Chapter 4 Flashcards
what is competition
when multiple organisms compete for the same resource
what is competetive exclusion
when one species totally excludes the other species from the resource entirely
what is species coexistane
when both species live side by side
what is a fundamental niche
the full niche of a species
what is a niche
a role that a species plays
what is a realized niche
when an individual plays only part of its role because of competition
what is resource partitioning
when species “work around each other”
what is character displacement
when competing species come to come to diverge because of the evolution of traits best suited to the range of resources
what is predation
process in which individuals of one species hunt or kill prey
what is parasitism
relationship where one organism depends on another for nourishment or some other benefit
what is a pathogen
parasites that cause diease in their host
what is coevolution
where parasites and hosts evolve in response to one another
what is herbivory
when animals feed on the tissues of plants
what is mutualism
relationship in which two or more species benefit from interacting with one another
what is a community
assemblage of populations of organisms living in the same area at the same time
what is symbiosis
physically close association
what is pollination
mutualistic interaction that is vital to agriculture
what is a trophic level
the rank through which energy and matter move
what is a producer
producers of their own food
what is a primary consumer
organisms that consume producers
what is a secondary consumer
organisms that consume primary consumers
what is a teritary consumer
predators that feed at higher trophic levels
what is a detritivore
scavengers of waste products or dead bodies of other organisms
what are decomposers
organisms that break down leaf litter and other non living matter into simpler constituents
what is cellular respiration
the process through which organisms use chemical energy to release the chemical energy of glucose
what is biomass
collective mass of living matter ina given place and time
what is a food chain
linear series of feeding relationships
what is a keystone species
species that has a strong reaching impact far out of proportion to its abundance
what is a trophic cascade
when predators at high trophic levels can indirectly promote populations of lower trophic levels
what is a disturbanc e
an event that has rapid and drastic impacts on environmental conditions
what is resistance
when a community resists change
what is resilience
when a community changes in response to a disturbance but returns to its original state
what is succession
when a disturbance is so severe that the species undergos somewhat predictable series of changes
what is primary succession
when a disturbance leaves no vegetation or soil life left and the community has to start from scratch
what is secondary succession
when the disturbance leaves some life left, but dramatic changes are still made
what is a pioneer species
a species that arrives first and colonizes the new substrate
what is a climax community
the community that remains in place until some disturbance restarts succession
what is a regime shift
when the character of the community fundamentally changes
what is an introduced species
species that was introduced by peopl
what is an invasive species
a species that spreads widely and dominates communities
what is restoration ecology
the study of the conditions of communities before our civilization changed them
what is ecological resotration
the efforts to carry out the restoration of these affected communities
what is a biome
major regional complex of similar communities
what is the rainshadow effect
when moist air goes down a steep slope and releases precipitation as it cools, which can be very drying for the region in the rainshadow
what is a temperate deciduous forest
biome that has broad leafed trees that lose their leaves in winter
what is a temperate grassland
biome where temperature differences between winter and summer are more extreme, rainfall diminishes
what is a temperate rainforest
biome with heavy rainfall abd other coniferous trees
what is a tropical rainforest
biome with year round rainfall, warm temperatures, dark and damp interiors
what is a tropical dry forest
biome that is warm year round, but rainfall is lower overall and highly seasonal
what is a desert
biome where rainfall is very sparse, driest biome on earth
what is a tundra
biome that is almost as dry as desert, permafrost, very cold winters
what is a borreal forest
biome dominated by evergreen trees, often called taiga, nutreitn poor soil
what is a chapparal
biome that has mostly evergreen shrubs and densley thicketed
