Lecture 16 Flashcards
What is ecology the study of?
Ecology is the study of how organisms interact with each other and their physical environment (biotic and abiotic factors)
What are the three approaches to studying ecology?
1) Theoretical
2) Observational
3) Experimental
Theoretical Approach
Use information about biotic and abiotic factors to create complex models of how the world may be working– do this through computerization.
Observational Approach
Going out and measuring things in the natural world to determine how organisms are actually using their resources and trying to discover why.
Experimental Approach
Manipulating an environment (e.g. creating an enclosure, removing trees, introducing predators) to see how organisms behave ecologically.
Ecological Scales
1) Organism
2) Population
3) Community
4) Ecosystem
5) Biosphere
Population
Group of individuals of the same species living in an area.
Community
A group of populations of different species in an area.
Ecosystem
The community of organisms and the physical (abiotic) factors with which those organisms interact.
Biosphere
The global ecosystem– the sum of all the planet’s ecosystems and landscapes & the interaction of all these ecosystems on earth.
Biotic Factors
Living (including things that were once living and are now dead)
a) Bacteria
b) Fungi
c) Plants
d) Archaea
e) Animals
f) Protists
Abiotic Factors
Non-living factors– the physical environment
a)air
b) salinity
c) soil
d) temperature
e) sunlight
f) water
g) minerals
h) pH
i) humidity
How does the sun impact global patterns of climate at different latitudes (tropics, seasonality)?
- The amount of solar energy absorbed by the earth varies at different latitudes.
- Tropics (23.5 N, 23.5 S) receive the most direct sunlight year round.
*The Earth has a tilt that causes variation of sunlight at different latitudes throughout the year.
What and where are the tropics? How does this relate to the sun angle?
The tropics are regions of the earth surrounding the equator. Their latitudes from N to S are the same degree as the tilt of the earth on its axis (23.5˚).
How do atmospheric cells affect global patterns of climate at different latitudes?
- Warm, moist air rises and is blow in the direction of the poles (30 and 60 latitude). As the warm air starts to cool, it will condensate and drop its water (precipitation)– LOTS OF RAINFALL
*Cool, dry air falls (30 and 90 latitude). All of the moisture from the land/ground is sucked out.–> DRY
How do surface winds (tradewinds, westerlies) and ocean currents impact regional climate patterns?
*Tradewinds (E–>W) around the tropics
*Westerlies (W–>E) temperate latitudes
*Warm water moves away from equator
*Ocean currents move clockwise above equator
*Ocean currents move counter-clockwise below equator
*Atlantic warmer than pacific
*Oceanic currents heat or cool coastal land
