ecology 1 (climate patterns, biomes, abiotic factors) Flashcards
1
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organismal ecology
A
how organisms structure, physiology, and behavior meet environmental challanges.
2
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population
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group of individuals of the same species living in an area
3
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community
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group of populations of different species in an area
4
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ecosystem
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organisms and the abiotic/biotic factors they interact with; energy flow and chemical cycling with various biotic and abiotic factors of ecosystem
5
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landscape
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a mosaic of connected ecosystems; factors generate patterns of ecosystems in a geographic region
6
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biosphere
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global ecosystem; sum of all of the plants ecosystems
7
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ecology
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the study of interactions of organisms with one another and with their environment.
8
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natural history
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he observational study of organisms and their environment, focusing on describing and understanding living things in their natural state through direct observation rather than controlled experiments
9
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conservation biology
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the study of how to protect the Earth’s biodiversity and ecosystems from the effects of human activity and extinction
10
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environment
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the sum of all external factors, including both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) components, that influence an organism or a population
11
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dispersal
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12
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behavior
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13
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habitat selection
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14
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biolotc factors
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living factors in an enviorment
15
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abiotic factors
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non living factors in an environment
16
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climate
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the long-term average weather conditions of a particular region
17
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weather
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the short-term state of the atmosphere at a specific time and place
18
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biome
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large geographical region characterized by distinct climate, vegetation, and animal life
19
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rain shadow
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obstacle/ mountain range forces prevailing winds upward -> air cools as it fills low pressure area -> produces rain
result: as air drops to other side of mountain it is warm -> dry environment
20
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windward
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side of the mountain facing the prevailing wind
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leeward
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side of the mountain that is sheltered from the prevailing wind
22
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aspect
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the compass direction that a slope of the moutain facest
23
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climograph
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a graphic representation of the relation of two climatic elements
24
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wind
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air moving from high pressure -> low pressure
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hadley cell
a global atmospheric circulation system that moves air in a convection cell pattern; warm air rises and cool air falls
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low and high pressure locations on earth
low pressure: equator
high pressure: 30 degrees N and S of equator
*air moves towards the equator (high->low)
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Coriolis effect
causes surface winds moving towards the equator to curve
northern hemisphere: curve right
southern hemisphere: curve left
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how do equatorial winds travel
east to west
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ocean circulation
equatorial winds blow warm surface water away from west coast of continents -> replaces by cold nutrient rich deep sea water
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Primary Production
amount of biomass of photosynthetic and chemosynthetic organisms per unit volume/area
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why is it dryer in the west 30 degree band than in the east (north america)
warm air from golf rises -> rain over eastern north america
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min and max angle of sunlight in Madison
Min: 24 degrees
Max: 70 degrees
*due to latitude
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why is the sunlight more intense on the equator
direct sunlight from sun (90 degree angle)
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earths axis as it moves around the sun
the tilt stays unchanged; each hemisphere tilted towards sun for respective summer periods
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precipitation and pressure: tropics
low pressure and abundance precipitations in all seasons
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precipitation and pressure: between tropics and temperate
temperate
winter wet summer dry
high pressure dry at all seasons (30)
summer wet winter dry
tropics
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precipitation and pressure: temperate zone
low pressure and ample precipitation in all seasons (~60 degrees)
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precipitation and pressure: polar zone
high pressure and low precipitation in all seasons
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Ocean Ecosystem Patterns
high primary production and chlorophyll a near edge of continents
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Biomes
major associations of species that occupy geographic regions of land or water
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how are biomes defined
by a major species, structure (what's available in the environment), and annual cycles
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abiotic constraints of biomes
temperature, moisture, chemistry, light, seasonality, disturbance regimes
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are terrestrial or aquatic biomes more often/easily categorized by dominant species and seasonal conditions
terrestrial!
*aquatic biomes categorized by dominant growth forms (depth, flow, salinity)
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what conditions on earth are there no biomes
wet and cold environments
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what do abiotic factors impact in biomes
biodiversity and productivity
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how does temperature impact biomes
effects rate of biological processes (low temperature slows things down/freeze cell; high temp denatures enzymes)
-range limits for species that can live in specific environment
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range limit of species
the range of temperatures (in this case) that a species can withstand that is based on its most critical stage of life
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impact of temperature on coral reef biome
reside in warm water; temp effect rate of deposition of carbonate skeletons
*water too hot: expel symbiotic algae -> coral bleaching
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what are there places in predictable high temperature areas that do not exhibit high temperature
increased elevation -> low pressure -> low temp in these areas
xex. andes mountain range
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evapotranspiration
the combined process of evaporation of water from the catchment surface and transpiration of water through plants, resulting in water loss to the atmosphere.
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slope
The steepness of a surface, or the rate of change in elevation between a location and its surroundings. Slope is measured in degrees or as a percentage
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aspect
The direction of the steepest slope, measured clockwise in degrees from 0 to 360. 0 is north-facing, 90 is east-facing, 180 is south-facing, and 270 is west-facing; suns energy go to one side of slope -> impact biome
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how does moisture impact biomes
- evapotranspiration rate
-vegetation patterns
-slope and aspect
??????
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how does wind influence biome
-increases heat loss by evapotranspiration and convection (wind chill)
-flagging
?????
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How does water density and movement impact biomes
-water pressure intensifies i deep water
*adaptation: more fluid lipid membrane in deep ocean
-wind intensifies waves
*seaweed with holdfast to withstand currents and species burrowing
56
how does light intensity impact biomes
-water absorbs light; more photosynthesis at surface
*Red algae have pigments that
absorb blue-green light, so they
can live in deeper water
*Understory forest plants
sometimes have red pigments in
lower leaf surfaces
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photic zone
depth that light penetrates
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aphotic zone
where light does not penetrate
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problems with too much light exposure (desert biomes)
-increase plant and animal stress
-too much UV light can damage DNA and proteins (At high elevation,)
60
how does rock and soil makeup impact biomes
-mineral composition
-water holding capacity
-nutrient availability
-chemicals present
-physical structure
-fire occurrences???
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main abiotic physical factors that impact biomes
temperature, moisture, wind, light, soil structure, fire
*(water density and movement aquatic biomes)
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Aspect: What side of a mountain gets most direct sunlight in both hemispheres
northern: south side
southern: north side
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which side of a mountain has more evapotrasnpiration
the side with more direct sunlight
northern hem: south side
southern hem: north side
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what side of the mountain has more trees/ moisture
side with less direct sunlight
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chemical abiotic factors that influence biomes
water availability, oxygen availability, salinity, pH
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water availability: biomes
- direct constraint: organisms need different amounts of water which dictates where they can live
-indirect constraint: vegetation needs water to grow which dictates what/how many organisms scan live there (food source)
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oxygen availability: biomes
different amount of oxygen needed for different organisms
*adaptations: increase diffusion of oxygen to roots
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salinity: animal biomes
- freshwater fish: gain water and constantly eliminate water
-marine fish: gain water and excrete salt (adapted to salty environment)
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salinity: plant biomes
evaporation increased can cause increase in salt concentrationh
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halophytes
plants with higher salt concentration; have special salt glands that excrete salt
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pH: terrestrial biomes
-low soil pH slows decomposition, slows N cycle, leaches Ca2+ from soil
-higher pH -> high species diversity
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pH: aquatic biomes
-species diversity lower at lower pH (acidic)
-acidity increases solubility of toxic metals
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Acid rain + its consequences
release of protons into rain making pka ~5
-kills leaves and juvenile fish
-depletes soil nutrients
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what causes acid rain
burning fossil fuels (SO2 and NO2)
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niche
range of conditions necessary for a species to persist and the ecological role/interactions of the species with its environment and other species
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is a niche referring to abiotic or biotic factors in the species enviornment
both!
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fundamental niche
the full range of environmental conditions where a species could potentially live and thrive in the absence of competition
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realized niche
the actual niche a species occupies in a given environment, taking into account interactions with other species, like competition
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dispersal
he movement of individual organisms away from their birthplace to a new location where they can establish and reproduce; where species are where they are
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the equilibrium theory of island biogeography
relationship/balance between the number of species and the rate of immigration and extinction on islands
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how does the rate of arrival of new species relate to the number of species already on the island?
rate of arrival of NEW species goes down because there are already many species
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species area relationship
more species on bigger islands
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species isolation relationship
fewer species on more isolated islands
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species turnover
number of species stays the same but the particular species present are changing; immigration and extinction equilibrium
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immigration and extinction rate on larger islands
higher immigration rate and lower extinction rate -> larger number of species
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niche behavioral defintion
sum of all niches of individuals in a species; from all life stages, seasons and cohorts
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cohorts
set of individuals of roughly the same age
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why is the overall migrational patterns of species changing when birds migrate at the same time as they did every year prior
new cohort migrates at a different time due to climate change -> shifts overall average of whole species
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aspects of variation in a species
-individual variation
-variation of different life stages
-variation in population
-variation of individuals in cohorts
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why is there extreme seasonality in the middle of continents
land heats faster than water and water holds heat longer than land
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lake turnover
the seasonal mixing of a lake's water column, where the warmer, less dense surface water sinks to the bottom, while the cooler, denser bottom water rises to the top
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seasonality
difference in conditions between seasons
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what part of continents have most extreme seasonalityand why
middle of continents; land heats faster than water and water retains heat faster than land -> coasts more stabilized temperature and middle land more up and down
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how do lakes impact seasonality
moderates temperature in the winter and keeps temp more consistent in the summer
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continentality
climate in land areas far from oceans with larger temperature ranges and moderate precipitation
