Chapter 4 - Characteristics Of Ecosystems Flashcards
What is Ecology?
The study of how organisms interact with one another and their physical environment
What is a population?
A group of organisms of the same species
What is a community?
A group of multiple populations
What is an Ecotone?
The grey area between two different ecosystems where organisms of both ecosystems interact with one another. There is usually a greater biodiversity in an ecotone than either ecosystem it is made up of
What may an ecological niche consist of?
The organisms place in the food chain, the time of day it is active, the things it eats, its habitat, and its breeding area
Why are niches important?
Niches in an ecosystem help to reduce competition for territory and resources
Why is biodiversity important?
Because in an ecosystem if a predator, for example, loses one source of prey there is likely many others to compensate
The more niche oppurtunities in an ecosystem, the _______ the biodiversity
Higher
Why may an exotic species thrive in a new environment?
Because usually there is no ways to keep the new species in check and it may multiply lots
What is a biome?
A biome is a large stertch of land home to many different ecosystems. They usually have their own dominant species
What are Canadas 4 major biomes?
Taiga
Tundra
Deciduous forest
Grassland
What is the Taiga Biome like?
Found in every province in Canada
Dominated by Conifer trees
The floor is covered in shade
What are Conifers like?
Have needles rather than leaves
Needles have a waxy coating which keeps waterloss to a minimum
Flexible branches and triangular shape allow for the snow to slide off
What kind of organisms live in the Taiga Biome?
Grizzly and black bears
Wolverines
Weasels
Owls
Spruce Grouse
White-winged Crossbill
Shrubs
Mosses
Ferns
What is the Muskeg Ecosystem?
The Muskeg ecosystem is an ecosystem north of Alberta that has a layer of permafrost covered by swampier grasses where the water drains into
Due to the low temperature, decomposotion is slow making it a fragile eco system
What organisms are in the Muskeg ecosystem?
Mosses, lichens, other plants with long roots that can shift
Caribou
What organisms do not grow in Muskeg ecosystems?
Fungi, soil bacterias growth are limited due to the low temperature
What ecosystem has the most fertile soil? Why?
THe grassland ecosystem
Warm temperatures + short-lived, long-rooted grasses tend to live there and can help with decomposition
What is humus?
A rich layer of soil from decayed plant matter
How many layers does the grasland ecosystem have? WHat does this effect
Only one. This effects the biodivesrity in the ecosystem, resulting in a less biodiverse ecosystem
What kind of producers are in the grasslands?
Rough fescue, wheat grass, and spear grass
What organisms are in the grasslands?
Deer, squirrels, rabbits, snakes, yellow-bellied sap-suckers, rattlesnakes
What are Deciduous Ecosystems?
An ecotone between Grassland and Taiga ecosystems
What kind of trees are in the Deciduous ecosystem? How much water do they need?
Poplar, aspen, balsam
They need less water than a Conifer tree
Can be found near water sources
What kind of soil does a deciduous ecosystem have?
Due to the warmer temperatures and precipitation, the soil is very rich
What is an Understorey?
Below the canopy layer, usually including shorter trees and shrubs
What are abiotic factors in the Taiga ecosystem?
Northern and Central Alberta
Changeable weather
Soil contains some water and can be acidic
Heavy precipitation
What are abiotic factors in the Muskeg ecosystem?
Cold temperatures
Short growing season
Permafrost layer
Mid precipitation
What are abiotic factors in the Grasslands ecosystem?
Central and Southern Alberta
Extra sunlight and warmer than other ecosystems
Rich, fertile soil
Mid precipitation
What are abiotic factors in the deciduous forest ecosystem?
Central Alberta
Increased sunlight and warmer temperatures
Rich fertile soil
Heavy precipitation
What are the three zones in a lake?
Littoral, Limnetic, Profundal
Explain the Littoral zone
The littoral zone is where the shore begins and plant matter ends. This is the most productive area of a lake and lots of photosynthesis occurs here
Explain the Limnetic zone
The limnetic zone is where light still penetrates the surface of a lake. Photosynthesis also occurs here. Plankton (heterotrophic and autotrophic) live here
Explain the Profundal zone
The lowest part of a lake. The organisms here feed off of the dead organisms that fall to them. They are called detritus feeders
What happens if a lake doesn’t get much sunlight and a lot of organisms die?
Decomposers will use up the oxygen in the lake and it will not be able to be replenished, so the oxygen content in a lake may go down
What are the four layers of soil?
Litter, Topsoil, Subsoil, bedrock
Explain the Litter layer
The litter layer has lot of nutrients and lots of decaying plant matter
It acts as a blanket on top of the soil and regulates temperature as well as the amount of water loss
Explain Topsoil
Topsoil has lots of nutrients as well
Rocks are in there as well which are able to allow decomposers to decompose decaying plant matter
Explain Subsoil
Similar to the topsoil, but less humus and more rock
What determines the pH of soil?
Acid rain caused by global warming
The plants that grow in the soil
The rock the soil is formed from
What organisms flourish in acidic soils? What organisms don’t?
Mosses flourish because they have less competition that way
Conifers do not flourish, though they are adapted to withstand it
What may an organism do to survive if they are in an area with little water?
Have adaptations that help them. Rough fescue has long thin leaves that reduce water loss
What is available water dependant on?
How much precipitation occurs
How long it stays in the upper layer of soil and how much collects beneath the soil
What is groundwater?
Water in soil or below the earths surface
What is leaching?
The process of water carrying nutrients down below the surface
How is Leaching corrected?
Plants can adapt to grow longer roots which will allow them to reach the nutrients under the surface
How are conifers needles well adapted to the winters? Why is this better than regular leaves?
Conifers keep their needles year round rather than expending energy to shed and regrow them
How are grasses in the grasslands well suited for the winter?
They have deep roots which allow them to keep their roots and only freeze off the top portion of the grass
How can oxygen get into lakes?
WInd stirring the surface of the water
Photosynthetic palnts
What does sunlight vary with?
Altitude and Latitude
As temperature INCREASES the concentration of O2 in water ________
decreases
Why does the bottom of a lake have higher CO2 levels?
Because decomposers live at the bottom and respirate
Pressure in waterincrease 100kpa per ____m
100
What happens to lakes in winter?
Light can slightly penetrate the top layer and photosynthesize, or there will be no photosynthesis to occur if the lake is covered in snow and thick ice
What happens to lakes during spring?
Spring turnover:
Since the densest water can be is 4 Degrees, when the cold water from the winter warms up and eventually warms to 4 degrees, it will sink to the bottom replacing the water below. This process carries O2 to all depths
What is the Epilimnion?
The top layer of water, heats up easily
What is the Hypolimnion?
THe lowest layer of a lake, has a consistent low temperature
What is the thermocline?
THe rapid decline of temperature between the Epilimnion and the Hypolimnion
What are the four factors that limit the overall growth of a population?
Biotic potential, Limiting factors, Carrying capacity, Limits of tolerance
What is the definition of Biotice Potential?
Maximum number of offspring a species could have in a perfect world
What are the four factors Biotic Potential is limited by?
- Birth potential
- Capacity for survival
- Breeding frequency
- Length of reproductive life
What are some Abiotic limiting factors?
Sunlight, temperature, chemical environment
What are some biotic limiting factors?
Sufficient food, predators, diseases
What’s an example of a density-independent factor?
WIldifres, natural disasters, drought
What is an example of a density-dependent factor?
Food, space, water
What is the law of minimum?
The resource in the lowest quantity will determine how limited growth is
What is ‘slash-and-burn’?
The process of getting rid of a forest through burning the trees
What is ‘clear-cutting’?
The removal of trees in an area for timber or pulp
What is ‘selective cutting’?
The removal of only certain trees in an area
What are some positives to clear-cutting?
Inexpensive
Helps the timber and pulp industries
Can help moose by allowing berried shrubs to grow so they can feed
What are some negatives to clear-cutting?
Soil erosion and runoff into streams increases
Nitrates can be carried into streams
soils can be warmed and result in water loss
What is the most valuable tree? Why?
Softwoods grow quicker and are used for timber industries
Why are fires good?
They create and maintain many different ecosystems in one forest, allowing for very high biodiversity
What are Oligotrophic lakes?
Deep and cold
Low amount of nutrients
Not many producers
Not very biodiverse
Clear water
What are Eutrophic lakes?
Shallow and warm
Lots of nutrients
Biodiverse
Murky
What is Eutrophication?
Oligotrophic -> Eutrophic -> Dry land
What are five ways water can be polluted?
Organic solid waste like sewage (causes water to be used up)
Disease-causing organisms
Inorganic solids and dissolved minerals
Thermal Energy (decreases solubility of oxygen in the water)
Organic compounds, like oil (promotes algae growth)
What are three indicators of water quality?
Bacteria
Dissolved Oxygen
Biological Oxygen demand
What is coliform bacteria?
A bacteria present in the colon. Used as a sign to see if water may be polluted with other similar bacteria
What do healthy trout indicate in water?
High oxygen levels
If droughts become continuous, what may happen to lake shores?
If there is a lack of new water being put into a lake, the minerals may settle and be able to build up chloride and sodium ions
What is primary succession?
Succession that begins in an area with no existing community
What is secondary succession?
Occurs in a partially destroyed area
