Exam 1 Study Guide Flashcards
Give the order of the ecological hierarchy.
Individual, population, community, ecosystem, landscape, biome, and biosphere
What is the difference between short-wave radiation/photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and energy/infrared radiation (heat)?
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What affects climate patterns between each latitude other than solar inputs?
Ocean currents/upwelling/land
Describe the three major photosynthetic pathways.
C3 - “vanilla”; light-driven reactions (chlorophyll absorbs red/blue light and reflects green) and carbon reactions (ATP and NADPH fix carbon); wheat, rice, beans, etc. Occurs in areas with adequate H20 and CO2 - most used form of photosynthesis.
C4 - CO2 and H20 are concentrated near chlorophyll via a unique leaf morphology; corn, grasses. Typically in warm grasslands.
CAM - Open stomata during the night to allow CO2 in and is stored as malate. During the day, this malate is used to aid in photosynthesis; cacti. Typically found in dessert environments.
What is Rubisco?
An enzyme used in the Calvin Cycle. It catalyzes the uptake of CO2. Sadly, it can also react with O2 causing a waster of ATP and a generation of harmful products aka photorespiration.
Describe optimums and trade-offs. How do they relate to each other?
Optimum: most favorable conditions
Trade-off: increase one function, however in decreases another - a literal trade of abilities
What is the difference between acclimatization and adaptation?
Acclimatization: short-term change in an individual’s morphological and physiological aspects
Adaptation: long-term changes occurring in a population via genetics
What is the difference between morphology and physiology
Morphology: the structure and form of an individual (body size, % body fat)
Physiology: an individuals functions (transpiration rate, metabolic rate)
What is homeostasis?
When an individual maintains it’s internal environment
What are some things that affect an individual’s homeostasis?
water/solutes, temperature, energy
What is the difference between tolerance and avoidance? Why do these occur?
Tolerance: how much organisms can maintain homeostasis and how that differs among species
Avoidance: when an organism puts itself into optimal conditions
Both occur when an individual experiences stress
Why can’t energy be recycled within ecosystems?
If a system was closed to inputs of energy, the system would eventually run out of energy. When energy is used, some of it is lost as heat.
What’s the difference between an autotroph and heterotroph? Define the different trophic levels and give their order.
Autotrophs - Producers: can create their own food
Heterotrophs - Consumers: rely on other organisms for food
1st level: producers or autotrophs
2nd level: herbivores that eat producers
3rd level: consumers that eat herbivores
4th level: carnivores that consume the level below them
What is trophic cascade? Give an example.
The trophic levels balance one another. Predators keep the prey population in check and the prey keep producers in check. If predators are removed from the system, prey populations will grow and producer population will decrease.
Define the difference between catchability and digestibility.
Catchability is how easy it is to obtain that energy source while digestibility is how easy that energy source is digested.
The two involve trade-offs. If an energy source is easy to catch then it would be harder to digest. If an energy source is harder to catch then it would be easier to digest.
