Green generation Flashcards
autochoton
organic matter produced within a community.
ex. freshwater plants within a river
allochoton
organic matter entering a stream, lake, or ocean but derived from an adjacent terrestrial
ex. falling leaves from a tree located at the banks of the river
trophic pyramid
basic structure of interaction in all biological communities
Formula for carrying capacity
dN/dt = rN(K-N)/K where r is the intrinsic rate of growth, N is the population density, K is the carrying capacity, and ti is time
What is the name of the structure that results from the accumulation of debris that occurs because of the North Pacific Cycle
North Pacific Cycle
pyramids
graphical models of the quantitative relationships that exist between the trophic levels of a single ecosystem
pyramid of biomass
a graphical portrayal of biomass present in a unit of the territory of different trophic levels
amount of biomass present at each trophic level at a certain point in time, represents the standing stock of each trophic level.
trophic level
comprising organisms that share the same function in the food chain and the same nutritional relationship to the primary sources of energy
pyramids of productivity
each level represents energy per unit area per unit time, takes into account the rate of production over a period of time
pyramid of numbers
shows graphically the population, or abundance, in terms of the number of individual organisms involved at each level in a food chain
pyramids
graphical models of the quantitative relationships that exist between the trophic levels of a single ecosystem.
pyramids of productivity
a pyramid of productivity takes into account the rate of production over a period of time because each level represents energy per unit area per unit time.
gross primary production
the total energy in the molecules of the plant
net primary production
surplus energy not used by the plant itself
How do you calculate biomass?
(mass of each individual)*(number of individuals at each trophic level)
How do you calculate net production
Gross production - Respiration
bioaccumulation
when plants / animals take up a chemical from the environment and do not excrete it. The chemical builds up in the organism over time to a potentially lethal level
biomagnification
refers to the sequence of processes that results in higher concentrations o fhte chemical in organisms at higher levels in the food chain (at higher trophic levels). In this way the chemical’s concentration is magnified from trophic level to trophic level. The concentration of the chemical may not affect lower levels of the food chain but the top levels take in so much it can cause disease or death
grazing food chain
one which goes from green plants to grazing herbivores and finally to carnivores
detritus food chain
one, which goes from dead organic matter to microorganisms and then to detritus feeding organisms
detritus
dead particulate organic material
guild
any group of species that exploit the same resources or that exploit different resources in related ways
taxon
phylogenetica related group of species; a clade
guild
a group of species without regard for taxonomic position that exploit the same class of environmental resources in a smilar way
local guild
a group of species that share a common resource and occur in the same community
assemblage
a group of phyogentically related species within a community
ensemble
a phylogentically bounded group of species that use a similar set of resources within a community
Charles Darwin
Not the first “ecologist”, but clearly recognized the importance of organisms’ interactions for evolution by natural selection
Ernst Haeckel
study of Darwin’s multifaceted struggle for existence
the blob
phytoplankton bloom beneath the ice in the Arctic due to major changes in Arctic ecosystems as the planet warms, related to Chukchi Sea Algae
nitrates
natural chemicals that are found in the soil, air, and water
What happens when trees are destroyed in a forested region (clear-cut, wildfire)?
the concentration of nitrates in streams running thorugh the regions will increase
the average depth of topsoil will decrease
the water temperature in streams running through the region will decrease
What happens when trees are destroyed in a forested region (clear-cut, wildfire)?
the concentration of nitrates in streams running thorugh the regions will increase
the average depth of topsoil will decrease
the water temperature in streams running through the region will increase
volume of runoff after rains will increase
the frequency of landslides will increase
What is the best long-term methods of preventing extinctions?
habitat protection
What is the Dust Bowl
period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian praries during the 1930s; severe drought and a failure to apply dryland farming methods to prevent the wind erosion was the cause
Aeolian processes / eolian
wind’s ability to shape the surface of the Earth
Methylmercury
Inorganic mercury is converted to methylmercury, which enters the food chain when absorbed by plankton. Plankton are eaten by fish. It is known as the primary ciguatoxin.
Passive solar housing
use the architectural design, the natural materials or absorptive structures of the building, as an energy saving system. The building itself serves as a solar collector and storage device.
Active solar housing
requires a separate collector, a storage device and controls linked to pumps or fans that draw heat from storage when it’s available. Generally pumps a heat-absorbing fluid medium through a collector
canopy fogging
collect biodiversity of insects. Insecticide sprays and insects falls to the ground, collect and observe them
quadrant sampling
different species within a quadrat (square) is counted, repeated many times
transect sampling
measure with a rope, and count the number and type of species along the line
netting
fine mesh nets capture organisms (birds, fish, bats, etc…) identified, measured, blood tests, etc… then released to the wild
biodiversity hotsopt
place where there is an exceptionally large number of species in a relatively small area.
stratification
the vertical layering of a habitat or the arrangement of different vegetation in layers in a habitat
Raunkiær system
categorizing plants using life-form categories
Phanerophytes
grows stems into the air
perennial plant
plant that lives more than two years
biennial plant
plant that lives about two years to complete a full life cycle
Annual plant
completes its life cycle in one growing season (like spring). Divided into Winter annuals and Spring annuals
gymnosperms
makes seeds but doesn’t create flowers
angiosperms
makes seeds and creates flowers
population dynamics
deals with the variation in time and space of population size and density for one or more species
indicator species
an organism whose presence, absence, or abundance reflects a specific environmental condition
Holdridge life zones system
global bioclimatic scheme for the classification of land areas
vermicomposting
composting with worms in an enclosed worm bin
net capacity factor of a power plant
ratio of its actual output over a period of time, to its potential output if it were possible for it to operate at full capacity indefinitely
largest hydroelectric dam in the world
Three Gorges Dam in China
ecotone region
area of transition between two biomes
has characteristics of both biomes and organisms tend to compete with one another for food and shelter
permafrost
the permanent frozen subsoil on arctic tundra
how to classify biomes
by vegetation, soil, climate (temperature & precipitation), wildlife
bioremediation
Bioremediation is a biotechnical process, which abates or cleans up contamination. It is a type of waste management technique which involves the use of organisms to remove or utilize the pollutants from a polluted area.
biostimulation
stimulates growth of microbes thus resulting in efficient and quick removal of contaminants by microbes and other bacteria
bioaugmentation
microorganisms extract the contaminants, but unable to control the growth of microorganisms in the process
Intrinsic bioremediation
manages the innate capabilities of naturally occurring microbes to degrade contaminants without taking any engineering steps to enhance the process, mostly used in underground locations
bioventing
process that increases the oxygen or air flow into the unsaturated zone of the soil
bioattenuation
includes a variety of chemical, physical, and biological processes that reduce the mass, toxicity, volume or concentration of contaminants
bioattenuation
includes a variety of chemical, physical, and biological processes that reduce the math, toxicity, volume or concentration of contaminants
sorption
removal of a compound from solution by solid phase constituents
volatilization
conversion of a liquid chemical into a vapor, which escapes into the atmosphere
biosparging
process of groundwater remediation as oxygen, and possible nutrients, is injected. When oxygen is injected, indigenous bacteria are stimulated to increase the rate of degradiation. However, biosparging focuses on saturated contaminated zones, specifically related to ground water remediation
biopiles
used to reduce petroleum pollutants by introducing aerobic hydrocarbons to contaminated soils
windrows
soil is periodically turned in order to enhance aeration, which allows contaminants present in the soil to be uniformly distributed which accelerates the process of bioremediation
landfarming
sludge spills, disperses contaminated soil and aerates the soil by cyclically rotating
phytoremediation
plants are directly used to clean up or contain contaminants in the soil
incineration/thermal treatment
process where wastes and other unwanted substances are burnt (combustion), waste turns into ash, flue gas, and heat
ingestion
process of taking in food
assimilation
the absorption and digestion of food or nutrients by the body or any biological system.
excretion
waste products of animals
Assimilation = Indigestion - Excretion
this goes without saying
secondary production
conversion of assimilated energy
net product efficiency
production / assimilation
Ecological efficiency
energy supply available to trophic level (N+1)/energy consumed by trophic level N
homeotherms
warm-blooded
animals that maintain a constant internal body temperature (mammals and birds)
poikilotherms
cold-blooded
living organisms that do not regulate their temperatures internally
(all invertebrates, some vertebrates, and all plants, even though plants don’t have blood)
Residence time of energy formula
Residence time of energy = energy in biomass / net productivity
Residence time of energy for biomes
forests: 20~25 years
grasslands: 0~5 years
lakes and oceans: 10~15 days
Reason that pyramid of biomass is inverted in aquatic ecosystems
Producers like phytoplankton and zooplankton are tiny and have limited biomass. They also reproduce and die quickly.
