Ecology, Food Webs, and Biogeochemical Cycles

Question 1

Ecology

Answer 1

Study of the interactions of organisms with one another and their surroundings

Question 2

Global ecology

Answer 2

Study of all of earth’s ecosystems and the systems that support life

Question 3

Scope of global ecology

Answer 3

biosphere and ecosphere

Question 4

What is a biosphere or ecosphere

Answer 4

systems that support life

Question 5

Landscape ecology

Answer 5

Study of patterns and interactions across ecosystems and the way those interactions affect the ecological process and the temporal and spatial patterns in a region

Question 6

Scope of landscape ecology

Answer 6

ecosystems and biomes

Question 7

Ecosystem ecology

Answer 7

Study of the living and nonliving components in an ecosystem, how they interact, and how energy and chemicals flow through the different parts of the environment

Question 8

What is included in freshwater ecosystems

Answer 8

lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, and groundwater

Question 9

What is included in saltwater ecosystems

Answer 9

oceans, marshes, and estuaries

Question 10

What is included in terrestrial ecosystems

Answer 10

land

Question 11

What are the 3 categories of ecosystem ecology

Answer 11

freshwater, saltwater, and terrestrial

Question 12

Community ecology

Answer 12

Study of the interactions and dynamics of populations or species in a region or ecosystem across many spatial and temporal scales

Question 13

Scope of community ecology

Answer 13

an ecosystem or region and the interactions that shape the structure and dynamics within that system

Question 14

Population Ecology

Answer 14

populations within a given ecosystem or community

Question 15

Scope of population ecology

Answer 15

populations within an ecosystem or community

Question 16

Organismal Ecology

Answer 16

Study of a single organism and the morphological, physiological, and behavioral adaptations that allowed for survival in a specific environment

Question 17

Scope of organismal ecology

Answer 17

one specific organism

Question 18

Biotic

Answer 18

living

Question 19

Abiotic

Answer 19

nonliving

Question 20

Biosphere

Answer 20

Atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere

Question 21

Food chain

Answer 21

a progression of organisms through which energy and nutrients are passed

Question 22

Trophic level

Answer 22

a grouping of organisms that have the same relationships concerning energy and nutrients within the food chain

Question 23

Primary producers

Answer 23

Photosynthetic, autotrophs

Question 24

Primary consumers

Answer 24

Heterotrophic omnivores, eat primary producers

Question 25

Secondary consumers

Answer 25

Eat primary consumers, omnivores and carnivores that don't eat other carnivores

Question 26

Tertiary consumers

Answer 26

Eat secondary consumers, carnivores that eat other carnivores

Question 27

Decomposers

Answer 27

Break down dead or decaying organisms or other organic matter

Question 28

Law of conservation of matter

Answer 28

matter can't be created or destroyed, but elements are always present

Question 29

Law of conservation of energy

Answer 29

energy can neither be created nor destroyed, but is converted from one energy to another

Question 30

Apex consumer

Answer 30

Top predator in a food chain or food web, not eaten by other predators

Question 31

Trophic levels

Answer 31

the step-by-step processes of a food chain/web in an ecosystem that energy moves in

Question 32

Ecological pyramids

Answer 32

show how much energy or matter exists within each trophic level

Question 33

Pyramid of energy

Answer 33

a model that shows the amount of energy available at each trophic level

Question 34

Biomass pyramid

Answer 34

a model that shows the amount of living material at each trophic level

Question 35

Sublimation

Answer 35

solid water changes into water vapor without becoming liquid first

Question 36

Denitrification

Answer 36

process where bacteria turn nitrates into nitrogen gas

Question 37

Primary productivity

Answer 37

the rate at which primary producers create organic material

Question 38

Eutrophication

Answer 38

when a body of water becomes overly enriched with minerals and nutrients

Question 39

True/False: Ecologists use the scientific method to study the different levels of ecology

Answer 39

True

Question 40

What happens to plants/animals that cannot adapt to severe changes in their environment

Answer 40

They can become extinct

Question 41

True/False: Organisms at all levels of the food chain do not require energy

Answer 41

False

Question 42

Which laws govern how materials flow and how energy is transferred on earth

Answer 42

The law of conservation of matter and the law of conservation of energy

Question 43

How are trophic levels displayed

Answer 43

Ecological pyramids

Question 44

Where are primary producers located on a food web/chain pyramid

Answer 44

At the base/bottom

Question 45

About how much energy is available within a trophic level when it is transferred to the next level through consumption

Answer 45

about 10%

Question 46

What do biomass pyramids show

Answer 46

virtual representation of the mass of a food chain

Question 47

What do numbers pyramids show

Answer 47

the number of organisms at each trophic level

Question 48

True/False: Nutrients move through the ecosystem by changing form

Answer 48

True

Question 49

What role do decomposers play in the biogeochemical cycle

Answer 49

break down complex macromolecules into bioavailable molecules

Question 50

What processes does the water cycle depend on

Answer 50

evaporation/sublimation, condensation/precipitation, subsurface water flow, surface runoff/snowmelt, and streamflow

Question 51

Describe the water cycle

Answer 51

The sun warms the surface of oceans, rivers, and streams, → water vapor condenses in clouds → precipitation

Question 52

How do autotrophs use carbon

Answer 52

make glucose through photosynthesis, with water and oxygen as byproducts

Question 53

How do hetertrophs obtain carbon

Answer 53

by consuming autotrophs

Question 54

True/False: Nitrogen gas is abundant in the atmosphere, in a form most organisms can use

Answer 54

False

Question 55

What is ammonification

Answer 55

the process where nitrogen-fixing bacteria combine nitrogen gas with hydrogen to make ammonia

Question 56

What is the process of nitrification

Answer 56

Bacteria in the soil turns ammonia into nitrites and nitrates

Question 57

What is denitrification

Answer 57

nitrates turn into nitrogen gas after animals consume nitrogen in gplants

Question 58

What happens when nutrients are limited and can't supply the needs of primary producers

Answer 58

Primary productivity stops

Question 59

What is the most common limiting nutrient in saltwater environments

Answer 59

Nitrogen

Question 60

What is the most common limiting nutrient in freshwater environments

Answer 60

Phosphorus