Section 14: Ecology (Last one!!) Flashcards
This is the study of distribution + abundance of organisms and their interactions with other organisms and their physical environment
Ecology
This is the term for nonliving components of ecology (temp, climate, light, water availability, topology)
This is thee depth of the water in a lake or ocean that is exposed to sufficient sunlight for photosynthesis to occur.
This is the portion of a lake or ocean where there is little or no sunlight. Only animals and other heterotrophs can live here.
Abiotic
Photic Zone
Aphotic Zone
The air is 80% _______, 20% ______
Nitrogen, oxygen
This is the term in ecology for all living things that directly or indirectly influence the life of the organism
Biotic
This is the study of patterns of interconnections in a network system, and specifically called ecological ______-
topology
This is a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area
Population
This is a group of populations living in the same area
Community
This term describes relationships between organisms in a community and their physical environment
Ecosystem
This is composed of all region of earth that contain living things, the global sum of all ecosystems
Biosphere
This is the type of place where an organism usually lives, including other organisms as well as the physical and chemical environment
Habitat
This term describes all biotic and abiotic resources in the environment used by an organism. When an organism occupies one, certain resources are consumed or certain qualities of environment are changed in some way by its presence
Niche
This is the study of the growth, abundance, and distribution of populations
Population ecology
In population ecology, this is the total number of individuals in a population
What is the variable?
Size
N
This is the total number of individuals per area or volume occupied
Density
In population ecology, this describes how individuals in a population are distributed, may be clumped uniform or random
Dispersion
In population ecology, this is the description of abundance of individuals of each age with horizontal bars for each age group
Age Structure (google image search)
In population ecology, this is how the mortality of individuals in a species varies during their lifetimes
Survivorship Curve
This type of survivorship curve has most individuals surviving until middle age and then dying quick after that age (humans)
Type I
This type of survivorship curve means the length of survivorship is random (invertebrates-hydra)
On the graph it is the straight line in the middle
Type II
This type of survivorship curve means most individuals die young, with few surviving to reproductive age and beyond (oysters)
Type III
In population growth, this is the maximum growth rate under ideal conditions (unlimited resources and no restrictions)
What factors of a species contribute to it?
Biotic Potential
age at reproductive maturity, clutch size, frequency of reproduction, reproductive lifetime, survivorship of offspring to reproductive maturity
In population growth, this is the maximum number of individuals of a population that can be sustained by habitat
What is the variable for it?
Carrying Capacity (K)
This type of limiting factor in population growth becomes more intense as population density increases due to competition, spread of disease, parasites or predation
Density Dependent
This limiting factor of population growth occurs independently of the density of a population, like natural disaster or big temperature changes
Density Independent
What is the formula for the growth rate of a population?
What is the rate of change of the growth rate?
r = (births – death)/N
ΔN/Δt = rN = births - deaths
This occurs when the reproductive rate (r) is maximum, aka at the biotic potential
Instrinsic Rate
This occurs whenever the reproductive rate (r) is greater than zero (J shaped)
Exponential growth
This occurs when limiting factors restrict the size of a population to the carrying capacity of the habitat
Logistic Growth
What is the formula for logistic growth using carrying capacity?
When a population size increases, the growth rate _____es and reaches 0 when population reaches size carrying capacity
What is the shape of the graph?
ΔN/Δt = rN(K-N)/K
K is carrying capacity
Decreases
S shaped (sort of, google it)
Fluctuations in populations size in response to varying effects of limiting factors is called a
When population grows over carrying capacity, it may be limited (lower) than the initial K due to the damage cause to the habitat. If it didn’t lower the K it would cause
Population Cycle
Extinction
In this type of life history, members have low reproductive rates and are roughly constant (at K) in size (ex. human population). Have a carrying capacity that
population levels out at.
Carrying capacity is a density DEPENDENT/INDEPENDENT factor.
K selected population
density dependent factor
In this type of life history, there is rapid exponential population growth, numerous offspring, fast maturation, little postnatal care (ex. bacteria).
Generally found in rapidly
changing environments affected by density DEPENDENT/INDEPENDENT factors.
Characterized by ________ species (e.g. grasses, insects that quickly
invade a habitat, reproduce, then die)
R selected Population
Density independent factors
Opportunistic Species
Human population growth is enabled by enabled by: increase in food supply, reduction in disease (medicine), reduction in human wastes, habitat expansion (advancements
now allow inhabitance of previously uninhabitable places
!
This is the amount of raw land necessary to sustain an individual’s lifestyle habits (eating traveling, housing habits, etc.)
Ecological Footprint
This reflects the diversity of a community in regards to the total number of different species present
Species Richness
This branch of ecology is concerned with the interaction of populations
What type of competition is it particularly interested in?
Community Ecology
Interspecific competition (different species)
This principle of community ecology states that if two species compete for the exact same resources, or occupy the same niche, one is likely to be more successful. In other words, No two species can sustain coexistence if they occupy the same niche
Competitive Exclusion Principle (Gause’s Principle)
This principle of community ecology shows that two species which occupy the same niche but pursue slightly different resources or secure those resources in different ways, individuals can minimize competition and maximize success (multiple species in slightly different niches)
Resource Partitioning
This principle of community ecology states that as a result of resource partitioning, certain traits allow for more success in obtaining resources in their partitions which reduces competition. This drives the divergence of features such as different beaks of bird on the same island. The divergence is called…
Character Displacement (niche shift)
Ex: The mating calls of 2 species of frogs are different when they occupy the same island. On separate
islands, the mating calls are the same.
In community ecology, this is the niche that an organism occupies in the absence of competing species
When competitors are present, one/both species may be able to coexist by occupying their ____ niches
This reduces niche _______ to reduce competition for resources
Fundamental niche
Realized Niches
Overlap
This is another form of community interaction, pretty fundamental.
This is when a predator kills and eats another animal
This is when an organism spends most of its life living on a host, the host usually doesn’t die until it completes one life cycle
This is an insect that lays its eggs on host (insect or spider). After eggs hatch, larvae obtain nourishment by consuming host’s tissues. Host eventually dies, but not until larvae complete development and begin pupation.
Predation
True Predation
Parasite
Parasitoid
In predation, this an animal that eats plants
These are seed eaters, they act like predators because they totally consume the organism
These animals eat grasses
These eat leaves, only part of it, and weaken it in the process
Herbivores
Granivores
Grazers
Browsers
This is intimate, often permanent association b/w two organisms; may or may not be beneficial
When one or both organisms cannot survive without the other, it is called
Symbiosis
Obligatory
This type of symbiosis is when one organism benefits and the other is unaffected
Commensalism
This type of symbiosis is when both organisms benefit
Mutualism
This type of symbiosis is when benefits occur at the expense of the host; occurs with bacteria and fungi, they live with minimum expenditure of energy
Parasitism
This occurs when protists and fungi that decompose dead organic matter externally and absorb nutrients
Saprophytism
This occurs when an organism consumes dead animals directly
Scavengers
Intraspecific interactions (between members of the same species) are influenced by disruptive and cohesive forces
This includes competitive forces
This includes reproduction and protection from predators and weather
Disruptive
Cohesive
This type of animal lives in a hypoosmotic environment which causes the excess intake of water, thus the fish seldom drink and excrete dilute urine
Freshwater Fish
This animal lives in a hyperosmotic environment so they are constantly drinking and excreting salt across their gills
Saltwater Fish
This type of animal secretes solid uric acid crystals to conserve water
Arthropods
These organisms possess waxy cuticles on leaf surface on stomata on lower leaf surfaces only; leaves shed in winter, desert plants have extensive root systems, fleshy stems, extra thick cuticles, and few stomata
Plants
In thermoregulation, this is the vast majority of plants and animals, body temperature is close to that of surroundings, so metabolism is radically affected by environmental temperature
Cold-Blooded (poikilothermic)
In thermoregulation, these animals make use of heat produced by respiration; physical adaptations like fat, hair and feathers retard heat loss (mammals and birds)
Warm blooded (homeothermic)
This is the term for evolution of one species in response to a new adaptation that appears in another species
Coevolution
In coevolution, these are toxic chemicals produced in plants that discourage would be herbivores (tannins in oak/nicotine/tobacco are toxic)
Secondary Compounds
In coevolution, this is any color, pattern, shape, or behavior that enables an animal to blend in with its surroundings. Both prey and predator benefit from it.
Camouflage (cryptic coloration)
In coevolution, this is a conspicuous pattern or coloration of animals that warns predators that they sting, bite, taste bad, poisonous, or are other-wise to be avoided
Aposematic Coloration (warning coloration)
In coevolution, this occurs when two or more species resemble one another in appearance
Mimicry
There are two types of mimicry, this occurs when several animals, all with some special defense mechanism, share the same coloration. It is effective with a single pattern such as yellow and black body markings from bees, yellow jackets, and wasps
This type of mimicry occurs when an animal without any special defense mechanism mimics the coloration of an animal that does possess a defense
Mullerian Mimicry
Batesian Mimicry
Camouflage and mimicry are ACTIVE/PASSIVE defenses
Hiding, fleeing, defending are ACTIVE/PASSIVE defenses which can be costly in energy
Passive
Active
In coevolution, many kinds of flowers occur as a result of coevolution of finely tuned traits between flowers and ____________
Ex: red tubular flower coevolves with hummingbird attracted to red —> provides nectar to hummingbird in exchange for pollen transfer
Pollinators (pollination)
This is the term for the change in composition of a species over time
Ecological Succession
Ecological succession describes how one community is replaced by another gradually consisting of a different species. As it progresses, diversity and total biomass INCREASE/DECREASE
A final successional stage of constant species composition, called _________, is attained
increase
Climax Community
Once climax community is reached, it usually remains unchanged until it is destroyed by a catastrophic event called a
Blowout
Succession has a factor of ______ that makes it hard to predict, Resident species can also change a habitar
Randomness
In ecological succession, this may change from solid rock to fertile soil, to sand/others (because rock erodes, plants+animals decompose)
Substrate Texture
In ecological succession, ____ may decrease due to decomposition of organic matter, such as acidic leaves
Soil pH
In ecological succession, this is the ability of soil to retain water, it changes as soil texture canges
Soil Water Potential
____ availability may change from full sunlight to shady to darkness as trees become established
Light availability
This increases with population growth, may be unsuitable to certain species
Crowding
These are plants and animals that are first to colonize a newly exposed habitat, they can tolerate harsh conditions (lichens and mosses)
Usually they are ______ species
They are usually ______ selected species
Pioneer Species
Opportunistic species
R selected species
As soil, water, and light change after pioneer species inhabit a new habitat, what type of species will replace the pioneer species? They will reach climax where it remains for hundreds of years
K-selected species (live longer, slow succession)
This is succession that occurs on substrates that never previously supported living things (volcanic islands, lava flows) and reach climax where it remains for hundreds of years
Primary Succession
This is succession that begins in habitats where communities were entirely/partially destroyed by a damaging event; begins on substrate that already bears soil (may contain native seed bank)
Secondary Succession
A community stage is identified by a _____ species
ex: grass in grassland community
Dominant species
This type of environment has plants such as algae, pondweed and animals such as protozoa, insects and fish
Pond
This type of environment has reeds, cattails, water lillies
Shallow water-pond fills in
This type of environment has grass, herbs, shrubs, willow trees, frogs, and snakes
Moist Land
This type of environment has a climax tree, perhaps oak or pine
Woodland
Ecosystems have _____ levels which categorize plants and animals based upon their main energy source
Trophic Levels
This trophic level is the autotrophs that convert sun energy into chemical energy, includes plants, photosynthetic protists, cyanobacteria, and chemosynthetic bacteria
Primary Producers
This trophic level is the herbivores, they have a long digestive tract with greater surface area and time for more digestion;
They have _____ bacteria in the digestive tract which breaks down cellulose which the herbivore cannot
They consume which trophic level?
Primary Consumers
Symbiotic
Primary Producers
This trophic level is the primary carnivores
They eat which trophic level?
Secondary Consumers
Primary producers
These are the secondary carnivores
They eat the ________
Tertiary consumers
Secondary consumers
This trophic level is consumers that obtain energy by consuming dead plants/animals
The term for dead plants and animals is
The smallest ones are fungi and bacteria, called ____. Also includes nematodes, earthworms, insects
Detritivores
Detritus
Decomposers
These are detrivores like vultures, jackals and crab
This is a term used for organisms which obtain nutrients from dead organic matter
Scavengers
Saprophytes
These show relationships between trophic levels
Ecological Pyramids
This describes the proportion of energy represented at one trophic level that is transferred to the next
On average, an efficiency of about _____% is tranferred to the next
The other ____% is for ________ and goes to ________ when they die
Ecological Efficiency
10%
The other 90% is for metabolism and goes to detrivores when the organism dies
This is a linear flow chart of who is eaten by whom
Food chain
This is an expanded, more complete version of a food chain.
A greater number of pathways means a community is more STABLE/UNSTABLE
Food web
Stable
Energy/biomass/quantity is greatest at which trophic level?
It is lowest at which?
Which is the least stable and most sensitive to population fluctuations
Primary Producers
Tertiary Consumers
Tertiary Consumers
This is the flow of essential elements in an environment —> living things —-environment, etc
Biogeochemical cycle
This is the water cycle in biogeochemical cycling
Hydrologic Cycle
In the hydrologic cycle, these are the oceans, air, groundwater, and glaciers
This is the term for plants absorbing water from the soil; and when animals drink and eat other organisms
This is the term for when plants transpire; and when animals and plants decompose
Reservoirs
Assimilation
Release
In biogeochemical cycling, this is required for building organic materials and is based upon photosynthesis and respiration
Carbon Cycle
What are the reservoirs for carbon cycling?
What accounts for assimilation?
What about release?
Atmosphere (CO2), fossil fuels (coal, oil), peat, cellulose
Plants using CO2 during photosynthesis, animals consuming plants
CO2 release through respiration and decomposition, and when organic material is burned
This type of cycling is required for amino acids and nucleic acids
Nitrogen cycle
There is a link on feralis you should definitely look at, this is important!
What are the reservoirs for nitrogen in nitrogen cycling?
What accounts for assimilation?
Atmosphere (N2) and soil (NH4, NH3, NO2, NO3)
Plants absorb N as NO3 or NH4, animals obtain it by eating plants/animals
In nitrogen assimilation, nitrogen fixing bacteria in the soil converts N2 to…..
NH4
In nitrification, NH4 is converted to
Which is converted to ____ by nitrifying bacteria
NO2-
NO3
In release during nitrogen cycling, bacteria convert ____ to ______
This process is known as
It is performed by _____ bacteria
NO3 to N2
Denitrification
Denitrifying bacteria
Detrivorous bacteria convert organic compounds back to _____
This process is called
NH4+
Ammonification
For nitrogen cycling animals excrete ____, _______ or ________,
The other way they release nitrogen is ______, it is released in the form of ____ from dead tissues
NH4, urea, or uric acid
decay, NH3
This type of biogeochemical cycle is required for the manufacturing of ATP and all nucleic acids
Phosphorous Cycle
What are the reservoirs for phosphorous?
How does assimilation of it occur?
How does release occur?
Rock and ocean sediments (erosion transfers P to water and soil)
Plants absorb inorganic PO4 (3-) aka phosphate from soil, animals obtain organic phosphorous when they eat
Plants and animals release phosphorous when they decompose, and animals excrete it in waste products
These are regions with common environmental characteristics
Biomes
This biome is high (but stable) temperature and humidity, heavy rainfall, and is the most diverse biome
This is the term for plants that grow commensally on other plants (like vines)
Tropical Rain forest
Epiphytes
This biome is grasslands scattered with trees, similar to tropics in that they have high temperature BUT they get very little rainfall
Savannas
This biome receives less water and has an uneven seasonal occurrence of rainfall, and are subject to lower temperatures than savannah
Temperate Grasslands (north American prairie!)
This biome has warm summers, cold winters, and moderate precipitation. Trees shed leaves during winter, enriching the soil. Principle mammals hibernate through cold winter
What type of trees shed their leaves?
Temperate deciduous forests
Deciduous
In temperate deciduous forests, plants and animals live on ground, low branches and treetops. This is called
Vertical Stratification
This biome is cold, dry forest. The vegetation has evolved adaptations to conserve water (needle leaves)
Temperate Coniferous
This biome is hot and dry, and has the most extreme temperature fluctuations (hot day, cold night).
The growth of annual plants is limited to short periods following rare rain. Plants and animals adapt to conserve as much water as possible (infrequent urination, cacti spines, etc)
Deserts
This biome makes up coniferous forests (and trees with needles for leave). Very long cold winters and precipitation in form of heavy snow
Taiga
What is the largest terrestrial biome?
Taiga
This biome has cold winters (ground freezes) the top layer thaws during the summer so it supports minimal vegetation (grasses)
Deeper soil remains permanently frozen. Very little rainfall can penetrate the frozen ground. The deeper soil is called
Tundras
Permafrost
This is a terrestrial biome along the California coastline characterized by wet winters, dry summers, and scattered vegetation
Chaparral
This biome is frozen with no vegetation or terrestral animals
Polar Region
There are two aquatic biomes. This comprises ponds, lakes, streams, and rivers.
It is HYPERTONIC/HYPOTONIC to organisms, affected by climate/weather variations
Fresh Water Biomes
Hypotonic (organisms are more concentrated in solutes)
This is an aquatic biome that provides most of the earth’s food and oxygen
They include places where oceans and river meet, called
Places where ocean meets land
Shallow oceans bordering continents
Also coral reefs
And deep ocean, aka
Marine Biomes
Estuaries
Intertidal Zone
Continental Shelves/littoral zone
Pelagic Ocean
What is the largest biome that covers 3/4 of the world’s surface?
Marine Biomes
What is the temperature of the marine biome like?
What about nutrients and dissolved salt content?
Nearly constant (water has high heat capacity and there is a high volume)
Again, relatively constant
How is the biome divided into regions?
Classified by the amount of sunlight received, distance from shore, depth, open water vs ocean bottom.
There are two major divisions of the marine biome
This is the lowest layer of a body of water, including sediment surface and sub surface layers
In ocean water (deep) light doesn’t penetrate, most organisms are ____ and ______
Benthic Zone
Scavengers and detrivores
The second major zone of the marine biome is _____, the water that is neighther close to the shore nor at the very bottom. It is broken down from top to bottom in layers
Pelagic
This is the surface layer of the pelagic zone, the only photic zone since there is enough light for penetration
Nearly all of what trophic layer in the ocean occurs here?
All zones form below here are aphotic
Epiplagic
Primary Production
This part of the pelagic zone has not enough lifht for photosynthesis and minimal oxygen
This one is pitch black, has no plant life, and most organisms consume detritus
This zone is below the above, most animals don’t have eyes due to lack of light
Most life in the zone below the one above exists in hydrothermal vents
Mesoplagic
Bathylpelagic
Abyssal
Hadopelagic
There is an image for it in Feralis!
In terms of global climate change, the burning of fossil fuels and forests increases the CO2 in the atmosphere, which cause more heat to be trapped. This known as the….
It is normally a good thing but we’re overkilling it. The global temp rises and the sea level is raised by melting ice and decrease in agriculture output, affecting weather patterns
Greenhouse Effect
O2+UV in atmosphere —>?
The product absorbs UV radiation, preventing it from reaching the surface of Earth
What does UV light damage?
These substances enter the upper atmosphere and break down ozone
O3, ozone
DNA
CRCs (chlorofluorocarbons)
The burning of fossil fuels like coal releases SO2 and NO2 into the air. When they react with water vapor, it forms sulfuric acid and nitric acid which kills plants and animals when they rain to Earth. This is….
Acid Rain
This results from the overgrazing of grasslands that border deserts which tranforms the grasslands into deserts.
The agricultural output decreases, or the habitats available to native species are lost
Desertification
This is caused by the clear cutting of forests which causes erosion, flooding, and changes in weather patterns
Deforestation
In air, water, and land, this contaminates materials that are essential to life, many remain in environment for decades
Pollution
This is the process of nutrient enrichment in lakes and subsequent increase in biomass (lakes polluted with fertilizer runoff, causing abundant nutrients)
This stimulates ______, which are massive algae/phytoplankton growths which respire and deplete oxygen and breakdown detrivous bacteria and deplete even more oxygen
This causes many animals to die of ________, filling the lake with carcasses of dead animals and plants
Eutrophication
Algal Blooms
Oxygen Startvation
Note: phytoplankton does photosynthesis, but at night they reduce oxygen when they respire and _______ continue to multiply as stuff dies
Detrivores
This occurs when one organism eats another and a toxin (like a pesticide) becomes more concentrated at a higher trophic level
Toxins include antibiotics, hormones, carcinogens, tetratogens (cause birth defects) which get into the food chain causing it.
Biological Magnification
The reduction in species diversity is a result of human activities!
We also introduce new species, like the killer muscle which stings and kills people or the zebra mussel which outcompetes residents
OH MY GOD WE’RE ALL DOOMED
Pesticides are effective but dangerous to humans, these are a safer alternative which includes crop rotation, natural enemies, natural plant toxins, and insect birth control
Biological Control
These are areas of dry land that form on the leeward (downwind) side of a high mountain.
Rain cloud approaches a mountain range, rises in elevation, and the surrounding becomes colder. The due point is eventually reached and precipitation occurs as clouds gain precipitation and continues to rain toward the peak. The cloud begins to descend the leeway side of the mountain, decreasing elevation, the air temperature rises, precipitation decreases
Rain shadows
