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42 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Define: Ecology
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The study of interactions among and between organisms in their abiotic environment;Broadest field in biology. “eco” house & “logy” study of
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Define: Biotic
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Living environment, including all organisms.
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Define: Abiotic
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Non living or physical environment, including living space, sunlight, soil, participation, etc.
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Define: Species
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A group of similar organisms whose members freely interbreed
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Define: Population
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A group of organisms of the same species that occupy that live in the same area at the same time
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Define: Community
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All the populations of different species that live and interact in the same area at the same time
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Define: Ecosystem
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A community and its physical (abiotic) environment
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Define: Landscape
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Several interacting ecosystems
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Biosphere contains earth’s communities, ecosystems and landscapes, and includes:
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Atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.
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Define: Atmosphere
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Gaseous envelope surrounding the earth
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Define: Hydrosphere
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Earth's supply of water
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Define: Lithosphere
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Soil and rock of the earth's crust
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Define: Energy
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The ability or capacity to do work
Chemical, radiant, thermal, mechanical, nuclear, electrical |
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What does energy exist as?
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Stored energy (potential energy)
Kinetic energy (energy of motion) |
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Define: Thermodynamics
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Study of energy and its transformations
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Define: System
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System- the object being studied
Closed system & Open System |
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Define: Closed System
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Does not exchange energy with surroundings (rare in nature) - Greenhouse
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Define: Open System
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Exchanges energy with surroundings
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First Law of Thermodynamics
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Energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can change from one form to another
Ex: organisms cannot create energy they need to survive- they must capture it from another source |
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Second Law of Thermodynamics
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When energy is converted from one form to another, some of it is degraded to heat
Heat is highly entropic (disorganized) Focus is on quality |
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Photosynthesis
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Biological process by which energy from the sun (radiant energy) is transformed into chemical energy of sugar molecules
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Cellular Respiration
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The process where the chemical energy captured in photosynthesis is released within cells of plants and animals. This energy is then used for biological work
Creating new cells, reproduction, movement, etc. |
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Energy Flow
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Passage of energy in a one-way direction through an ecosystem
Producers Primary consumers Secondary consumers Decomposers |
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Consumers
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Herbivore – eat plants, ex. ?
Carnivore – eat animals, ex. ? Omnivore – eat plants and animals, ex. ? Humans ? |
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Food Chains- The Path of Energy Flow
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Energy from food passes from one organisms to another
Each “link” is called a trophic level |
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Food Chains- The Path of Energy Flow; List the trophic levels
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1)producers (plants)
2)primary consumers (rodent) 3) secondary consumers (snake) 4) tertiary consumers (eagle) 5) decomposers (mushrooms) |
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Energy Flow Through Trophic Levels: Simplified:
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rule of 10; there is a 10% transfer of energy to the next level
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Ecological Pyramids
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Graphically represent the relative energy value of each trophic level
Important feature is that large amount of energy are lost between trophic levels to heat |
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What are the three main types of ecological pyramids?
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Pyramid of numbers
Pyramid of biomass Pyramid of energy |
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Pyramid of Numbers
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Illustrates the number of organisms at each trophic level
Usually, organisms at the base of the pyramid are more numerous Fewer organisms occupy each successive level |
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What doesn't the Pyramid of Numbers do?
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Does not indicate the biomass of the organisms at each level or the amount of energy transferred between levels
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Lynx - Hare
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When the population size of the hare increases there is more food for the lynx to eat. As a result the lynx population also increases. The large lynx population will kill more hares so the hare population decreases. This will also cause the hare population to decrease.
The population sizes for the lynx and hare fluctuate every few years. Neither population gets too big as the predator and the prey keep each population in balance. |
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Pyramid of Biomass
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Illustrates the total biomass at each successive trophic level
Biomass: measure of the total amt of living material, Biomass indicates the amount of fixed energy at a given time, Illustrates a progressive reduction in biomass through trophic levels |
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Biomass: Ants
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Ants are the ecologically dominant animals of tropical rainforests, comprising up to 94% of arthropods and 86% of the biomass in samples from the canopy.
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Pyramid of Energy
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Illustrates how much energy is present at each trophic level and how much is transferred to the next level
Most energy dissipates between trophic levels |
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Pyramid of Energy: Explain why there are so few trophic levels
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Energy levels get too low to support life
Example: Tiger |
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Pyramid of Energy Example: Tiger
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Indian tiger territory size may be 20-30 square miles; tigers in eastern Russia may have territories up to 400 square miles.
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Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)
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Total amount of energy that plants capture and assimilate in a given period of time
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Net Primary Productivity (NPP)
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Plant growth per unit area per time
Represents the rate at which organic material is actually incorporated into the plant tissue for growth |
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GPP – cellular respiration = NPP
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Only NPP is available as food to organisms
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Human Impact on NPP
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Humans consume more of earth’s resources than any other animal--which contributes to extinction. Humans’ high consumption represents a threat to planet’s ability to support both human and non-human inhabitants
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Humans represent what % of land-based biomass? What % of NPP do they use?
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Humans represent 0.5% of land-based biomass
Humans use 32% of land-based NPP |