Ecological Tolerance Flashcards
what is ecological tolerance?
the range of conditions, such as temperance, salinity, flow rate, and sunlight that an organism can endure before injury or death results
who does ecological tolerance apply to?
individuals and species (both have a range of tolerance for all the different environmental conditions of their habitat)
what is an example of ecological tolerance applying to an individual vs a species?
salmon have a basic range of tolerance for temperatures from 6 to 22 degrees celsius, but some individual salmon have adaptations that give them a range of tolerance that is outside the basic range for the species
why do some individuals have different ecological tolerances compared to their species?
why is this beneficial?
genetic biodiversity
it makes populations more resistant to disturbances like global warming
what are the different zones in the ecological range of tolerance?
optimal range, zone of physiological distress (included in the tolerance range), zone of intolerance
what is optimal range?
the range where organisms survive, grow, and reproduce; it’s the preferred niche
what is the zone of physiological distress?
the range where organisms survive, but experience some stress such as infertility, lack of growth, decreased activity, etc.; it is the marginal niche
what is the zone of intolerance?
the range where the organism will die
when in the zone of intolerance, what could an organism die from?
thermal shock, suffocation, lack of food/water/oxygen
what are some different ecological ranges of tolerance?
pH (too acidic vs too alkaline), temperature
what is the consequence of global warming in terms of ecological range of tolerance?
global warming shifts temperature outside the range of tolerance for many species, including trees and fish
as the ocean warms, it holds less water, causing fish to suffocate due to a lack of oxygen (physiological distress)
global warming also increases droughts which can push rainfall patterns outside the range of tolerance for many plant species, preventing them from absorbing enough water from the soil with their roots (physiological distress)
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