of energy
Consumers 13.3
Get their energy by eating other living or once-living organisms (like autotrophs and/or other heterotrophs)
What are the 5 types of consumers? 13.4
Herbivores—obtain energy from eating plants
Omnivores—obtain energy from eating plants and animals
Carnivores—obtain energy from eating animals
Detritivores—obtain energy from eating detritus or dead organic material (ex. Earthworm)
Decomposers—obtain energy from breaking down organic matter (dead) into simpler molecules that can be more easily absorbed by decomposers and by other organisms
Food Chain 13.4
A linear sequence that links species by their feeding relationships
Example: autotroph→heterotroph→decomposer
*Heat energy is lost in each step
Trophic Levels 13.4
Levels of nourishment in a food chain
1st trophic level producer (base)
2nd trophic level primary (1’) consumer (herbivore), first order
3rd trophic level secondary (2’) consumer (omnivore/carnivore), second order
4th trophic level tertiary (3’) consumer (omnivore/ mostly carnivore), third order (top level)
Energy flows through an ecosystem in ONE direction
Food Web 13.4
Links all the food chains in an ecosystem
In an ecological pyramid, how much energy is transferred to the next trophic level? 13.4
10%
Types of pyramids 13.4
An energy pyramid compares energy used by producers, primary consumers, and other trophic levels (in units of kilocalories, kcal) see figure 13.17 on page 418
A biomass pyramid provides a picture of the mass of producers needed to support primary consumers, the mass of primary consumers required to support secondary consumers, and so on.
A pyramid of numbers shows the numbers of individual organisms at each trophic level in an ecosystem.
Biomass pyramids and pyramids of numbers may occur in an inverted, or upside down formation.
Hydrologic Cycle 13.5
Circular pathway of water on earth from the atmosphere, to the surface, below ground, and back
What draws water back to earth? 13.5
Gravity
What determines which plants grow where? 13.5
Amount of precipitation received by an area
How much water enters the hydrologic cycle? 13.5
80%
Biochemical Cycle 13.5
Movement of a particular chemical through the biological and geological, or living or nonliving, parts of an ecosystem
