Unit 2: Biodiversity 🍃♻️🏞️💚🌱

Question 1

Ecosystem diversity

Answer 1

the number of different habitats available in a given area

Question 2

Species diversity

Answer 2

the number of different species in an ecosystem and the balance or evenness of the population sizes of all species in the ecosystem

Question 3

Genetic diversity

Answer 3

how different the genes are of individuals within a population (group of the same species)

Question 4

Higher biodiversity=

Answer 4

higher ecosystem/population health/ resilience

Question 5

Richness

Answer 5

total number of different species found in an ecosystem
- high (r) is generally a good sign of ecosystem health (more species means more quality resources like H2O & soil)

Question 6

Evenness

Answer 6

a measure of how all of the individual organisms in an ecosystem are balanced between the different species
- indicates if there are one or two dominant species, or if population sizes are well balanced

Question 7

Genetic diversity

Answer 7

the measure of how different the genomes (set of genes) are of the individuals within a population of a given species

caused by random mutations in copying of DNA & recombination of chromosomes in sex cells of parents lead to new gene combinations & new traits in offspring

Question 8

more genetic diversity =

Answer 8

the better the population can respond to envirnomental stressors like drought, disease, or famine

a higher chance that some of the individuals in a population have traits that allow them to survive the environmental stressor

Question 9

bottleneck effect

Answer 9

An environmental disturbance that drastically reduces population size & kills organisms regardless of their genome

Surviving population is smaller and because individuals died randomly, it doesn’t represent the genetic diversity (reduces genetic diversity) of the original population

new, smaller population is more vulnerable

Question 10

inbreeding depression

Answer 10

when organisms mate with closely related “family” members

leads to a higher chance of offspring with harmful genetic mutations because of the similar genotypes of the parents

smaller populations are affected by this more

Question 11

Resilience

Answer 11

the ability of an ecosystem to return to its original conditions after a major disturbance (wind storm, fire, flood, clear-cutting, etc.)

Question 12

higher species diversity

Answer 12

more resilience
more plant species to repopulate disturbed ground, anchor soil, and provide food & habitat for animal species

Question 13

ecosystem services

Answer 13

Goods and services provided by natural ecosystems that are beneficial to humans (often monetarily or life-sustaining)

Question 14

provisioning services

Answer 14

Goods/products taken directly from ecosystems or made from natural resources (wood, paper, food, hunting, fruits, and veggies)

disrupted by overharvesting, water pollution, clearing land

Question 15

Regulating services

Answer 15

natural ecosystems regulate climate/air quality, reducing storm damage and healthcare costs
Benefits provided by ecosystem processes that moderate natural conditions like climate and air quality

disrupted by deforestatton

Question 16

supporting services

Answer 16

Natural ecosystems support processes we do ourselves, making them less costly and easier for us
services that enable the other types of ecosystem services to function
they generally affect humans indirectly and act over long periods of time
ex) providing habitat, cycling nutrients, creating soil, primary productivity

disrupted by pollinator habitat loss and filling in wetlands for development

Question 17

Cultural Services

Answer 17

revenue from recreational activities (hunting/fishing licenses, park fees, tourism-related spending) & profits from scientific discoveries made in ecosystems (health/ag./educational knowledge)

Disrupted by deforestation, pollution, urbanization

Question 18

humans disrupt ecosystem services

Answer 18

Human activities disrupt the ability of ecosystems to function, which decreases the value of ecosystem services they provide

This has ecological (natural) and economic (money-based) consequences

Question 19

Island Biogeography

Answer 19

study of ecological relationships & community structure on islands
(can be actual islands in a body of water or figurative habitat islands)

Question 20

Larger Islands

Answer 20

support more species
higher ecosystem diversity
larger pop size- more resistant to environmental disturbances
lower extinction rate (species less likely to die off)
positive correlation between island size and species richness

Question 21

closer to mainland

Answer 21

higher species richness
easier for more species to migrate to island from mainland (swim/fly)
More continual migration of individuals to the island habitat
Frequent migration brings more genetic diversity & larger population size

Question 22

further from mainland

Answer 22

fewer species

Question 23

evolution on islands

Answer 23

different beaks quickly evolve to fit variety of different food sources on island
single colonizing species from mainland quickly evolves to many slightly different species to adapt to new island cond

Question 24

ecological range of tolerance

Answer 24

range of conditions such as temperature, salinity, pH, or sunlight that an organism can endure before injury or death results
Species and individual organisms both have a range of tolerance for all the different environmental conditions
of their habitat

Question 25

range of tolerance zones optimal range

Answer 25

range where organisms survive, grow, and reproduce

Question 26

zone of physiological stress

Answer 26

range where organisms survive, but experience some stress such as infertility, lack of growth, decreased activity, etc.

Question 27

zone of intolerance

Answer 27

range where the organism will die

Ex: thermal shock, suffocation, lack of food/water/oxygen

Question 28

natural disturbance

Answer 28

A natural event that disrupts the structure and or function of an ecosystem
ex) Tornados, hurricanes, asteroids, forest fires, drought

Question 29

periodic disturbance

Answer 29

occurs with regular frequency (ex: dry-wet seasons)

Question 30

episodic disturbance

Answer 30

occasional events with irregular frequency (ex: hurricanes, droughts, fires)

Question 31

random disturbance

Answer 31

no regular frequency (volcanoes, earthquakes, and asteroids)

Question 32

natural climate change

Answer 32

Earth’s climate has varied over geologic time for numerous reasons
Sea level has varied over geological time as glacial ice on earth melts & forms

Question 33

Environmental change=habitat disruption

Answer 33

Major environmental disturbances result in widespread habitat changes and or loss

Question 34

Migration

Answer 34

Wildlife may migrate to a new habitat as the result of natural disruptions

Question 35

adaptation

Answer 35

a new trait that increases an organism’s fitness (ability to survive and reproduce)

Question 36

genetic diversity exists because:

Answer 36

Random mutations while DNA is being copied create new traits
Crossing over in parent chromosomes creates new combinations of genes (and therefore traits)

Question 37

natural selection

Answer 37

organisms that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more offspring
Individuals with adaptations pass them on to offspring & individuals without adaptations die off, which leads to the entire population having the adaptation over time (evolution)

Question 38

selective pressure/force

Answer 38

the environmental condition that kills individuals without the adaptation