Unit 1 Key Terms Flashcards
Ecosystem
all living and non-living things in an area
ecology
Scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment
predation
one organism using another for energy source (hunters, parasites, herbivores)
symbiosis
any close and long term interaction between two organisms of different species
symbiosis
Two organisms that live together. Temporarily or for a longer time. At least one of the organisms benefits from the relationship.
mutualism
relationship that benefits both organisms
parisitism
when a species lives on or in another and causes it harm
commensalism
relationship that benefits one organism and doesn’t impact the other
Resource Partitioning
different species using the same resource in diff. ways to reduce competition
biome
a geographic region that is characterized by a certain type of climate, plant growth, or any other distinguishing characteristic (precipitation)
climate
average weather that occurs in a region over a long period of time
weather
the state of the atmosphere at a place and time
climatogram
a simple graphic representation of monthly temperature and precipitation for a specific weather station
latitude
imaginary horizontal line on the earth
longitude
imaginary vertical line on earth
types of desert
tropical, temperate, cold
types of grassland
savanna (tropical), prairie (temperate), arctic tundra (cold)
types of forest
tropical rainforest, temperate deciduous, taiga/boreal/northern coniferous
permafrost
A permanent layer of solid ice just under the soil, which is present even during the summer, and found in the Tundra biome
lotic
Lotic- Freshwater systems such as streams and rivers
lotic
Freshwater systems such as streams and rivers
lotic
Freshwater systems such as streams and rivers
source zone
steep elevation, fast flowing, does not have a lot of life, and low in nutrients (ex: mountains with snow, lakes, rapids, and/or waterfalls)
Transition Zone
warmer, less oxygen, slower, plants on riverbanks, higher NPP
floodplain
area next to a river that floods when water levels rise (warmest, less oxygen, highest NPP, fertile soil, high turbidity)
lentic
refers to standing waters such as lakes and ponds , or swamps and marshes
littoral
a shallow, shore area zone in a freshwater habitat where light reaches the bottom and nurtures plants and algae
shallow water with emergent plants (high NPP)
limnetic
where light can reach (photosynthesis) (high in oxygen) no rooted plants, only phytoplankton
produndal zone
too deep for sunlight (no photosynthesis, no plants)
benthic
murky bottom where invertebrates (bugs) live, nutrient- rich sediments (decomposers live here b/c dead matter floats to the bottom)
Oligotrophic
deep, steep sided banks, fed by an ice snow melt (low nutrients, low NPP)
Eutropic
shallow body of water (lake) with a large supply of nutrients needed by producers (high NPP, high in nutrients)
eutrophication
the natural nutrient enrichment of a shallow lake, estuary or slow moving stream, mostly from runoff of plant nutrients from the surrounding land
Delta
an area of low, flat land, sometimes shaped approximately like a triangle, where a river divides into several smaller rivers before flowing into the sea
estuary
a coastal body of water partly surrounded by land with access to open ocean and a large supply of fresh water from a river/stream
Hypoxia
low concentrations of dissolved oxygen in waters of a region
Apoxia
no concentrations of dissolved oxygen in waters of a region
intertidal zone
area of shoreline between low and high tides
Oligotrophic lake
deep lakes that have a small supply of plant nutrients (b/c it is so deep, there is not a lot of sunlight in majority of the water)
Pelagic zone
the region of the ocean outside the coastal areas (open ocean)
plankton
small, drifting plants, mostly algae and bacteria, found in aquatic ecosystems
runoff
the movement of freshwater from precipitation and snowmelt to rivers, lakes, wetlands, and ultimately the ocean
turbidity
Muddiness created by stirring up sediment or having foreign particles suspended in the water
watershed
a land area from which water, sediment, and dissolved materials drain to a common point along a wetland, stream, lake, or river
aquifer
An underground formation that contains groundwater
biogeochemical cycle
cycle of matter between biotic and abiotic things in the environment involving biological, geologic and chemical interactions
biomass
the mass or weight of living tissue
biosphere
all life on Earth and all parts of the Earth in which life exists, including land, water, and the atmosphere
carbon cycle
Movement of molecules that contain Carbon (CO2, glucose, CH4) between sources and sinks
Consumer (heterotroph)
animals that eat
decomposers
Organisms whose feeding habits result in decay (bacteria, fungi)
detritivore
An organism that specializes in breaking down dead tissues and waste products into smaller particles
Gross Primary Productivity
The total amount of sun energy (light) that plants capture and convert to energy (glucose) through photosynthesis
Hydrologic cycle (water cycle)
The process in which water passes from vapor in the atmosphere through precipitation and ultimately back into the atmosphere as a result of evaporation and transpiration
First Law of Thermodynamics
energy is never created or destroyed
Second Law of Thermodynamics
each time energy is transferred, some of it is lost as heat
Net Primary Productivity
The amount of energy (biomass) leftover for consumers after plants have used some for respiration
Nitrogen Cycle
a continuous series of natural processes by which nitrogen passes successively from air to soil to organisms and back to air or soil involving principally nitrogen fixation, nitrification, decay, and denitrification
Phosphorus cycle
the biogeochemical cycle that describes the transformation and translocation of phosphorus in soil, water, and living and dead organic material
Primary consumer
(herbivore)- animals that eat plants
Producer
(autotroph)- really convert sun’s light energy into chemical energy (glucose)
Secondary consumer
(carnivore)- animals that eat primary consumers or herbivores
Tertiary consumer
animals that eat secondary consumers or carnivores & omnivores (apex predator)
Trophic level
different levels of animals eating one another
Pyramid of energy flow
Pyramid of energy flow (trophic pyramid)- a graphical representation between various organisms in an ecosystem
