Chapter 52 - An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere

Question 1

ecology

Answer 1

The study of how organisms interact with each other and their environment.

Question 2

climate

Answer 2

The long-term prevailing weather conditions at a given place.

Question 3

tropics

Answer 3

Lattitudes between 23.5° north and south.

Question 4

macroclimate

Answer 4

Large-scale patterns in climate; the climate of an entire region.

Question 5

microclimate

Answer 5

Climate patterns on a very fine scale, such as the specific climatic conditions underneath a log.

Question 6

abiotic

Answer 6

Nonliving; referring to the physical and chemical properties of an environment.

Question 7

biotic

Answer 7

Pertaining to the living factors—the organisms—in an environment.

Question 8

biome

Answer 8

Any of the world’s major ecosystem types, often classified according to the predominant vegetation for terrestrial biomes and the physical environment for aquatic biomes and characterized by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment.

Question 9

climograph

Answer 9

A plot of the temperature and precipitation in a particular region.

Question 10

ecotone

Answer 10

The transition from one type of habitat or ecosystem to another, such as the transition from a forest to a grassland.

Question 11

canopy

Answer 11

The uppermost layer of vegetation in a terrestrial biome.

Question 12

disturbance

Answer 12

A natural or human-caused event that changes a biological community and usually removes organisms from it. Disturbances, such as fires and storms, play a pivotal role in structuring many communities.

Question 13

tropical rain forest

Answer 13

A terrestrial biome characterized by relatively high precipitation and temperatures year-round.

Question 14

tropical dry forest

Answer 14

A terrestrial biome characterized by relatively high temperatures and precipitation overall but with a pronounced dry season.

Question 15

desert

Answer 15

A terrestrial biome characterized by very low precipitation.

Question 16

savanna

Answer 16

A tropical grassland biome with scattered individual trees and large herbivores and maintained by occasional fires and drought.

Question 17

chaparral

Answer 17

A scrubland biome of dense, spiny evergreen shrubs found at midlattitudes along coasts where cold ocean currents circulate offshore; characterized by mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers.

Question 18

temperate grassland

Answer 18

A terrestrial biome that exists at midlatitude regions and is dominated by grasses and forbs.

Question 19

northern coniferous forest

Answer 19

A terrestrial biome characterized by long, cold winters and dominated by cone-bearing trees.

Question 20

temperate broadleaf forest

Answer 20

A biome located throughout midlatitude regions where there is sufficient moisture to support the growth of large, broadleaf decideuous trees.

Question 21

tundra

Answer 21

A terrestrial biome at the extreme limits of plant growth. At the northernmost limits, it is called arctic tundra, and at high altitudes, where plant forms are limited to low shrubby or matlike vegetation, it is called alpine tundra.

Question 22

dispersal

Answer 22

The movement of individuals or gametes away from their parent location. This movement sometimes expands the geographic range of a population or species.