Chapter 5

Question 1

define abiotic and what it includes

Answer 1

abiotic is the nonliving components of earth. it includes the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.

Question 2

define biotic and what it includes

Answer 2

the living components of earth. it includes water, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus

Question 3

biogeochemical cycles

Answer 3

where nutrients such as carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and water all move through the environment incomplete cycles

Question 4

reservoir

Answer 4

this is used to describe a place where a large quantity of a nutrient sits for a long period of time.

Question 5

exchange pool

Answer 5

the opposite of reservoir. a site where a nutrient sits for only a short period of time

Question 6

residency time

Answer 6

the amount of time a nutrient spends in a reservoir or an exchange pool.

Question 7

law of conservation of matter

Answer 7

it states that matter can neither be created nor destroyed.

Question 8

precipitation

Answer 8

the process where the water that exists in the atmosphere is in the gaseous state and when it condenses from the gaseous state to form a liquid or solid it becomes dense enough to fall to the earth because of the pull of gravity.

Question 9

groundwater

Answer 9

when the precipitation falls onto the earth it may travel below ground to become groundwater.

Question 10

runoff

Answer 10

the precipitation may also travel across the lands surface as runoff and enter a drainage system.

Question 11

evaporation

Answer 11

water is returned to the atmosphere from both the earths surface and from living organisms in this process (evaporation). animals respire and release water vapor and additional gases to the atmosphere.

Question 12

transpiration

Answer 12

the process by which moisture is carried through plants from roots to small pores on the underside of leaves, where it changes to vapor and is released to the atmosphere. Transpiration is essentially evaporation of water from plant leaves.

Question 13

respiration

Answer 13

when animals and plants breath in oxygen and give off carbon dioxide

Question 14

photosynthesis

Answer 14

when plants take in carbon dioxide, water, and energy from the sun to produce carbohydrates.

Question 15

combustion

Answer 15

when fossil fuels are burned or combusted and carbon is released into the atmosphere

Question 16

nitrogen fixation

Answer 16

process in which nitrogen (N2) in the atmosphere is converted into ammonium (NH4+). Atmospheric nitrogen or molecular nitrogen (N2) is relatively inert: it does not easily react with other chemicals to form new compounds.

Question 17

nitrification

Answer 17

process by which ammonia is converted to nitrites (NO2-) and then nitrates (NO3-). This process naturally occurs in the environment, where it is carried out by specialized bacteria. Ammonia is produced by the breakdown of organic sources of nitrogen.

Question 18

assimilation

Answer 18

plants absorb ammonium, ammonia ions, and nitrate ions, through their roots. heterotrophs or organisms that receive energy by consuming other organisms then obtain nitrogen when they consume plants proteins and nucleic acids.

Question 19

ammonification

Answer 19

process by decomposing bacteria convert dead organisms and other waste to ammonia or ammonium ions which can be reused by plants

Question 20

denitrification

Answer 20

specialized bacteria convert ammonia back to nitrites and nitrates and then into nitrogen gas and nitrous oxide gas. these gases then rise to the atmosphere.

Question 21

phosphorus cycle

Answer 21

simplest biochemical cycle because phosphorus doesn’t exist in the atmosphere outside of dust particles. phosphorus is necessary for for living organisms because its a major component of nucleic acids and other important biological molecules. this cycle is more local than those of other important biological compounds.

Question 22

terrestrial cycle

Answer 22

through geologic processes, ocean mixing, and upwelling, these rocks from the seafloor may rise up so that their components once again enter this cycle.

Question 23

eutrophication

Answer 23

when a body of water receives excess nutrients. the abundance of nutrients can cause an overgrowth of algae and deplete the water of oxygen.

Question 24

sulfur cycle

Answer 24

sulfer is one of the components that make up proteins and vitamins, so animals and plants both need suffer in their diets.

Question 25

autotrophs

Answer 25

producers; organisms that can produce their own organic compounds from inorganic compounds

Question 26

heterotrophs

Answer 26

obtain food energy by consuming other organisms or products created by other organisms.

Question 27

producers

Answer 27

organisms that are capable of converting radiant energy or chemical energy into carbohydrate. the group of producers that includes plants and algae both of which can carry out photosynthesis.

Question 28

food chain

Answer 28

a succession of organisms in an ecological community that constitutes a continuation of food energy from one organism to another as each consumes a lower member and, in turn, is preyed upon by a higher member.

Question 29

food web

Answer 29

a complex of interrelated food chains in an ecological community

Question 30

net primary productivity

Answer 30

amount of energy that plants pass on to the community of herbivores in an ecosystem.

Question 31

gross primary productivity

Answer 31

amount of sugar that the plants produce in photosynthesis, and subtracting it from the amount of energy the plants need for growth, maintenance, repair, and reproduction.

Question 32

primary consumers

Answer 32

the category includes the herbivores which consume only producers

Question 33

secondary consumers

Answer 33

an organism that consumes a primary consumer

Question 34

tertiary consumers

Answer 34

an organism that consumes a secondary consumer

Question 35

detritivores

Answer 35

the organisms in this group derive energy from consuming nonliving organic matter such as dead animals or fallen leaves

Question 36

decomposers

Answer 36

these are bacteria or fungi that absorb nutrients from nonliving organic matter such as plant mineral the wastes of living organisms and corpses. they convert these materials into inorganic forms.

Question 37

trophic levels

Answer 37

each of the feeding levels in a food chain

Question 38

energy pyramid

Answer 38

the structure obtained if we organize the amount of energy contained in producers and consumers in an ecosystem by kilocalories per square meter, from largest to smallest

Question 39

biomagnification

Answer 39

the process by which the concentration of toxic substances increases in each successive link in the food chain

Question 40

bioaccumulation

Answer 40

the accumulation of a substance such as toxic chemical in various tissues of a living organism

Question 41

biomes

Answer 41

ecosystems that are based on land

Question 42

aquatic life zones

Answer 42

ecosystems in aqueous Environments

Question 43

ecotones

Answer 43

the transitional area where two ecosystems meet

Question 44

ecozones/ ecoregion

Answer 44

they are smaller regions within ecosystems that share similar physical features

Question 45

law of tolerance

Answer 45

describes the degree to which living organisms are capable of tolerating changes in their environment

Question 46

law of minimum

Answer 46

living organisms will continue to live consuming available materials until the supply of these materials is exhausted