Chapter 2 Flashcards

1
Q

the ecosphere

A
  • Lithosphere
  • Hydrosphere (and cryosphere)
  • Atmosphere
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2
Q

atmosphere includes

A
  • Troposphere
  • Stratosphere
  • Mesosphere
  • Thermosphere
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3
Q

energy

A
  • Energy is the capacity to do work and is measured in calories (nutrition) or Joule (work required to produce one watt of power for one second (W⋅s) W=J/s
  • Cal = 4.2 joules.
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4
Q

potential energy

A

is stored energy that is available for later use (e.g., gasoline)

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5
Q

kinetic energy

A

-Energy derived from an object’s motion and mass is known as kinetic energy (e.g., engine using gas)

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6
Q

low quality energy

A
  • Most of the energy available for use is called low-quality energy.
  • diffuse, dispersed at low temperatures, difficult to gather.
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7
Q

heat vs temp

A
  • The total energy of all moving atoms is referred to as heat, a low-quality energy
  • vs. temperature, a measure of average speed of molecules or atoms in a substance.
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8
Q

high quality energy

A

such as a hot fire, coal or gasoline, is easy to use, but the energy disperses quickly.

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9
Q

the first law of thermodynamics

A
  • The first law is the law of conservation of energy
  • energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it is merely changed from one form into another
  • The total amount of energy in the universe is constant
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10
Q

the second law of thermodynamics

A

-The second law of thermodynamics (law of entropy) tells us that when energy is transformed from one form into another, there is always a decrease in the quality of usable energy; some energy is ‘lost’ as lower-quality, dispersed energy to the surrounding environment, often as heat

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11
Q

second law and organisms

A
  • The second law of thermodynamics is important for organisms:
  • because they must continuously expend energy to maintain themselves; whenever they use energy, some is lost
  • because it tells us that energy cannot be recycled; it is constantly being degraded; the more we transform energy, the more is dispersed becoming less useful and lower quality
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12
Q

energy flow in ecological systems

A
  • About 30% of the energy received is reflected by the atmosphere back into space.
  • Of the remainder, about 50% provides heat to the Earth’s surface, 20% absorbed in the atmosphere, and less than 1% forms the basis for our ecological systems.
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13
Q

how plants produce O2

A
  • Green pigments in plants, chlorophylls, absorb light energy from the sun.
  • Plants combine carbon dioxide and water, using energy from the sun, into high-energy carbohydrates such as starches, cellulose, and sugars, during photosynthesis.
  • Photosynthesis produces oxygen.
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14
Q

producers or autotrophs

A

Organisms with the ability to capture energy and manufacture matter are known as autotrophs, or producers.

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15
Q

heterotrophs or consumers

A

All other organisms are known as heterotrophs, or consumers.

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16
Q

two types of autotrophs

A

phototrophs and chemoautotrophs.

-Phototrophs get their energy from light, while chemoautotrophs obtain their energy from chemicals in the environment.

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17
Q

cellular respiration

A
  • carbohydrates are broken down into inorganic molecules, carbon dioxide, and water.
  • energy is released and can be used for many purposes by the organism.
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18
Q

aerobic organisms

A

must have access to oxygen for cellular respiration to take place, or they will die.
-Some species, anaerobic organisms (such as some bacteria), can survive even without oxygen.

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19
Q

food chains

A
  • Each level of the food chain is called a trophic level.
  • Herbivores eat producers and are the energy source for higher-level consumers, or carnivores.
  • Omnivores, such as humans, raccoons, sea anemones, and cockroaches, can get their energy from multiple trophic levels.
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20
Q

consumers

A
  • Primary Consumers: eating plants
  • Secondary Consumers: eating herbivores
  • Tertiary Consumers: eating animals that are secondary consumers or higher
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21
Q

food chain

A

Linked feeding series

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22
Q

trophic levels

A

An organism’s feeding status in a food web. Plants are at the producer level while animals are consumers

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23
Q

food webs

A

Network of food chains or feeding relationships

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24
Q

are all plants autotrophs

A

no Carnivorous pitcher plant gain their energy from ingesting the bodies of insects that trapped

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25
Q

detritus

A

These chains are based on dead organic material called detritus, which is high in potential energy but difficult for typical consumer organisms to digest.

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26
Q

decomposer food chains

A

play a key role in breaking down plant and animal material into products such as carbon dioxide, water, and inorganic forms of phosphorus and nitrogen and other elements.

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27
Q

detrital food chains

A

-Detrital food chains tend to dominate in forest ecosystems, and freshwater ecosystems.

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28
Q

grazing food chains

A
  • Grazing food chains dominate in marine ecosystems.
  • Producers are photosynthetic phytoplankton
  • Zooplankton graze on the phytoplankton
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29
Q

species numbers and climate

A

The number of species increases from the poles to the tropics as conditions become more amenable for life

30
Q

energy efficiency

A

portion of energy entering system that is transformed into useful form of energy or work.

  • In natural food chains may be as low as 1%; 90% lost at each trophic level.
  • Some ecosystems have an inverted biomass pyramid (natural grasslands, oceans).
31
Q

natural food chains are inefficient

A

Only 10–20% of biomass is converted to food for next level

  • Energy is released as heat during cellular respiration
  • The longer the food chain, the less efficient
  • The energy pyramid has important implications for humans
  • In terms of energy efficiency, it would be better to operate as low on the food chain as possible—as primary consumers or vegetarians
32
Q

productivity

A

-The rate at which energy is changed into biomass; usually expressed in kilocalories/m2/yr

33
Q

gross primary productivity (GPP)

A

is the overall rate of biomass production. GPP=NPP+R

34
Q

net primary productivity (NPP)

A
  • Cellular respiration (R), must be subtracted from the GPP to reveal the net primary productivity (NPP); the amount of energy available to heterotrophs.
  • Humans use 40% of all terrestrial NPP for their own use
35
Q

ecosphere broken down

A
  • At the smallest level is the individual organism.
  • A group of individuals of the same species is a population.
  • All the populations of all species in an environment are known as a community.
36
Q

ecosystems

A

are collections of communities interacting with their physical environments.
-Ecosystems are open systems in that they exchange material and organisms with other ecosystems.

37
Q

ecozones

A
  • Ecozones are groups of ecosystems with similar dominant vegetation and animal communities.
  • Ecozones can be grouped into biomes, based upon dominant vegetation and adaptations of other organisms to that particular environment.
38
Q

abiotic components

A
  • Key abiotic factors: light, temperature, wind, water, and soil characteristics
  • Soil type is critical in determining the kind and extent of vegetation growth of an area
39
Q

soils

A
  • Soils are composed of inorganic materials decaying organic matter, water, and air
  • Most soils form mainly from the parent material where they are found
  • Various processes result in different layers forming in the soil, called soil horizons
  • A soil profile is the view across these horizons
  • Time is also a critical factor in soil development
40
Q

humus

A

decomposed organic material

41
Q

loams

A

soils that contain a mixture of humus and clay, silt, sand, and gravel.

42
Q

texture

A

Texture is a main determinant of soil permeability, the rate at which water can move through the soil.

43
Q

pH

A

Soils differ in chemical characteristics such as pH.

44
Q

limiting factors

A

factors that determine whether an organism can survive in a given ecosystem e.g. rainfall, essential nutrients

45
Q

dominant limiting factors

A

the weakest link in the chain of various factors necessary for an organism’s survival.

46
Q

range of tolerance

A

the range of conditions that different organisms can tolerate and still survive

47
Q

optimum range

A

the range of conditions that is ideal for a species

48
Q

zone of physiological stress

A

conditions can be tolerated by certain individuals within the population, but are not optimal, so fairly few individuals can exist

49
Q

extinction

A

Entire species ceasing to exist. Natural Extinction According to fossil record > 99% of all species are now extinct. Earth has experienced periodic mass extinctions.

  • Nearly half of all plant and animal families died out 250 million years ago.
  • Dinosaurs disappeared 65 million years ago.
50
Q

niche

A

Each species needs a specific combination of the physical, chemical, and biological conditions for its growth, known as the niche of that species.

51
Q

habitat

A

The habitat is simply where the species lives

52
Q

competitive exclusion principle

A

According to the competitive exclusion principle, no two species can occupy the same niche in the same area

53
Q

fundamental niche

A

potential range of conditions a species can occupy

54
Q

realized niche

A

the range actually occupied

55
Q

specialized species

A

have narrow niches and are vulnerable to environmental change, e.g., Panda

56
Q

generalist species

A

may have a very broad niche, e.g., black bear, coyote

57
Q

intraspecific competition

A

occurs among members of the same species; regulates population size; may lead to establishment of territories

58
Q

interspecific competition

A

occurs between different species

59
Q

resource partitioning

A

resources are used at different times, or in different ways, by species with overlaps of fundamental niches, possibly reducing competition

60
Q

optimal foraging theory

A

recognizes that there is a point of compensation between the benefit of obtaining the prey and the costs of doing so, and predator behaviour adjusts to optimize benefits

61
Q

parasitism

A

a special type of predator–prey relationship, where the predator lives on or in its prey (host).

62
Q

mutualism

A

the relationship benefits both species

e.g., nitrogen-fixing bacteria and their host plants.

63
Q

commensalism

A

interactions that seem to benefit only one partner but do not harm the other
e.g., epiphytes.

64
Q

keystone species

A

Species with a strong influence on the whole community are known as keystone species

e. g., Beaver
- It is very significant when a keystone species is removed from an area, or extirpated, by human activity; a cascade of affects typically ensue

65
Q

biodiversity

A

is the result of all the interactions between abiotic and biotic factors throughout evolution.

66
Q

genetic diversity

A

variability in genetic makeup among individuals of the same species; the ultimate source of biodiversity at all levels.

67
Q

species diversity

A

the total number of species in an area.

-Global estimates 5 to 20 million.

68
Q

ecosystem diversity

A

the variety of ecosystems in an area.

69
Q

biodiversity hotspots

A

areas with high numbers of endemic species; found mainly in tropical areas.

70
Q

endemic species

A

are particular to a certain area, and found nowhere else on Earth.
In Canada there are approximately 54 endemic species of vascular plants, mammals, freshwater fish, and molluscs.
-In terms of protecting biodiversity, it is especially important that endemic species are given consideration, e.g., Vancouver Island Marmot.