chapter 55 Flashcards
what is an ecosystem?
all organisms and a/biotic factors in an environment; can be big or small
what are the 2 important factors of an ecosystem?
energy flow and chemical cycling
what is energy flow?
energy coming in and out
what is chemical cycling?
chemicals are coming in and out
what is trophic efficiency?
percent energy that gets passed from one trophic level to another; avg 10%
why do consumers only get 10% of energy from their prey?
the organism uses 90% for energy, reproduction, and metabolism so they only have 10% left for predators
what are the atmospheric gases?
carbon, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen
what are the terrestrial and aquatic gases?
phosphorus potassium and carbon
what is a flux?
rate of substance goes through environment
what is a pool?
in a certain environment for a while
what is a sink?
element taken out of environment
what 4 factors do ecologists focus on when studying nutrient cycling?
chemical’s biological importance
the forms of the chemicals available or used by organisms
major reservoirs for each chemical
key processes of driving movement of chemical
why is the water cycle unique?
water is found naturally in 3 forms
which phase of water is used the most in the water cycle?
liquid
what is residence time?
how long 1 molecule stays in its place
how do human alter the water cycle in a bad way?
we change residence time with dams irrigation. asphalt and cement dont allow water into aquifers
why is carbon important to living organisms?
every macromolecule has it
what role do autotrophs play?
they turn inorganic->organic and do photosynthesis
where does CO2 in the atmosphere come from?
humans, burning fossil fuels, respiration, volcanoes
what are some long term carbon reservoirs?
fossil fuels and sedimentary rock
what are some short term carbon reservoirs?
biomass, soil, sediment, atmosphere, solutes in ocean
what are fossil fuels?
buried under sediment without oxygen->fossils
what are greenhouse gases?
gases that trap heat but the heat cant get out
is the drought over?
precipitation drought is over but not temperature drought, the water will just evaporate
when CO2 levels increase, mean annual temp will ____
increase
when CO2 levels increase, drought will ____
increase
when CO2 levels increase, precipitation will ____
increase
when CO2 levels increase, ice caps an glaciers will _____
decrease
when CO2 levels increase, sea level will ____
increase
when CO2 levels increase, tropical storms will ____
increase
when CO2 levels increase, disease outbreaks will _______
increase
organisms use nitrogen for _____
amino acids, proteins, and nucleic acids
what is the main reservoir for nitrogen?
atmoshpere
who fixes N2?
bacteria, cyanobacteria lightning, industrial process, dizatrophs
why is nitrogen in short supply?
all living organisms need it and we can’t produce it
theres less nitrogen fixers
why is phosphorus important to living organisms?
DNA RNA ATP
what is the most important form of phosphorus?
phosphate
where is the largest reservoir of phosphorus?
in sedimentary rocks of marine origin, oceans and organisms
is the phosphorus cycle short?
no it takes a long ass time!! millions of years
where are some natural sources of sulfur?
volcanoes and steam vents
what is an unnatural source of sulfur?
burning fossil fuels
what are the negative effects of the sulfur cycle?
acid rain
where does acid rain affect people the most?
east coast United States
what are the 2 key strategies to restore ecosystems?
bioremediation and augmentation
what is bioremediation?
use organisms to take tooxins out of environment
which organisms are used most often for bioremediation?
prokaryotes and fungi
how do prokaryotes and fungi help the environment during bioremediation?
they can take up and sometimes metabolize toxic molecules
what is biological augmentation?
uses organisms to add essential materials to a degraded ecosystem
what is the goal of biological augmentation?
to get environments back to their original state
how was the kissimmee river restored?
it was plugged up with cement to change the diversion of water and allowed for natural flow
how was the truckee river restored?
damming and water diversions didnt allow enough water to the riverside forests but then ecologists monitored water release and lead to more plants yay
how was the tropical dry forest restored?
the forest was cleared for agriculture and by introducing domestic livestock to disperse seeds it get better yay
how was the rhine river restored?
dredging and channeling disconnected the water flow from wetlands but now theyre trying to reconnect it to side channels
how was the succulent karoo restored?
overgrazing damaged the area, government and private landowners are trying to fix it
how was coastal japan restored?
theres not a lot of seaweed and seagrass beds bc they were reduced by development and fish and shellfish need them. theyre trying to transplant naturals beds and hand seed to fix it
how was maungatautari restored?
introduced species pose a serious threat to native species so theyre trying to get rid of them with traps and poison
what the problem with greek yogurt?
bc of its thicker than regular yogurt, more waste water is squeezed out
whats a possible cause of warmer oceans?
climate change? reason unknown
why have storms been intensifying in asia?
result of faster intensification linked to warmer ocean waters in coastal areas
