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Ecology > Lecture 1 > Flashcards

Lecture 1 Flashcards

1
Q

What is Ecology?

A

the study of organism-environment relationships

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2
Q

What is an Ecosystem?

A

all organisms and their physical environment

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3
Q

What is the Biosphere?

A

the highest level of ecological organization

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4
Q

What is the order of the levels of organization in an ecological heirarchy?

A
  1. Individual
  2. Population
  3. Community
  4. Ecosystem
  5. Landscape
  6. Biome
  7. Biosphere
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5
Q

MacArthur’s study in which ‘multiple species of warblers coexisted by feeding in different areas’ countered a theory stating what?

A

that species with identical needs could not coexist

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6
Q

What is the term for a long term average of weather patterns?

A

Climate

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7
Q

What drives Earth’s climate?

A

Electromagnetic energy from the sun

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8
Q

Shortwave radiation is emitted from what?

A

Hot objects like the sun

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9
Q

Longwave radiation is emitted from what?

A

Cooler objects like the Earth

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10
Q

What is the Greenhouse Effect?

A

that Atmospheric gases absorb and re-radiate longwave radiation (heat), warming the Earth’s surface

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11
Q

What are Seasons caused by?

A

variations in solar radiations with higher latitudes recieving less direct sunlight

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12
Q

Air Pressure increases or decreases with altitude?

A

Decreases; denser air at lower elevations

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13
Q

What is Adiabatic Cooling?

A

As air rises, it cools due to reduced pressure

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14
Q

What creates wind patterns?

A

Earth’s rotation and angular motion causes wind patterns

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15
Q

What is the Coriolis Effect?

A

Cause of air to deflect forming belts of prevailing winds

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16
Q

Ocean currents mirror what? (and why)

A

wind patterns ; forming large circular movements known as Gyres

17
Q

Large circular / rotating movements of ocean currents are known as what?

A

Gyre

18
Q

What are Gyress?

A

Large circular / rotating movements of ocean currents

19
Q

_____ hemisphere gyres move clockwise while _______ hemisphere gyres move counterclockwise

A

Northern ; Southern

20
Q

What 2 processes transfer heat between water and the atmosphere?

A

Evaporation and Condensation

21
Q

Relative Humidity measures what?

A

Water vapour in the air

22
Q

What is used to measure water vapour in the air?

A

Relative Humidity

23
Q

What is the unevenness of global precipitation influenced by?

A

the rising and falling of air masses

24
Q

What is the Rain Shadow Effect?

A

Mountains block rain, creating dry areas on the leeward side

25
Q

What are Microclimates?

A

localized climate variations affect specific environments
(including urban areas where concrete can create warmer conditions)

26
Q

What is the term for a systematic process of asking questions, formulating hypotheses, and conducting experiments to understand natural phenomena?

A

the Scientific Method

27
Q

What is Eutrophication?

A

the excessive growth of algae in water bodies, often caused by nutrient pollution - particularly phosphorus

28
Q

What is an Ecotone?

A

a transition area between teo biomes of ecosystems, marked by distinct boundaries or changes in species composition

29
Q

What is Ecological modeling?

A

simplified representations of real systems used to predict behaviour or responses in ecology

30
Q

What is the term for the excessive growth of algae in water bodies, often caused by nutrient pollution -particularly phosphorus

A

Eutrophication

31
Q

What is the term for a transition area between two biomes or ecosystems, marked by distinct boundaries or changes in species compositions

A

Ecotones

32
Q

What is the term for electromagnetic energy from the sun that reaches Earth’s atmosphere, influencing weather patterns

A

Solar Radiation

33
Q

What is the term for radiation emitted by hot objects?

A

Shortwave Radiation

34
Q

What is the range of length of Shortwave Radiation?

A

Less than 4 micrometers

35
Q

What is the range of length of Longwave Radiation?

A

Greater than 4 micrometers

36
Q

The process by which the atmospheric gases absorb longwave radiation an radiate it back to Earth, keeping the surface warm - is called what?

A

Greenhouse Effect

37
Q

What is the term for a region near the equator in which warm, moist air rises, resulting in high levels of precipitation

A

Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)

Ecology (4 decks)

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