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BI158 > Chapter 52 > Flashcards

Chapter 52 Flashcards

1
Q

What is ecology?

A

the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment

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2
Q

What does ecology include?

A

all organisms, in how they relate to each other and the environment

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3
Q

What do ecological interactions determine?

A

distribution of organisms and their abundance

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4
Q

What does modern ecology include?

A

observation and experimentation

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5
Q

What two questions are asked in ecology?

A

What environmental factors limit geographic distribution?

What factors (food, pathogens) affect population size?

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6
Q

How does ecology work?

A

at levels ranging from individual organisms to the planet

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7
Q

What are the 6 levels of ecology?

A

Organismal > Population > community > Ecosystem > landscape > global

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8
Q

What is a biosphere?

A

global ecosystem, the sum of all the planet’s ecosystems

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9
Q

What does global ecology examine?

A

the influence of energy and materials on organisms across the biosphere

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10
Q

What is a landscape/seascape?

A

mosaic of connected ecosystems

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11
Q

what does landscape ecology focus on?

A

exchanges of energy, materials, and organisms across multiple ecosystems

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12
Q

What is an ecosystem?

A

community of organisms in an area and the physical factors with which they interact

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13
Q

what does ecosystem ecology emphasize?

A

energy flow and chemical cycling among the various biotic and abiotic components

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14
Q

what is a community?

A

a group of populations of different species in an area

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15
Q

What does community ecology examine?

A

the effect of interspecific interactions on community structure and organization

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16
Q

what is a population?

A

a group of individuals of the same species living in an area

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17
Q

What does population ecology focus on?

A

factors affecting population size over time

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18
Q

What is organismal ecology?

A

studies how an organism’s structure, physiology, and behavior meet environmental challenges

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19
Q

what does organismal ecology include?

A

Includes physiological, evolutionary, and behavioral ecology

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20
Q

what is a climate?

A

long-term prevailing weather conditions in an area

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21
Q

what are four major abiotic components of climate?

A

temperature, precipitation, sunlight, and wind

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22
Q

What is macroclimate?

A

patterns on the global, regional, and landscape level

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23
Q

What is microclimate?

A

very fine patterns, such as those encountered by the community of organisms underneath a fallen log

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24
Q

what are global cimate patterns determined by?

A

the sun and Earth’s movement in space

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25
What does the sun cause?
temperature variation, driving evaporation and circulation of air and water
26
What does circulation of air and water lead to?
latitudinal variations in climate
27
How does the angle of the sun affect the earth?
ntensity of the amount of heat and light per unit of surface area
28
Where is the tropics?
23.5 north latitude and 23.5 south latitude
29
Where is sunlight most intense, and why?
strongest in the tropics where sunlight strikes Earth most directly
30
Why are the poles cold year round?
low angle of incoming sunlight
31
What plays a major role in determining climate patterns?
Global air circulation and precipitation patterns
32
How does water evaporate and move in the tropics?
warm, wet air masses flow from the tropics toward the poles
33
How does dry air contribute to climate? (2)
Descending dry air towards the equator absorbs moisture Creates arid climates, near 30 degrees north and south
34
What does moist air do in the climate?
Ascending moist air towards the poles releases moisture
35
What causes high precipitation?
rising air massses
36
What does air flowing close to the surface allow?
predicting global wind patterns
37
How do trade winds travel?
blow from east to west in the tropics
38
How does westerlies travel?
from west to east in the temperate zones
39
What three things affect climate?
Seasonality Large bodies of water Mountains
40
What increases towards the poles?
Seasonal variations of light and temperature
41
what causes seasonality at high latitudes?
tilt of earth’s axis of rotation and its annual passage around the sun
42
What shifts as the angle of the sun changes?
Belts of wet and dry air straddling the equator
43
What does changing wind patterns affect?
ocean currents
44
What do oceans and its currents moderate?
climate of nearby terrestrial environments
45
Where do currents take cold water?
from poles to the equator
46
Where do currents take warm water?
from equator to the poles
47
What do large gyres do?
impact climate of terrestrial regions
48
How do breezes move during the day?
air rises over warm land and draws a cool breeze from the water across the land
49
How do breezes move during the night?
As the land cools at night, air rises over warmer water and draws cooler air from land back over the water, which is replaced by warm air from offshore
50
How does rising air affect mountains?
releases moisture on the windward side of a peak and creates a rain shadow as it absorbs moisture on the leeward side
51
How do mountains and sunlight interact?
Mountains affect the amount of sunlight reaching an area
52
How does the south and north differ in sunlight and mountains?
in the northern hemisphere, south-facing slopes receive more sunlight than north-facing slopes
53
How does elevation and temperature correlate?
Every 1,000 m increase in elevation produces a temperature drop of approximately 6 degrees Celsius
54
What is microclimate determined by?
fine-scale differences in the environment that affect light and wind patterns
55
What abiotic factors characterizes the environment?
nonliving attributes such as temperature, light, water, and nutrients
56
What biotic factors characterizes the environment?
other organisms that are part of an individual’s environment
57
How do you predict future climate change?
study previous change
58
How does glaciers correlate with terrestrial climate?
As glaciers retreated in the past, tree distribution patterns changed
59
How does climate change affect species?
species that have difficulty dispersing may have smaller ranges or could become extinct
60
What do fossil fuels and deforestation cause?
increasing CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and other greenhouse gases
61
How much has the earth warmed since the 1900s?
.8 celsius
62
How much is it projected to warm by 2100?
1-6 degrees
63
How can we use the past ice age?
predict how global warming affects the distribution of living things
64
How did trees expand after the ice age? (2)
Tree seeds expand northwards after ice ages Those with winged seeds are more rapidly expanded
65
How has climate chane affected distribution of organisms?
Trees, butterflies, and diatoms have shifted northwards
66
How has diatoms shifted environments?
due to receding arctic sea ice, making water flow possible
67
What are biomes?
major life zones characterized by vegetation type (terrestrial biomes) or physical environment (aquatic biomes)
68
What does climate determine regarding biomes (2)?
why terrestrial biomes are found in certain areas location of terrestrial biomes
69
What is a climograph?
plots annual mean temperature and precipitation in a region
70
What are biomes affected by?
not just by average temperature and precipitation, but also by the pattern of temperature and precipitation throughout the year
71
What are terrestrial biomes named after?
major physical or climatic factors and for vegetation
72
What are ecotones?
area of intergradation, ranging from wide or narrow
73
What is an important feature of terrestrial biomes?
vertical layering
74
vertical layer example
Forest might consist of an upper canopy, low-tree layer, shrub understory, ground layer of herbaceous plants, forest floor, and root layer
75
What does layering provide?
diverse habitats for animals
76
How does species composition and biome interact?
same biomes in different areas can vary
77
How can different species in the same type of biome evolve?
Similar characteristics can arise in distant through convergent evolution
78
What is a disturbance?
event such as storm, fire, or human activity that changes a community
79
How can fire affect savamma biomes?
Frequent fires kill woody plants and maintain savanna vegetation
80
How can hurricanes affect forests?
Hurricanes create openings in forests to allow different species to grow
81
Why are disturbances important?
In many biomes, dominant plants depend on periodic disturbances
82
what are terrestrial biomes characterized by? (5)
distribution, precipitation, temperature, plants, and animals
83
Where is a tropical forest found?
equatorial and subequatorial region
84
What are three characteristics of a tropical forest?
Constant temperature Vertically layered, with competition for light Rich in animal species
85
How do tropical rain forests differ from dry forests?
Tropical rain forest- rainfall is constant Tropical dry forest- precipitation is highly seasonal
86
Where are deserts found?
30 degrees north and south, and interior of continents
87
2 characteristics of deserts?
Temperature variable seasonally Can be hot or cold
88
How do desert plants adapt?
for heat and desiccation through water storage and reduced leaf surface area
89
what kind of animals are found in deserts?
nocturnal or migratory

BI158 (16 decks)

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