ecosystem ecology - exam 4 Flashcards
ecosystem
a biological community of interacting organisms & their physical environment
scale
ecosystem boundaries can vary in scale
small micro habitats to entire biomes
physical boundaries
some ecosystems have physical boundaries that delineate them from their surroundings
ecological boundaries
based on interactions between organisms & the environment
may consider factors like nutrient cycle & energy flow
energy flow
plants convert solar energy to chemical energy - photosynthesis
organisms use chemical energy as our fuel - respiration
less energy available w/ each transfer
energy transfer
ecosystems require a flow of energy to function
if apex predators were the only consumers - there would be no energy source
heterotophs
must ingest food
autotrophs
make own food
photosynthesis
primary producer
primary production
production of chemical energy in organic compounds by living organisms
biomass (B)
mass of organisms per unit area
how much carbon
production (P)
rate of generation of new biomass
how fast biomass is being produced
what is limiting production
sunlight
nutrients
what is limiting biomass
losses:
-morality
-decomposition
energetic hypothesis
length of a good chain is limited by the inefficiency of energy transfer
only 10% of energy stored in each trophic level is passed to the next
biogeochemistry
way in which an element moves between its various living & nonliving forms & locations in the ecosystem
biogeochemical cycle
