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Biology > Chapter 3- The Biosphere > Flashcards

Chapter 3- The Biosphere Flashcards

1
Q

What is ecology?

A

the study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environmetn, or surroundings

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2
Q

What is the biosphere?

A

contains the combined portions of the planet in which all of life exists (land, water, atmosphere)

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3
Q

What is a species?

A

a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring

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4
Q

What are populations?

A

groups of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area

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5
Q

What are communities?

A

assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined area

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6
Q

What is an ecosystem?

A

a collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place, together with their nonliving, or physical, environment

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7
Q

What is a biome?

A

a group of ecosystems that have the same climate and similar dominant communities

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8
Q

What is the main energy source for life on Earth?

A

sunlight

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9
Q

Energy flows through an ecosystem in what direction?

A

one; from sun or inorganic compounds, to autotrophs (producers), and then to various heterotrophs (consumer)

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10
Q

About how much of the energy available in one trophic level is transferred to organisms at the next trophic level?

A

10%

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11
Q

What are autotrophs?

A

organisms that capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use that energy to produce food(producers)

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12
Q

What is photosynthesis?

A

The process of converting sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates and oxygen

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13
Q

What is chemosynthesis?

A

the process of using chemical energy to produce carbohydrates

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14
Q

What are heterotrophs?

A

organisms that rely on other organisms for their energy and food supply (consumer)

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15
Q

What are detritivores?

A

organisms that feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter

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16
Q

What are decomposers?

A

organisms that break down organic matter

17
Q

What is a food chain?

A

a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten (linear or one way)

18
Q

What is a food web?

A

feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem that form a network of complex interactions

19
Q

What is a trophic level?

A

each step in a food chain or food web

20
Q

What is an ecological pyramid?

A

a diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level in a food chain or food web. There are three types: energy pyramids, pyramid of numbers, and biomass pyramid

21
Q

What is biomass?

A

the total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level

22
Q

What does an energy pyramid show?

A

the relative amount of energy available at each trophic level.

23
Q

What does a biomass pyramid show?

A

the amount of living organic matter at each trophic level; greatest biomass is at the base of pyramid

24
Q

What does the pyramid of number show?

A

the relative number of individual organisms at each trophic level

25
Q

How is matter used in an ecosystem?

A

It is recycled within and between ecosystems

26
Q

What are biogeochemical cycles?

A

where elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another; connect biological, geological, and chemical aspects of the biosphere

27
Q

What is evaporation?

A

the process by which water changes from liquid form to an atmospheric gas

28
Q

What is transpiration?

A

the process where water enters the atmosphere by evaporating from the leaves of plants

29
Q

What are nutrients?

A

The chemical substances that an organism needs to sustain life

30
Q

Why do every living organism need nutrients?

A

to build tissues and carry out essential life functions

31
Q

How are nutrients passed through the biosphere?

A

Between organisms and the environment through biogeochemical cycles

32
Q

What is nitrogen fixation?

A

bacteria on roots of legumes converts nitrogen gas into ammonia

33
Q

What is denitrification?

A

Process where soil bacteria converts the nitrates into nitrogen gas

34
Q

What is primary productivity?

A

the rate at which organic matter is created by producers

35
Q

What is a limiting nutrient?

A

when a nutrient in an ecosystem is limited due to it being scarce or cycles very slowly

36
Q

What causes algal blooms?

A

when an aquatic ecosystem receives a large input of a limiting nutrient ( runoff from heavily fertilized fields)

Biology (17 decks)

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