Ecosystems Flashcards
What is the biosphere?
All space occupied by living things on Earth
What is an ecosystem?
A region containing interacting abiotic and biotic factors
What is a community?
Population of species that occur together in the same space and time
What is a population?
Individuals of the same species that co-occur in space and time
What is an individual?
Living entities that are genetically and physically distinct
What is autoecology?
A branch that focuses on the interactions between individuals with their environment
What is population ecology?
Focuses on understanding processes that influence population structure and dynamics
What is community ecology?
Focuses on understanding interactions between species or factors that influence the structure of entire communities
What is ecosystem ecology?
Focuses on understanding how organisms and chemical and physical processes interact
What is landscape ecology?
Study on how landscape patterns influence ecological processes, and how ecological processes in turn modify the landscape
What is macroecology?
Study of processes at large spatial scales, such as a region, a continent, or several continents
What is global ecology?
Study of processes at the global scale, with relevance for all life on our planet
What are temporal scales?
Can study short timescales or long timescales
What are spatial scales?
Can be local scales or landscape scales
What is an ecosystem?
An arbitrarily defined geographic volume containing interacting biotic and abiotic factors, connected to other ecosystems by a series of inputs and outputs
