Chapter 3 Flashcards
1
Q
Ecozone
A
classification system that defines different parts of the environment with similar geography, vegetation, and animal life
2
Q
Tundra and Arctic
A
precipitation= low
climate= dry
-arctic willow, polar bear, muscox (endemic to arctic)
3
Q
Boreal (Taiga)
A
- forrest (pine, white spruce, black spruce, white birch, aspen)
- dominated by wildfire
- black bears , red fox
- lots of lakes and wetlands
4
Q
Temperate Rain Forest
A
- highest biodiversity in Canada
- douglas fir
- spotted owl, sitka, black tailed deer
- heavily influenced by precipitation caused by Pacific Ocean
- dynamic interface between ocean, rivers, and land
- salmon spawning brings nutrients back to the land
5
Q
Montane Cordillera
A
- mountain ranges
- temperature changes
- high snow pack
- mountain species of animals (mountain goat, big horned sheep, marmots)
6
Q
pikas
A
indicators of climate change found on prairies and mountains
7
Q
Prairie
A
good bison habitat
- height of grass determines what species will be there
- badger, bison, hawk
8
Q
Mixed grass
A
where 2 ecosystems come together
9
Q
Mixed Wood Plaines
A
- mix of spruce and aspen
- high biodiversity
- 2 ecosystems come together
10
Q
Atlantic Maritime
A
hardwood maple, beach, oak,
- salamanders, turtles,
- different from west coast
11
Q
Mountains
A
show ecosystem changes through latitude due to change in temperature
going up is like driving from south to north
12
Q
Figure 3-17
A
Chart FOUND IN LECTURE 7
13
Q
Marine Ecosystem
A
oceans, Pacific, arctic, atlantic
-costal area, open sea
deep ocean = low biodiversity
estuaries= high biodiversity
14
Q
Freshwater Ecosystem
A
rivers, streams, wetlands, lakes,
- depends on depth (due to how much light for photosynthesis)
15
Q
Implications
A
understanding helps management and protection
- natural vs. human induced change
- change= complex over space and time
- presents major management challenges
16
Q
Scientific Method
A
1) Observe
2) Develop Hypothesis
3) Design controlled experiment
4) Collect and Record Data
5) Interpret Data
6) Conclusion
7) Compare conclusion with hypothesis
8) Accept hypothesis
9) Reject hypothesis
17
Q
Hypothesis Testing
A
- Question derived from observations and literature
- hypothesis generated to explain phenomenon
Experiments or observations to disprove the hypothesis - If can’t disprove than incorporate into theory
18
Q
Ecological Succession
A
- slow adaptive process
- gradual replacement of one assemblage of species by another, as conditions change over time
- use science to try and understand
- competition between species
- fire= natural process
19
Q
Primary Succession
A
- colonization and subsequent occupancy of a previously unvegetated surface
- primary colonizers
- glacier recedes back
20
Q
Primary Colonizer
A
- plant growth
- mosses or lichen (fungi and algae)
- photosynthetic structures
21
Q
Common Successional Pattern
A
Lichen to moss to soils to herbaceous plants to shrubs to trees
22
Q
Seral Stage
A
each step
23
Q
Climax Community
A
final potential of ecosystem
-most productive stage
24
Q
Cyclic succession
A
- ecosystem gets to a certain level and then fire, flood, wind, or colcano brings it back to an earlier sucession stage
25
Secondary Succession
have some soil and there is still stuff to work with
26
Eutrophication
- natural aging of aquatic systems
- increase in nutrient flows over time and increased plant grouwth and increased organic material
- decreased O2
- highly productive
27
Immature Ecosystem
- high net productivity
- low species diversity
- open nutrient cycles
- more generalists
- liner food chains
- poor nutrient conservation
- low stability
28
Mature Ecostyems
- low net productivity
- high species diversity (depends of ecosystem)
- closed nutrient cycles
- more specialists
- food web
- good nutrient conservation
- higher stability
29
Ecosystem homeostasis
- constant characteristics (n balance)
| - internal processes adjust for changes in external conditions (dynamic equilibrium)
30
Inertia
ability of an ecosystem to withstand change
31
Resilience
ability to recover to the original state following disturbances
- vegetation starts to come back
- tundra= less resilience
32
Positive Feedback Loop
- increases change in a positive direction
- exacerbates and makes it worse
- dangerous
ex) global warming (starts with increase temperature)
ex) bear and human contact
33
Negative Feedback loop
moderates the change
| ex) animal signs decrease number of animal fatalities on the road
34
level of biodiversity
1) genetic
2) species
3) ecosystem
35
biodiversity
number of species, amount of genetic variation, and number of community types in an area
36
Biodiversity in Canada
- species numbers decline from tropics to poles
| - temperature is a major factor (solar radiation)
37
Biotic Potential
max rate at which a species may increase if there is no enviro resistance
38
Population Ecology
study of dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the enviro
39
Population
group of inter-bdreeding organisms of the same species
40
Population Density
population per area
41
Population dynamics
changes in population (births - deaths + immigration - emigration)
42
Density dependent
as population density increases, rate of growth decreases
| -animals may also not breed or not produce offspring
43
delayed implantation
in enviro is too populated fertilized egg gets discharged
44
Density independent
population operative on a positive feedback loop more individuals=higher birth rate ex) humans
45
species area curves
as area increases in size the number of species also increases
46
r-strategists
large #s of young, little post natal care
- small & short life
- rapid reproduction
- early seral stages
- pioneering species
47
k-strategists
- few offspring, lots of time raising them
- live longer and are larger
- reach carrying capacity and are relatively stable
48
evolution
populations adapt to change via evolution
| -change in genetic make-up over time
49
natural selection
favour certain conditions and species that are able to adapt
- mechanism in evolution
- survival of the fittest
50
species
life forms that resemble one another can interbreed successfully and producing fertile offspring
-similarity in DNA and morphology
51
Coevolution
change in one species causes change to occur in another
- one cannot live without the other
- ultimate in specialized species
52
Speciation
formation of new species as a result of divergent natural selection
-response to natural changes
CAUSES- isolation, interspecific competition, mutation
53
Effects of human activities
- huge effects
- monocultures are susceptible to outbreaks
- ex) pine beetle
54
Alien or Invader species
imported species not native to a location neutered insects brought to kill a specific pnat
55
Atlantic Puffin
live on side of cliff and return phosphorus, nitrogen back into enviro through feces and fish
56
matter
anything that has mass and takes up space
57
4 major kind of organic compounds
1. CHO
2. Fats
3. Proteins
4. Nucleic acids
58
Law of Conservation of Matter
-matter cannot be created or destroyed but simply transformed from one form to another by heat or pressure (gas liquid solid)
59
biogeochemical cycle
path where a chemical element moves through both biotic and abiotic compartments of an ecosystem
