ecology

Question 1

Ecosystem

Answer 1

all living ecosystems and their physical and chemical environment

Question 2

population

Answer 2

group of the same spices together in an area

Question 3

biotic factors

Answer 3

living things, remains, nests as well

Question 4

adiotic factors

Answer 4

non living things and chemical components of a ecosystem

Question 5

sustainability

Answer 5

the ability to maintain a balance in a ecosystem and maintain constant characteristics over a long time in a ecosystem

Question 6

community

Answer 6

different spices together in an ecosystem

Question 7

habitat loss

Answer 7

when the area where organisms live cannot support that life anymore

Question 8

fragmentation

Answer 8

dividing up a region into smaller pieces
the second most threat to sustainability
species may not be able to survive

Question 9

climate change

Answer 9

1 threat to sustainability

how the worlds climate+ temperatures are changing when CO2 is released causing the earth to warm
animals who live in colder areas have to move
adapt to new condition s
maybe cause death

Question 10

acid precipitation

effects of land and water

Answer 10

precipitation made acidic from chemicals that mix with the atmosphere 
produced by burning fossil fuels 
LAND changes soil 
less nutrients for plants= flow growth
hard to breath 
rust and dissolves concrete 
WATER less food when producers get effected 
makes water look clear 
limestone stops the effects (neutralize)

Question 11

over exploitation

Answer 11

using a resource faster than it can be replaced

causes extinction

Question 12

poaching

Answer 12

type of over exploitation when animals are killed for parts of them
ex: ivory, medicine and skin

Question 13

pollution

Answer 13

harmful contaminants that go into the environment
some have purposes like pesticides
while others are by-products (exhaust)

Question 14

oil spills

Answer 14

water pollution that occurs when tankers spill
oil is toxic and slow to break down
hard to clean up
bad for birds and fish

Question 15

cleaning oil spills

Answer 15

SWIMMING VACCUMING: to vacuum up the floating oil
BIO REMEDATION: use micro organisms to creak down and consume the oil
BURNING- to burn the floating oil and causing it to burn away
this causes more pollution in the atmosphere
DISPERSAL AGENTS: detergents that break up the oil in to small particles to be eaten by organisms

Question 16

plastics

Answer 16

can be at sea and do not chemically degrade
can last for thousands of years
broken into pieces and ingested by animals
or the pieces can entangle animals

Question 17

symbiosis

Answer 17

close interactions between two species in a relationship

Question 18

multualism

Answer 18

both spices benefit from the interaction

Question 19

commercialism

Answer 19

one species benefit while the other has no effect

Question 20

parasitism

Answer 20

one benefits and the other is harmed

Question 21

energy flow

Answer 21

shows the amount of energy transferred between tropics
at each level energy is lost by 10%
ex a rabbit gets 10% of the energy in a plant while a fox who eats the rabbit only gets 10% of that 10% the rabbit has

Question 22

numbers

Answer 22

number of animals at each tropic level

Question 23

biomass

Answer 23

total mass of organisms at a particular tropic level

Question 24

predator

Answer 24

an animal that preys on other animals for food

Question 25

prey

Answer 25

an animal that is hunted for food

Question 26

4 ways to avoid being eaten

Answer 26

speed and endurance: use endurance to run for longer to escape a animal that can only run in short bursts camouflage: hide as something else so the predator doesn't eat it poison: doesn't taste good so the predator doesn't eat it mimicry: make themselves look like another animal

Question 27

prodicer

Answer 27

organism that makes it's own food through photosynthesis | also called autotrophs

Question 28

consumer

Answer 28

``` organism that gets its energy by eating other organisms primary consumer- eats plants secondary consume tertiary consumer also called heterotrophs ```

Question 29

pests

Answer 29

``` things that damage crops and humans try to eleiminate can be: plants- weeds insects- mosquitoes rodents- mice ```

Question 30

monocultures

Answer 30

when there is only a single type of crop growing in the fields it is a good environment for pests and if one plants becomes diseased the rest become as well

Question 31

pesticides

Answer 31

common method to eliminate pests some can be short lived (days) or long lives (years) broad spectrum pesticides are effective against many types of pests narrow spectrum are only effective against a few pests

Question 32

non target species

Answer 32

``` when pesticides kill organisms that are not intended this can cause: beneficial organisms like bees to die a chain reaction humans and animals getting sick ```

Question 33

bio-accumulation

Answer 33

``` when pesticides (toxins) accumulate in organisms if they keeping the food that has pesticides in it the toxins are then passes through the food chain ```

Question 34

bio-amplification

Answer 34

the increasing in concentration of a toxin as it moves of the food web meaning that there will be a very high concentration on toxins in higher predators

Question 35

pesticide resistance

Answer 35

when certain species become resistant to the pesticides sprayed causing humans to spray more or stronger pesticides

Question 36

what to do instead of pesticides

Answer 36

- organic farming - leave crops alone after farming for a season (improves soil+nutrients) - grow crops that work with the local conditions

Question 37

human impacts on ecosystms

Answer 37

humans can effect aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems differently

Question 38

human impacts on aquatic ecosystems

Answer 38

LIGHT: humans can block light with buildings and garbage NUTRIENTS: runoff from environments brings too much nutrients (nitrogen) and can cause algal blooms ACIDITY: C02 build up causes acid rain causing too much acidity in water, can cause fish to die TEMP: heated water (waste) is released by by power plants or other industries and heats up water causing fish to die SALINITY: winter salting causes too much salt in water

Question 39

human impacts on terrestrial ecosystems

Answer 39

LIGHT: removing trees takes away the shade that the organisms need and adding buildings makes it have less sun less plant growth WATER: dams causes flooding in areas and lack of it in others irrigation (too much watering) causes an area to be too wet NUTRIENTS: farming causes animals to get nutrients through fertilizers that is good can decrees nutrients by soil leaching TEMP: global warming creates less suitable habitats for cold climate animals

Question 40

nitrogen cycle

Answer 40

the process of turning nitrogen gas (N02) into nitrates (N03) using nitrogen fixation to do nitrogen fixation you use nitrogen fixing bacteria then goes through ammonification creates amnion aluminum- nitrification creates a nitrate

Question 41

Nitrification

Answer 41

using nitrifying bacteria to create a nitrate (N03)

Question 42

invasive species

Answer 42

a non native species who's introduction to an ecosystem has become negative on the natural environment can cause decline in other native species

Question 43

impacts of invasive species

Answer 43

ECOLOGICAL- they can cause a population decline in other animals and change the dynamic and nutrient cycles in a ecosystem ECONOMIC- damage crops and other foods bring diseases that kill trees and crops TOURISM- bring down the water quality less people will fish and go to cool at the wildlife waterways become chocked so no boats pass as well people fish less because pf the decline in biodiversity HEALTH- causes diseases and sometimes people use pesticides on them and it is bad for the health

Question 44

chemical control

Answer 44

the use of pesticides to eliminate invasive species bad for the rest of the environment may kill other species and damage air water and soil

Question 45

mechanical control

Answer 45

use man made things to stop the invasive species from effecting the ecosystem ex: barriers for fish, hunting and trapping animals and burning plants and trees

Question 46

biological control

Answer 46

intentionally releasing organisms to control and reduce the population can backfire and the added organisms can become invasive species too

Question 47

carrying capacity

Answer 47

the maximum population size of a certain species that i ecosystem can have can be altered when resources are removed or added

Question 48

limiting factor

Answer 48

any factor that gives a population a cap can be biotic- food or lack of or abiotic- water, sun also caused by human interference

Question 49

tolerance ranges

Answer 49

the specific range that a certain spices can survive with an abiotic factor ex: range of temperature fish can survive in

Question 50

generalist species

Answer 50

a species that can live in many different climates and can adapt easily can eat a variety of food may be out competed in specific areas

Question 51

specialist species

Answer 51

a species that can only live in a specific location and can not adapt easily they eat certain foods and need certain climates more likely to become extinct very adapted in their home space

Question 52

food chain/web

Answer 52

chain= sequance of organisms each feeding on the next energy transferred from organism to another the arrow goes from grey to predator web= a large mass of connected food chain

Question 53

trophic level

Answer 53

level of an organism in the ecosystem | depending on their feeding position in the food chain

Question 54

photosynthesis

Answer 54

C02+WATER--- GLUCOSE+OXYGEN the prosses in which producers turn the suns energy into a chemical energy they do it for enerdy and so that they can build matter

Question 55

cellular respiration

Answer 55

GLUCOSE+OXYGEN=CO2+WATER done my all living things not just producers occurs continuously

Question 56

equilibrium

Answer 56

An ecosystem having a constant conditions over time in a ecosystem means it is in equilibrium most natural ecosystems are in equilibrium major biomes are being in equilibrium is health equilibrium in the population means an equal number of births and deaths

Question 57

atmosphere

Answer 57

``` the layers of gases around the earth staying there because of gravity it moderates temperatures stops suns raditaion need it to live 78% nitrogen 21% oxygen ```

Question 58

lithosphere

Answer 58

earths solid outer layer | mountainous ocean floors rocks and minerals

Question 59

hydrosphere

Answer 59

all of the water on in or around the earth | in all the states of matter

Question 60

biosphere

Answer 60

zone around the earth where there are all the spheres are present and life can exist

Question 61

anthrophosphere

Answer 61

part of the environment made or modified by humans or human activities

Question 62

carnivores

Answer 62

organisms that only eat meat

Question 63

herbivores

Answer 63

organisms that only eat plants

Question 64

scavengers

Answer 64

animals that feed on dead animals or plants

Question 65

decomposes

Answer 65

a organism that break down organic material

Question 66

detritivores

Answer 66

animals that feed on organic matter and doesn't release it into the environment

Question 67

omnivores

Answer 67

animals that eat both meat and plants

Question 68

biodiversity

Answer 68

variety of life in a ecosystem measured by counting species in an ecosystem highest biodiversity in the rainforest

Question 69

species richness

Answer 69

number of species in an area a more diverse place means it has a higher richness there is a higher richness closer to the equator

Question 70

extirpated

Answer 70

doesn't live in the wild or a specific area but lives elsewhere

Question 71

endangered

Answer 71

in a real danger of becoming extinct or extraperated

Question 72

threatened

Answer 72

are likely to become endangered if current trends and threats continue

Question 73

special concern

Answer 73

may become threatened or endangered because of a combination of factors

Question 74

extinct

Answer 74

died out | no longer exists on earth

Question 75

eutrophiction

Answer 75

when excess nutrients enter a body of water due to run off from farms causes algae to form creating an algae bloom on the surface of the water blocking out sunlight and causing plants to die when the plants break down bacteria forms to eat it an increase in bacteria means less oxygen in the water if all is used up the water becomes anoxic water causing all the living things in the water to die

Question 76

carbon cycle

Answer 76

carbon and how it cycles through all of the spheres as well as biotic and abiotic factors

Question 77

carbon cycle in the ocean

Answer 77

it starts with the CO2 in the atmosphere that goes into the water by diffusion or photosynthesis for oceanic plants it is then released back into the atmosphere by cellular respiration

Question 78

carbon cycle on land

Answer 78

CO2 in the atmosphere is used in photosynthesis by plants to help them grow then when a animal eats the plant it get the C02 and releases it into the atmosphere through cellular respiration sometimes a animal doesn't eat the plant so it dies and beaks down releasing the CO2 into the soil through decomposition this then turns into fossil fuels like coil oil and gas that are taken by humans and then released back into the atmosphere