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Unit 1 - The Living World Flashcards

1
Q

biosphere

A

the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth occupied by living organisms
- another name for earth

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2
Q

biome

A

an area that shares a combination of average yearly temp. and precipitation (climate)
ex: (tropical rainforest)

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3
Q

ecosystem

A

all living and nonliving things in an area
(plants, animals, rocks, soil, water, air)

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4
Q

community

A

all living organisms in an area

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5
Q

population

A

group of individuals of same species

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6
Q

individual

A

one organism

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7
Q

symbiosis

A

close and long term interaction between two species in an ecosystem

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8
Q

mutualism

A

relationship that benefits both organisms
ex: coral reef

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9
Q

commensalism

A

relationship that benefits one organism and doesn’t bother the other
ex: bird nests in trees

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10
Q

parasitism

A

parasites use a host organism for energy, often without killing the host and often living inside the host
ex: mosquitoes, tapeworms

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11
Q

predator

A

an organism that preys on others

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12
Q

prey

A

an animal that is hunted or killed for food

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13
Q

competition

A

sharing a limited environmental resource

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14
Q

interspecific competition

A

members of different species compete for same resources

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15
Q

intraspecific competition

A

members of the same species compete for resources

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16
Q

resource partitioning

A

different species using the same resource in diff. ways; evolving to occupy different habitats or feeding at a different time to reduce direct competition

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17
Q

temporal partitioning

A

using resources at different times
ex: wolves and coyote hunting at diff times of day

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18
Q

why do biomes exist in predictable patterns on earth

A

latitudes (distance from the eq.) determines temperature and precipitation

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19
Q

rainforest

A
  • receive the most rain of all the biomes
  • warm all year and must stay frost free
  • tropical are found closer to the equator
  • temperate are further north near coastal areas
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20
Q

grasslands

A

located between temperate forests at high latitudes and deserts at subtropical latitudes
- great plains of NA
- south of SA
- central eurasia

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21
Q

coniferous forest

A
  • canada, europe, russia, and usa
  • cold, long, snowy winters, and warm, humid, summers
  • well defined seasons
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22
Q

temperate deciduous forest

A
  • hot summers and cold winters
  • eastern US, canada, europe, china, japan
  • shrubs, perennial herbs, mosses
  • go through four seasons
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23
Q

deserts

A
  • receive least amount of rain of all biomes
  • cacti, small bushes, short grasses
  • north and south of equator
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24
Q

tundras

A
  • almost no trees due to short growing season and permafrost; lichens, mosses, grasses, sedges, shrubs
  • below the north pole, extending across NA, Europe, Russia
  • coldest of the biomes
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25
shrubland
- summers are hot and dry - winters are cool and moist - 30° and 40° N&S latitude - plants have adapted to fire caused by frequent lightning that occurs in summers
26
terrestrial biomes are defined by
annual temperatures and precipitation
27
tropic of cancer and capricorn
23.5° N & S
28
location of suppressed upwelling characteristic of the occurrence of el nino
left of south america
29
country with taiga
North America
30
country with desert
Africa and US
31
country with tropical rainforest
south america
32
country with temperate grassland
north america, europe
33
country with tropical grassland
africa, asia
34
country with coral reef
central america, australia, SE Asia
35
country with temperate deciduous forest
eastern US
36
country with tundra
Russia, North America
37
aquatic biomes are defined by
salinity, depth, flow, temperature
38
freshwater biomes are a
vital resource for drinking water
39
rivers
- have high O2 due to flow mixing air and water - carry nutrient rich sediment - deltas and flood plains = fertile soil
40
lakes
- standing bodies of fresh H2O - key drinking water source
41
littoral zone of lakes
shallow water with emergent plants
42
limnetic zone of lakes
where light can reach (photosynthesis) - no rooted plants, only phytoplankton
43
profundal zone of lakes
too deep for sunlight (no photo)
44
benthic zone of lakes
- murky bottom where inverts (bugs) live - nutrient rich sediment
45
marine biomes include
oceans, coral reefs, marshland, and estuaries
46
wetlands
- area with soil submerged/saturated in water for at least part of the year, but shallow enough for emergent plants - plants living here have to be adapted to living with roots submerged in standing water (lily pads, cattails, reed)
47
benefits of wetlands
- stores excess water during storms, lessening floods - recharges groundwater by absorbing rainfall into soil - root of wetland plants filter pollutants from water draining through - high plant growth due to lots of water and nutrients (dead organic matter) in sediments
48
estuaries
- areas where rivers empty into the ocean - mix of fresh and salt water - highly productive due to nutrients in sediments deposited in estuaries by rivers
49
biogeochemical cycle: carbon
- needed for photosynthesis largest reservoir: ocean methods of transport: photosynthesis, respiration, sedimentation, burial, extraction, and combustion - long and short cycle
50
biogeochemical cycles: nitrogen
- essential for plant life largest reservoir: atmosphere methods of transport: nitrogen fixation, nitrification, assimilation, ammonification, denitrification - short cycle
51
biogeochemical cycles: phosphorus
- essential nutrient for plants and animals (ATP, DNA, RNA) largest reservoir: sedimentary rock methods of transport: moves through water and land - short cycle for plants and animals - long cycle (soil and ocean)
52
biogeochemical cycles: water
- essential to life, moves nutrients through ecosystem largest reservoir: oceans methods of transport: evaporation, condensation, precipitation - short
53
nitrification
convert ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate
54
denitrification
nitrate into nitrogen gas
55
assimilation
producers incorporate elements into their tissues
56
nitrogen fixation
converts nitrogen gas into forms producers can use (NH3, NO3-)
57
bacterial fixation
certain bacteria that live in the soil or in a symbiotic relationship with plant root nodules convert N2 into NH3
58
synthetic fixation
humans combust FFs to convert N2 gas intro nitrate - nitrates are added to synthetic fertilizers and used in agriculture
59
ammonification
soil bacteria, microbes, and decomposers converting waste and dead biomass back into NH3 and returning it to soil
60
remember: PHOSPHORUS
- spends a long time in rocks and sediments - no atmospheric component of the phosphorus cycle, never a gas in the air -in most ecosystems, plant growth is limited by the lack of P, therefore when it's provided, plants and algae grow quickly
61
primary productivity
rate that solar energy is converted into organic compounds via photosynthesis over a unit of time - AKA: rate of photosynthesis of all producers in an area over a given period of time
62
net primary productivity
the amount of energy (biomass) leftover for consumers after plants have used some for respiration
63
Respiration Loss (RL)
plants use up some of the energy they generate via photosynthesis by doing cell respiration
64
gross primary productivity
the total amount of sun energy that plants capture and convert to energy (glucose) through photosynthesis
65
calculating PP
NPP = GPP - RL
66
1st Law of Thermodynamics
energy is never created nor destroyed; instead it may be transferred from one form to another
67
2nd Law of Thermodynamics
each time energy is transferred, some of it is lost as heat
68
10% Rule
in trophic pyramids only about 10% of the energy from one level makes it to the next level; the other 90% is used by the organism and lost as heat
69
High NPP Biomes
- rainforests and swamps - warm temp, solar energy, water abundance - more biodiverse - high plant growth
70
tertiary consumers
animals that eat secondary consumers or carnivores and omnivores (aka top/apex predators)
71
secondary consumers
animals that eat primary consumers or herbivores
72
primary consumers
animals that eat plants
73
producers
plants, "produce" - really convert suns light energy into chemical energy (glucose)
74
arrows in food chains and food webs show the direction of
energy flow
75
trophic cascade
removal/addition of a top predator has a ripple effect down through lower trophic levels
76
keystone species
an organism that, if removed, would cause its ecosystem and food web to be dramatically different or eliminated
77
biotic factor
living item
78
abiotic factor
not living item
79
Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Where the Potomac River dumps into the Atlantic Ocean. Extremely polluted with sediments and nutrients.
80
salinity
level of salt in the water
81
the sun
the origin of all ecosystem energy on earth

APES (6 decks)

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