lecture 1 - the web of life Flashcards
what is ecology?
scientific study of interactions between organisms and their environment
ecological hierarcy
organism -> population -> community -> ecosystem -> landscape -> biosphere
what is an ecosystem
the community and physical environment
what is a landscape
areas that vary substantially from one place to another and typically include more than one ecosystem
biosphere
all living organisms on earth plus the environments which they live
population
a group of individuals of a species that live in a particular area and interact with each other
community
an association of different populations of different species that live in the same area
biotic components
all living components in an ecosystem
abiotic components
the physical non living components of a natural system
example of biotic components
populations, communities
examples of abiotic components
altitude, salinity
true or false
ecosystems, landscapes, and biospheres have both biotic and abiotic characteristics
true
natural selection
the process by which individuals with certain traits tend to survives and reproduce at a higher rate than other individuals because of these traits
how many ecological maxims are there
7
first ecological maxim
organisms interact and are interconnected
second ecological maxim
everything goes somewhere (nutrient cycling)
third ecological maxim
no population can increase in size forever
fourth ecological maxim
finite energy and resources result in trade offs
fifth ecological maxim
populations evolve
sixth ecological maxim
communities and populations change over time
seventh ecological maxim
spatial scale matters
trade offs
making choices, trading off one thing for another
evolution
aka genetic variation
change in allele frequencies within a population overitme
adaptation
aka survival of the fittest
a characteristic of an organism that improves its ability to survive or reproduce
can only have adaptation through natural selection
