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Biology 1108 > Ecology > Flashcards

Ecology Flashcards

1
Q

Ecology

A

the study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and the environment

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2
Q

Abiotic Components

A

non living components/ interactions between organisms and non living components; air, water, light, temperature, pH, soil, wind, salinity etc

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3
Q

Biotic Components

A

living components/ interactions among living organisms; competition, predation, symbiosis, disease agents

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4
Q

Effects of Temperature

A

a most important factor in the distribution of organisms; effects on biological processes; example- coral reefs create CaCO3 skeletons and are most efficient at 20 degrees C; for example- if endothermic animals go to cold places they are out of thermoneutral zone and may not be able to restore energy fast enough

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5
Q

Wind and Temperature

A

wind can amplify temperature; increases heat loss by evaporation/transpiration and convection (wind chill); can intensify oceanic action

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6
Q

Effects of Light

A

in aquatic environments, water absorbs light preventing photosynthesis at depths greater than 100m; most aquatic plants limited to photic zone with enough light for photosynthesis

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7
Q

Effects of pH

A

normal rainwater pH 5.6; slightly acidic due to co2 forming carbonic acid; pH less than 5.2 slows plants growth

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8
Q

Effects of Water Availability

A

animal distribution is linked to plant distribution which is linked to water availability; example- grass productivity in Serengeti related to rainfall, buffalo density governed by food availability

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9
Q

Weather

A

conditions over a short period of time; highly variable

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10
Q

Climate

A

conditions over a long period of time; long term trend

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11
Q

What does water do?

A

stabilizes air temperatures by absorbing heat from warmer air and releasing heat to cooler air; example- more stable climates around coastlines, not really a large swing from winter to summer

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12
Q

What does oceans do?

A

serve as the largest reservoir for CO2 and heat; oceans regulate climate and absorb CO2 from the atmosphere; 1/3 of human generated CO2 is stored in the ocean; 80% of earths added heat is stored in the ocean

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13
Q

Oceans and Climate

A

CO2 absorbed into ocean forms carbonic acid; formation of carbonic acid decreases the pH (increases acidity) of ocean water; in a more acidic ocean, calcium carbonate, the foundation of the shells and skeletons of many aquatic organisms starts to break down

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14
Q

Water, Heat, and Temperature

A

temperature affects how well gasses are dissolved in water, 02, CO2

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15
Q

Hypoxia

A

reduced concentration of dissolved oxygen in water; low levels of oxygen in water can suffocate fish and other organisms

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16
Q

Eutrophication

A

increase in chemical nutrients (particularly nitrogen and phosphorus) in the water; from fertilizers, sewage, run off

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17
Q

What does rapid increase of eutrophication lead to?

A

algal blooms; nitrogen and phosphorus are the building blocks of single celled plants in a water column

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18
Q

Temperature, Eutrophication, and Hypoxia

A

increasing water temps causes the water to release more gases (lower O2 levels); eutrophication combined with warmer temperatures promote algal blooms; algal blooms depletes O2 through cellular respiration; feeding/decomposition further depletes O2

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19
Q

Green House Effect

A

not a bad thing; helps stabilize surface temperatures; without this effect life would not exist on Earth (drastic 100 degree temperature swings)

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20
Q

Global Warming

A

refers to a rise in the temperature of the surface of the earth

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21
Q

Enhanced Greenhouse Effect

A

an increase in the concentration of green house gases leads to an increase in the magnitude of the greenhouse effect; this results in global warming

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22
Q

What are three major green house gases?

A

carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide

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23
Q

Concentration and Residence Time of Carbon Dioxide

A

anthropogenic increase- 40%, residence time- 100 years

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24
Q

Concentration and Residence Time of Methane

A

anthropogenic- 145%, residence time- 7-10 years

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25
Concentration and Residence Time of Nitrous Oxide
anthropogenic increase- 19%, residence time- 140-190 years
26
How does global warming affect ecosystems?
system is more unstable; bigger extremes; more frequent extreme events; changes in abiotic factors results in changes in species composition
27
Ecological Impacts of Global Warming/ Climate Change
species and ecosystems are experiencing changes in species ranges, timing of biological activity, growth rates, invasive species
28
Range Change
biological/spatial shift, species shift range; example- coffee land in low altitude will eventually not be able to grow coffee plants
29
Altitudinal Shifts
biological/spatial; montane/alpine-move upwards; example- a species that lives on top of a mountain may get "pushed off" because it is warming and species are moving farther up
30
Reproductive Response
biological/temporal; change in sex ratios- Temperature Dependent Sex Determination (TSD)
31
Phenological Response
biological/temporal; timing life history events; examples- egg laying, flowering, etc
32
Trophic Mismatch
biological/ temporal; change in biotic interactions; examples- predator/prey, parasite/host, plant/pollinator; example- birds hatch when caterpillars are most abundant, if it changes the birds could starve and the caterpillars thrive
33
"Silent" Response
biological/physiology; physiological response/ energetic demands; example- when we are out of the thermoneutral zone our bodies use a lot more energy to try to get us back to equilibrium
34
Thermal Stress
biological/physiology; temperature/drought + susceptibility to diseases
35
Population
group of interbreeding individuals occupying the same habitat at the same time
36
Population Ecology
study of what factors affect population size and how these factors change over space and time; uses tools of demography
37
What are the tools of demography?
birth rates, death rates, age distributions, and sizes of populations
38
Density
number of organisms in a given unit area
39
What affects population density?
population growth/decline
40
What is the mark recapture method?
sampling method to extrapolate captured organism number to the size of the population; you capture organisms and mark them, then do a second capture and see how many are already marked
41
What are some issues with the mark recapture method?
captured animals may learn to avoid traps; entirely dependent on n3 (number marked on second capture), which can cause population size to fluctuate or not be as accurate
42
What are the three distribution patterns?
clumped, uniform, random
43
Clumped Distribution
most common; resources tend to be clustered in nature; social behavior may promote this pattern
44
Uniform Distribution
competition may cause this pattern; may also result from social interactions
45
Random Distribution
rarest; resources are rarely randomly spaced; may occur where resources are common and abundant; ex) a moose does not have many predators and can live on its own
46
What are the two reproductive strategies?
Semelparity and Iteroparity
47
Semelparity
produce all offspring in single reproductive event, individuals produce and die; ex) salmon
48
Iteroparity
reproduce in successive years or breeding seasons
49
Seasonal Iteroparity
distinct breeding seasons
50
Continuous Iteroparity
reproduce repeatedly at any time of the year
51
Cohorts
semelparous or seasonal iteroparity organisms with same aged young
52
What does a population with a lot of young mean?
that the population is about to undergo a massive growth rate; because the large number of you will reproduce at roughly the same time
53
What does a population with a lot of middle aged individuals mean?
the population will experience slower growth
54
What does a population with equal age distribution mean?
no growth
55
What are the three patterns of survivorship curves?
type I, type II, and type III
56
Type I
death of juveniles low and most individuals die later in life; ex) humans
57
Type II
fairly uniform death rate; ex) amphibians, reptiles, and small mammals
58
Type III
death of juveniles and loss low for survivors; ex) common insects and normally semelparous individuals
59
What is r?
per capita rate of growth
60
What is k?
carrying capacity
61
r-selected
"weedy" species; able to enter areas (disperse) quickly; grow quickly; reproduce at early age; large number of offspring, but poor competitors
62
k-selected
stable populations at or near k; grow slowly; reach reproductive maturity later; low dispersal, but eventually outcompete other species
63
Exponential Growth
when r>0, population increase is rapid; because population growth depends on the value of N as well as the value of r, the population increase is greater as time passes; J-shaped curve
64
Logistic Growth
for most species, resources become limiting as populations grow; carrying capacity (k) or upper boundary for population; s shaped curve
65
Is k stable?
no, the carrying capacity is not stable and fluctuates
66
Do many populations reach k?
no; affected by interactions with other species (predators, parasites, pathogens, competitors); affected by changes in environment that change k (ecological factors occur faster than population growth; effects the density of the population
67
Density-Dependent Factors
mortality rate affected by density of the population; generally biotic factors: parasitism, predation, competition etc
68
Direct Density-Dependent Factors
more mortality with greater density: ex) covid spreads faster in New York than Wyoming due to the density of people
69
Inverse Density-Dependent Factors
less mortality with greater density; ex) a zebra is less likely to die from a lion if it is in a herd of 500 than in a herd of 10
70
Density-Independent Factors
mortality not affected by the density of the population; does not matter how big the population is; generally abiotic factors: weather, flood, fire, drought
71
What growth pattern do humans fall under?
exponential pattern
72
What are the two ways human populations can exist in equilibrium?
high birth/death rates and low birth/death rates
73
What are the stages of demographic transition?
first stage: birth and death rates are high and the population remains in equilibrium; second stage: death rate declines first, while the birth rate remains high (results in high rates of population growth); third stage: birth rates drop and death rates stabilize (population grows slower); fourth stage: both birth and death rates are low and the population is again at equilibrium

Biology 1108 (5 decks)

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