Ecology Flashcards
Ecology
The study of the relationships between living organisms and their physical environment.
Biological Levels
Individual -> Population -> Community -> Ecosystem -> Biome -> Biosphere
Abiotic Factors
Non-living (water, air, soil, sunlight, etc…)
Biotic Factors
Living or once-living ( animals, birds, fungi, etc..)
Individual
A member of a species
Population
A group of individuals of the same species
Community
A group of interacting species
Ecosystem
A group of interacting species and their abiotic environment.
Biome
All ecosystems having a common physical environment with shared characteristics
Biosphere
All regions of the Earth that is inhabited
Habitats
The natural home or environment of an organism
Microhabitat
A home inside of a generalised habitat ( burrow inside a tree)
Types of Organismal Relationships
Competition - Predation - Mutualism - Parasitism - Commensalism
Competition
Different individuals compete over a limited resource or food.
Predation
A predator will eat or kill their prey.
Mutualism
Two organisms live closely together and benefit by co-existing.
Parasitism
One organism benefits and the other is harmed (without death)
Commensalism
One benefits and the other is unaffected.
Biodiversity
The variety of plant or animal life.
Importance of Biodiversity
Provides food, materials, resources and medicines Increases adaptiveness Balances Earth's ecosystems Provides ecological life support Protects ecological resources Increases ecosystemic resources Increases ecosystemic productivity Promotes genetic variation
Population Density
The measurement of a population per unit area.
Population Distribution
The dispersion of a population within an area.
Types of Densities
Low Density (territorial, solitary) and High Densities ( colonial)
Types of Distrubution
Random (often in plants), Clumped (herding, highly-social) and Uniform (territorial, highly-dense)
