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Ecology > Exam 1 real version > Flashcards

Exam 1 real version Flashcards

1
Q

abiotic

A

physical/nonlivng environment

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2
Q

adaptation

A

trait with a genetic basis that enhances survival of its bearers in their environment

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3
Q

biosphere

A

highest level of organization on earth, all organisms on earth and the environment in which they live

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4
Q

biotic

A

living components of an environment

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5
Q

climate change

A

directional change in climate over a period of three decades or more

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5
Q

community

A

interacting species that occur together at the same place and time

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5
Q

ecology

A

study of interactions between organisms and their environment

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5
Q

ecosystem

A

all organisms in a given area and the physical environment in which they live

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6
Q

landscape

A
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6
Q

consumer

A

organism that obtains it’s energy by eating another organism or it’s remains

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6
Q

evolution

A

change in allele frequency’s over time

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6
Q

natural selection

A

process by which individuals with certain heritable characteristics tend to survive more successfully than others due to said characteristic

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6
Q

net primary production

A

amount of energy per unit of time that producers capture by photosynthesis/chemosynthesis (minus the amount used in cellular respiration)

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6
Q

nutrient cycle

A

cyclic movement of nutrients between organisms and their physical environment

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6
Q

biodiversity

A

diversity of important ecological entities

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7
Q

direct interaction

A

predation, competition or positive interaction between two species

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7
Q

population

A

a group of individuals of the same species living within a given area

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7
Q

competitive network

A

multiple species that each negatively interacts with every other species

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7
Q

community

A

group of interacting species that occur at the small place and time

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7
Q

community structure

A

set of characteristics that shape a community (# species/abundance)

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8
Q

ecosystem engineer

A

species that influences its community by creating, modifying, or maintaining a physical habitat for itself and other species

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9
Q

food web

A

diagram showing connections between organisms and the food they consume

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10
Q

foundation species

A

a species that has large effect on its community due to its size or abundance

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11
Q

functional group

A

set of species that function in similar ways but do not use the same resources

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12
Q

guild

A

species that use the same resources

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13
Q

indirect interactions

A

relationship between two species is mediated by a third species

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13
Q

horizontal interactions

A

interactions that occur within a trophic level

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14
Q

interaction strength

A

a measure of the effect of one species on the abundance of another

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15
Q

interaction web

A

concept that describes both the trophic and non trophic interactions among the species in a traditional food web

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16
Q

keystone species

A

a species that has an effect on energy flow and community size regardless that it is not abundant

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17
Q

rank abundance curve

A

plots the proportional abundance of each species in a community relative to to the others in rank order

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17
Q

alternative stable states

A

different community development scenarios that are possible at the same location under similar environmental states

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18
Q

climax stage

A

last stage of succession that is thought to be stable until disturbances shift the community back to earlier successional stages

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19
Q

disturbance

A

abiotic event that harms some individuals and allows others to thrive as a result

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20
Q

hysteresis

A

inability of a community that has undergone change to shift back even when original conditions are restored

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20
Q

pioneer stage

A

first stage of primary succession

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20
Q

primary succession

A

succession that involves the colonization of habitats devoid of life

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20
Q

secondary succession

A

involves the reestablishment of a community in which some, but not all, organisms have been destroyed

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21
Q

biotic resistance

A

interactions of the native species of a community with the non native species that slow the growth of non natives

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22
Q

community function

A

set of processes that shape community structure

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23
Q

stability

A

when a community retains or returns to its original structure and function after some disturbance

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24
Q

complementarity hypothesis

A

proposes that as species richness increases there is a linear increase of the positive effects of those species on community

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25
Q

dynamic equilibrium model

A

species diversity is maximized when the level of disturbance and the rate of competitive displacement are roughly equivalent

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26
Q

adaptation

A

trait with an underlying genetic basis that enhances survival of its bearers in their environment

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27
Q

acclimatization

A

an organisms adjustment to lessen the effects of an environmental change and minimize associated stress

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28
Q

avoidance

A

response to stressful environmental conditions that lessen their effect by minimizing their exposure to the stress

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29
Q

boundary layer

A

zone close to the surface where a flow of fluid encounters resistance and becomes turbulent

30
Q

climate envelop

A

range of climate variables that are associated with a species geographic distribution

31
Q

ecotype

A

population with adaptations to unique local environment

31
Q

dormancy

A

a state in which little to no metabolic activity occurs

31
Q

ectotherm

A

animal that regulates its body temperature primarily through exchange with the external environment

32
Q

endotherm

A

animal that regulates it body temperature through internal metabolic heat generation

33
Q

hibernation

A

torpor lasting several weeks in the winter

33
Q

resistance

A

any force that impedes the movement of compounds such as water or gases such as carbon dioxide along an energy gradient

34
Q

matric potential

A

energy associated with attractive forces on the surfaces of large molecules inside cells

34
Q

torpor

A

state of dormancy in which endotherms drop their lower critical temperature and associated metabolic rate

34
Q

stomate

A

pore in plant tissues surrounded by specialized guard cells that control it’s opening and closing

34
Q

stress

A

abiotic factor that results in a decrease in the rate of an important physiological process

34
Q

pubescence

A

presence of hair

34
Q

C4 photosynthetic pathway

A

day time uptake of CO2

35
Q

tolerance

A

ability to survive in stressful conditions

35
Q

gravitational potential

A

energy associated with gravity

35
Q

crassulacean acid metabolism

A

CO2 is fixed and stored at night and released to the Calvin cycle during the day

35
Q

lower critical temperature

A

environmental temperature at which the heat loss of an endotherm triggers an increase in metabolic heat generation

35
Q

autotroph

A

organism that converts energy from sunlight into chemical energy

35
Q

C3 photosynthetic pathway

A

uptake of CO2 and synthesis of sugars

35
Q

Calvin cycle

A

biochemical pathway used to fix carbon and synthesize sugars

35
Q

chemosynthesis

A

use of energy to fix CO2 and produce carbs int he Calvin cycle

35
Q

detritus

A

freshly dead or partly decomposed remains of an organism

35
Q

heterotroph

A

organism that gets energy by eating energy rich compounds made by another organism

36
Q

What statement about movement of energy through ecosystems is true?

A

energy can move in one direction only and cannot be recycled

36
Q

Which trait cannot evolve by natural selection?

A

a trait that is the result of an individuals life experiences and does not have genetic basis

36
Q

Plants with bacterial symbionts that fix _____ are often important players in ____ stages of succession.

A

nitrogen, early

36
Q

Robert Paine

A

non native algae species coexist with a competitively dominated species with periodic disturbances

37
Q

David Tilman

A

increase diversity = increase productivity

38
Q

G. E. Huthcinson

A

studied freshwater lakes

39
Q

Charles Darwin

A

evolution/natural selection

40
Q

Henry Gleason

A

variation in species does not affect community

41
Q

Which statement best summarizes Elton’s views on succession?

A

Organisms and the environment interact to shape the direction that succession will take.

42
Q

Robert MacArthur showed that different species of warblers in New England forests…

A

coexist because they utilize different parts of the tree

42
Q

Tilman’s experiments with the two species of diatoms showed that the species could coexist…

A

when the ratio of silica to phosphorus was at an intermediate

42
Q

What hypothesis did Legih Van Valen pose in 1965?

A

niche variation hypothesis

42
Q

When heterotrophs consume food, they convert it to usable chemical energy, primarily in the form of ___, during the process of ____.

A

ATP, glycolysis

43
Q

The use of specialized bacteria to help break down a toxic organic pesticide spilled during an industrial accident is an example of ___.

A

bioremediation

43
Q

What is the primary difference between interaction webs and food webs?

A

interaction webs include non-trophic interactions, food webs do not

43
Q

Which statement about change in communities is true?

A

disturbances create opportunities for some species to grow or reproduce due to injury or death

43
Q

In the CAM pathway, CO2 uptake occurs ____ and the Calvin cycle occurs ____.

A

at night, during the day

44
Q

what quality is a biotic feature of the environment?

A

density of consumers

45
Q

What is one reason that amphibians are especially good indicators of the condition of the environment?

A

they live in both terrestrial and aquatic environments

46
Q

How did exposure to pesticides affect frogs?

A

caused deformities

47
Q

Which statement about the studies by Mary Powers and colleagues on California rivers is true?

A

species, such as the steelhead, that are keystone predators during the normal years are minor players in the food web during drought years

48
Q

ecologists are concerned about the establishment of invasive species in new areas because invasive species…

A

can have large economical effect on there new communities

49
Q

Which value can be measured the most easily?

A

species richness

50
Q

What stamens about the difference between a competitive network and a competitive hierarchy are true?

A

in a competitive hierarchy, one species dominates the interaction; in an interaction network, no one species dominates the interaction

51
Q

An experiment by alsterbesrg and colleagues showed that with ocean acidification and warming, the biomass of benthic micro algae…

A

(both a and b)… did not change with omnivores, declined with our omnivores

52
Q

What is the primary difference between interaction webs and food webs?

A

interaction webs include non trophic interactions, food webs do not

53
Q

In the study by Jennifer Higher and colleagues, in which community did it appear that species richness had been adequately sampled?

A

a plane community from a forest in michigan

54
Q

What statement about keystone predators is true?

A

they usually influence primary producers indirectly

55
Q

Which statement about zebra mussels in North America is true?

A

they arrived in North America from ballast water discharged into the great lakes

56
Q

Which statement is an assumption of the resource partitioning theory?

A

resources are limiting

57
Q

Robert and John MacArthur found that in both tropical and temperate habitats, bird species diversity ___ as plant diversity increased and ____ as foliage height diversity increased.

A

showed no change, increased significantly

58
Q

The tolerance and inhibition models of primary succession hold different assumptions about the…

A

nature of the effects that the early colonizers have on late colonizing species

59
Q

Which statement about the change in communities is true?

A

disturbances create opportunities for some species to grow or reproduce due to death/injury of others

60
Q

Which of the following is an example of something that could be predicted with information on a species climate envelop?

A

range that the species could potentially inhabitat

61
Q

What do chemosynthesis and phtoosythesis have in common?

A

they both fix carbon and result of storage of energy in carbon-carbon bonds

62
Q

What takes place during the second step of photosynthesis, referred to as the carbon reactions?

A

CO2 is fixed, producing carbs

63
Q

IN contrast to C3 plants, C4 plants have…

A

well differentiated mesophyll cells and bindle sheeth tissue

64
Q

The experiments of Kenword and colleagues with New Caledonian crows showed…

A

the ability of crows to manufacture tools is at least partially inherited

65
Q

among vertebrates, ____ can survive a long winter in a semi frozen state.

A

a few species of frogs, salamanders, and turtles

66
Q

What takes place during the first step of photosynthesis, referred to as the light driven reactions?

A

water is split to provide electrons to synthesize ATP and NADPH

67
Q

Orchid species have lost their ability to photosynthesize, and instead parasitize fungi for their energy needs, are examples of….

A

holoparasites

68
Q

When you touch something hot and you hand becomes warm this is an example of…

A

kinetic energy transfer

69
Q

(the mouse question) how much heat must it be generating per minute?

A

17 milliwatts

70
Q

Aquatic animals that are hypo osmotic to the surrounding water must expand energy to excrete salts against the osmotic gradient.

A

true

71
Q

In what way was the early atmosphere different from the atmosphere today?

A

it was richer in CO2 and methane

72
Q

Why do researchers think that ‘sponging’ behavior in bottlenose dolphins is a learned trait?

A

behavior appears to be socially transmitted through the maternal line

Ecology (4 decks)

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