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Biology 1108 > Ecology > Flashcards

Ecology Flashcards

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AP® Biology flashcards Biology 101 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
Q

Concentration and Residence Time of Nitrous Oxide

A

anthropogenic increase- 19%, residence time- 140-190 years

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26
Q

How does global warming affect ecosystems?

A

system is more unstable; bigger extremes; more frequent extreme events; changes in abiotic factors results in changes in species composition

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27
Q

Ecological Impacts of Global Warming/ Climate Change

A

species and ecosystems are experiencing changes in species ranges, timing of biological activity, growth rates, invasive species

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28
Q

Range Change

A

biological/spatial shift, species shift range; example- coffee land in low altitude will eventually not be able to grow coffee plants

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29
Q

Altitudinal Shifts

A

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

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30
Q

Reproductive Response

A

biological/temporal; change in sex ratios- Temperature Dependent Sex Determination (TSD)

31
Q

Phenological Response

A

biological/temporal; timing life history events; examples- egg laying, flowering, etc

32
Q

Trophic Mismatch

A

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
Q

“Silent” Response

A

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
Q

Thermal Stress

A

biological/physiology; temperature/drought + susceptibility to diseases

35
Q

Population

A

group of interbreeding individuals occupying the same habitat at the same time

36
Q

Population Ecology

A

study of what factors affect population size and how these factors change over space and time; uses tools of demography

37
Q

What are the tools of demography?

A

birth rates, death rates, age distributions, and sizes of populations

38
Q

Density

A

number of organisms in a given unit area

39
Q

What affects population density?

A

population growth/decline

40
Q

What is the mark recapture method?

A

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
Q

What are some issues with the mark recapture method?

A

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
Q

What are the three distribution patterns?

A

clumped, uniform, random

43
Q

Clumped Distribution

A

most common; resources tend to be clustered in nature; social behavior may promote this pattern

44
Q

Uniform Distribution

A

competition may cause this pattern; may also result from social interactions

45
Q

Random Distribution

A

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
Q

What are the two reproductive strategies?

A

Semelparity and Iteroparity

47
Q

Semelparity

A

produce all offspring in single reproductive event, individuals produce and die; ex) salmon

48
Q

Iteroparity

A

reproduce in successive years or breeding seasons

49
Q

Seasonal Iteroparity

A

distinct breeding seasons

50
Q

Continuous Iteroparity

A

reproduce repeatedly at any time of the year

51
Q

Cohorts

A

semelparous or seasonal iteroparity organisms with same aged young

52
Q

What does a population with a lot of young mean?

A

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
Q

What does a population with a lot of middle aged individuals mean?

A

the population will experience slower growth

54
Q

What does a population with equal age distribution mean?

A

no growth

55
Q

What are the three patterns of survivorship curves?

A

type I, type II, and type III

56
Q

Type I

A

death of juveniles low and most individuals die later in life; ex) humans

57
Q

Type II

A

fairly uniform death rate; ex) amphibians, reptiles, and small mammals

58
Q

Type III

A

death of juveniles and loss low for survivors; ex) common insects and normally semelparous individuals

59
Q

What is r?

A

per capita rate of growth

60
Q

What is k?

A

carrying capacity

61
Q

r-selected

A

“weedy” species; able to enter areas (disperse) quickly; grow quickly; reproduce at early age; large number of offspring, but poor competitors

62
Q

k-selected

A

stable populations at or near k; grow slowly; reach reproductive maturity later; low dispersal, but eventually outcompete other species

63
Q

Exponential Growth

A

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
Q

Logistic Growth

A

for most species, resources become limiting as populations grow; carrying capacity (k) or upper boundary for population; s shaped curve

65
Q

Is k stable?

A

no, the carrying capacity is not stable and fluctuates

66
Q

Do many populations reach k?

A

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
Q

Density-Dependent Factors

A

mortality rate affected by density of the population; generally biotic factors: parasitism, predation, competition etc

68
Q

Direct Density-Dependent Factors

A

more mortality with greater density: ex) covid spreads faster in New York than Wyoming due to the density of people

69
Q

Inverse Density-Dependent Factors

A

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
Q

Density-Independent Factors

A

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
Q

What growth pattern do humans fall under?

A

exponential pattern

72
Q

What are the two ways human populations can exist in equilibrium?

A

high birth/death rates and low birth/death rates

73
Q

What are the stages of demographic transition?

A

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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