Ecology Lab 2

Question 1

Habitat

Answer 1

the location an organism inhabits. Its study usually involves a description of the biotic and abiotic structure of the environment

Question 2

Growth form

Answer 2

the physical structure of an organism; e.g. tree, shrub, vine, herb

Question 3

Life History

Answer 3

refers to the reproduction, growth, longevity, and seasonal or age-specific behavior of organisms

Question 4

Annual

Answer 4

Plant lives less than one year, and tends to put most of its resources into seed production

Question 5

Winter annual

Answer 5

an annual which germinates in the late fall, grows during warm spells in the winter and early spring, blooms in the early spring, sets seed, and then dies

Question 6

Summer annual

Answer 6

an annual that germinates in the spring or summer, and blooms in or before fall. Many agricultural weeds fall into this category.

Question 7

Seed Bank

Answer 7

All viable seed that remain in the soil. Many annual species have a long-lived seed bank.

Question 8

Biennial

Answer 8

the plant that lives two years; a seed germinates, the plant devotes its first year to vegetative growth, the second year to reproduction; it then dies.

Question 9

Perennial

Answer 9

the plant lives more than two years. Some perennials reproduce all at once and then die, while others spread their reproduction, it then dies

Question 10

Ruderal

Answer 10

refers to a plant, usually an annual or biennial, which requires disturbed soil. Ruderals are often informally referred to as weeds.

Question 11

Deciduous

Answer 11

leaves fall off at the end of the growing season (in Texas, the growing season is the warm period of the year- in many tropical regions, the growing season corresponds with the rainy season)

Question 12

Evergreen

Answer 12

leaves are retained throughout the year and may last several years. For many evergreen species (especially conifers), leaves are needles or scales

Question 13

Herb

Answer 13

A plant with no woody stem above the ground

Question 14

Graminoid

Answer 14

an herb that is or resembles a grass; includes grasses, sedges, and rushes

Question 15

Forb

Answer 15

a non-graminoid herb; includes most wildflowers. Although some consider forms to be weeds, they are very important in grasslands and forests.

Question 16

Shrub

Answer 16

A woody perennial, smaller than a tree, usually without a dominant trunk

Question 17

tree

Answer 17

perennial woody plant with an evident trunk

Question 18

vine

Answer 18

a plant that climbs on other plants by means of tendrils or other structures

Question 19

Liana

Answer 19

a perennial and woody vine

Question 20

self-pollination

Answer 20

pollen is transferred from anther to stigma of the same flower (or less commonly, another flower on the same plants), often by direct contact

Question 21

apomixis

Answer 21

seed is produced without pollination (similar to parthenogenesis in animals)

Question 22

outcrossing

Answer 22

pollination with pollen from a different individual (and therefore with a different genotype) of the same species

Question 23

animal pollination

Answer 23

animals transfer pollen; flowers are often “showy” (brightly colored, scented, etc.). Plants usually provide rewards for the animal such as nectar or extra pollen.

Question 24

Wind Pollination

Answer 24

wind transfers pollen; flowers are often “reduced” (lacking showy parts such as petals or sepals)

Question 25

water pollination

Answer 25

(rare) pollen floats on water between flowers in some aquatic plants

Question 26

perfect flowers

Answer 26

both male and female parts are present within the same flower (examples: mesquite, cactus, most grasses, most wildflowers, most ruderals/weeds)

Question 27

Monoecious

Answer 27

individual flowers are either male or female, but both are present on the same plant (examples: oak, pecan, ragweed, corn)

Question 28

dioecious

Answer 28

male and female flowers are on different plants. Thus dioecious species, we can speak of male plants and female plants (examples: junipers, willow, cottonwood)

Question 29

stolons (runners)

Answer 29

specialized above ground stems that spread from parent plant and root at the nodes

Question 30

Rhizomes

Answer 30

specialized below-ground stems that spread from the parent plants and send up shoots

Question 31

Fragmentation

Answer 31

Establishment of new plants from bits broken off of a parent; common in aquatic plants, cacti, grasses, and many rhizomatous (rhizome-possessing) plants.

Question 32

Wind dispersal

Answer 32

seeds are winged, tufted, or very tiny

Question 33

animal dispersal

Answer 33

either external or internal. Externally dispersed seeds stick to animals by means of hooks, prickles, or mucilage (sticky substance), or they may be intentionally carried (e.g. nuts by squirrels). Internally dispersed seeds pass unharmed through the gastrointestinal tract; these are usually enclosed in an edible fruit

Question 34

water dispersal

Answer 34

seeds float about on water most plant species are capable of this, but some shoreline and aquatic species are especially adapted to this mode of dispersal.

Question 35

Indigenous

Answer 35

native to the area; having arrived and become established without human assistance

Question 36

naturalized

Answer 36

growing and reproducing without human assistance after being introduced to the area by humans; includes many weeds, escaped crops, and ornamentals

Question 37

exotic (introduced)

Answer 37

species not indigenous to the area; may or may not be naturalized

Question 38

ornamental

Answer 38

cultivated for esthetic purposes in a specific place; includes both indigenous and exotic species

Question 39

C3

Answer 39

this is the most common kind of photosynthesis. The carbon (from carbon dioxide) is immediately “fixed” into a 3-carbon compound. Almost any plants active during the winter will belong to a C3 species. C3 grasses are called “cool season grasses.” However, C3 species can also be active in the summer. Most woody plants in Texas (unless you consider cactus to be “woody”) are C3 species).

Question 40

C4

Answer 40

C4 photosynthesis puts carbon from CO2 directly into a 4-carbon compound. The enzyme that does this is quite efficient; therefore, not much CO2 needs to be around for it to work. The advantage of this is that C4 plants do not need to open their stomata (holes under leaves) very far to let in the CO2 molecules. Since they do not open their stomata far, water loss is minimal. C4 plants are adapted to dry climates and are most active during the summer. Almost all C4 species are grasses, including big bluestem, little bluestem, Johnson grass, and Bermuda grass. C4 grasses are the “warm season grasses.”

Question 41

CAM

Answer 41

Succulent species such as cactus utilize CRASSULACEAN ACID METABOLISM (CAM). CAM species open their stomata only at night, when evaporation is low, and store the carbon in the form of acids. During the day, these acids release the carbon within the leaf. This carbon is then utilized in normal C3 photosynthesis. CAM plants are most common in extremely dry climates such as deserts.