Module 3-A Flashcards by Valerie Gegrimal

The study of the complex web
of interactions between organisms and
their environment at all levels of organization.

Ecology

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a segment of the
DNA molecule that
encodes a single enzyme or structural protein unit

• working units of heredity

Genes

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lowest level of
organization in an
ecosystem

• building block of an
ecosystem

• functions independently

• capable of interbreeding
and producing fertile
offspring

Individual

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• group of individuals of the
same species occupying a common geographical area

Ex. Population of freshwater
goby (Glossogobius giuris) in
Taal lake

Population

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• Two or more populations of different species living
and interacting within an ecosystem

• Populations within a
community may
compete for space or
food

• A certain population is the food resource of
another

Community

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consist of more than a
community of living organisms
(biotic factors) and their
interaction with non-living
ones (abiotic factors)

Ecosystem

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highest level of
ecological organization

• portion of the earth that
contains living species

• includes the atmosphere,
oceans, soils and the
physical and biological
cycles that affects them

Biosphere

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Population Characteristics includes?

Size
• Density
• Abundance
• Distribution
• Age structure

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Number of individuals is referred to as?

Population size

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Refers to the number of
individuals per unit area or volume

most important measures of
population
dependent on births,
immigration/emigration and
deaths

Population density

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Estimation of population size and density
that determine population size and density of plants or very small and slow-moving animals

Quadrants

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determines the population size and density of organisms that move
around

Ex fish

Mark recapture method

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describes the area over which a
population occurs

-influenced by occurrence of suitable environmental
conditions

Distribution) dispersion

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Patterns of distribution/dispersion

Clumped
Random
Uniform

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Population characteristics that Increases or declines in populations which are predicted based on
birth and death rates for organisms at different ages as well
as the current age and sex makeup of the population

Age structure

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Population characteristics that summarize birth and death rates for organisms at different stages of their lives

Life tables

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Population characteristics represented in graphs that show what fraction of a
population survives from one age to the next

Survivorship curves

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Population characteristics that refers to a “snapshot” of a population in time showing how its members are distributed among age and
sex categories

Age-sex pyramid

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organisms tend not to
die when they are young or
middle-aged but, instead, die
when they become elderly

usually have small numbers
of offspring and provide lots
of parental care to make sure
those offspring survive

Type 1

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organisms die more or
less equally at each age
interval

may also have relatively
few offspring and provide
significant parental care

Type 2

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Trees, marine invertebrates, and most fish

very few organisms survive
their younger years, ones that
make it through youth are
likely to have long lives
usually have lots of offspring
at once but don’t provide
much care for the offspring

Type 3

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pattern of survival and
reproduction events
typical for a member of
the species

Life history/cycle

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How members of a species
distribute their limited
resources among growth,
survival and the production
of offspring

Life history strategy

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evolutionary strategies: trade-offs

K strategist
R strategist

Produce few offspring but with higher probability of survival • Common in long-lived and large animals

K strategist

• produces many such low effort babies • eggs are fertilized and then dispersed • common of organisms that occupy unstable environments

r-strategist

maximum energy is invested in a single reproductive effort

Semelparity

less energy is allocated each time for multiple reproductive efforts

Iteroparity

Physical Structure of a Community includes?

Habitat Ecological niche Fundamental niche Potential niche Realized niche

physical place where an organism lives ex. Freshwater lake

Habitat

the array of essential resources an organism utilizes

Ecological niche

ecological niche of a species in the absence of interactions with other species

Fundamental niche

what organisms could do with no competitors or resource limitations

Potential niche

the set of conditions actually used by given animal , interactions with other species considered

Realized niche

Biological Structure of a Community involves?

Species richness Relative abundance Species evenness Diversity

a count of the number species occurring within the community

Species richness

percentage contribution of each species to the total number of individuals of all species

Relative abundance

equitable distribution of individuals among species

Species Evenness

defined by the number of species and their relative abundance

Diversity

Simpson's Index of Diversity = 1 – D Simpson's Reciprocal Index = 1 / D

Shannon Index /Shannon-Weiner index (H)

a single or few species predominating within a community

Dominant Species/Dominants

species that function in a unique manner through their activities, and their effect on the community is disproportionate to their numerical abundance; their removal will initiate changes in the structure of the community and significant loss of diversity

Keystone Species

organisms of two species use the same limited resource and have a negative impact on each other

Competition

competition among individuals of the same species

Intraspecific competition

Competition that occurs between different species

Interspecific competition

resources are divided, permitting species with similar requirements to use the same resources in different areas, ways and/or times

resource partitioning

theory of _ maintains that species who utilize the same resources cannot coexist indefinitely

competitive exclusion

beneficial to one species but neutral to another

Commensalism

an interaction that is beneficial to both species

Mutualism

an interaction that benefits one species (parasite) and is detrimental to another (host)

Parasitism

An interaction beneficial to one species and detrimental to another; prey is killed • Predators and prey regulate each other's population dynamics.

Predation

illustrate indirect interactions among species within a community

Food webs

Age structure diagrams

Rapid growth Slow growth Stable Shrinking

mix of large infrequent and small frequent events that disrupts an ecosystem, community or population, changing substrates and resource availability • These events renew ecosystems and diversify landscapes - initiates ecological succession

Disturbance

a series of progressive changes in the composition of an ecological community over time • involves a progression from communities with lower species diversity to communities with higher species diversity

Succession

An area previously occupied by living things is disturbed— disrupted—then recolonized following the disturbance

Secondary succession

(pioneer species) are usually characterized by high growth rates, smaller size, high degree of dispersal and high rates of per capita population growth.

Initial or early successional species