Ap Biology Chapter 52

Front 1

abyssal zone

Back 1

The part of the ocean's benthic zone between 2,000 and 6,000 m deep

Front 2

aphotic zone

Back 2

The part of an ocean or lake beneath the photic zone, where light does not penetrate sufficiently for photosynthesis to occur

Front 3

benthic zone

Back 3

The bottom surface of an aquatic environment

Front 4

benthos

Back 4

The communities of organisms living in the benthic zone of an aquatic biome

Front 5

biogeography

Back 5

The study of the past and present distribution of species

Front 6

biome

Back 6

Any of the world's major ecosystems, often classified according to the predominant vegetation and characterized by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment

Front 7

biosphere

Back 7

The entire portion of Earth inhabited by life; the sum of all the planet's ecosystems

Front 8

canopy

Back 8

The uppermost layer of vegetation in a terrestrial biome

Front 9

chaparral

Back 9

A scrubland biome of sense, spiny evergreen shrubs found at midlatitudes along coasts where cold ocean currents circulate offshore; characterized by mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers

Front 10

climate

Back 10

The long-term prevailing weather conditions at a locality

Front 11

climograph

Back 11

A plot of temperature and precipitation in a particular region

Front 12

community

Back 12

All the organisms that inhabit a particular area; an assemblage of populations of different species living close enough together for potential interaction

Front 13

community ecology

Back 13

The study of how interactions between species affect community structure and organization

Front 14

coral reef

Back 14

Typically a warm-water, tropical ecosystem dominated by the hard skeletal structures secreted primarily by the resident cnidarians. Some reefs also exit in cold, deep waters

Front 15

deep-sea hydrothermal vent

Back 15

A dark, hot, O-deficient environment associated with volcanic activity on or near the seafloor. The producers in a vent community are chemoautotrophic prokaryotes

Front 16

desert

Back 16

A terrestrial biome characterized by very low precipitation

Front 17

detritus

Back 17

Dead organic matter

Front 18

dispersal

Back 18

The movement of individuals (or gametes) away from their parent location. This movement sometimes expands the geographic range of a population or species

Front 19

ecosystem

Back 19

All the organisms in a given area as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact; one or more communities and the physical environment around them

Front 20

ecosystem ecology

Back 20

The study of energy flow and the cycling of chemicals among various biotic and abiotic components in an ecosystem

Front 21

ecotone

Back 21

The transition from one type of habitat or ecosystem to another, such as the transition from a forest to a grassland

Front 22

estuary

Back 22

The area where a freshwater stream or river merges with the ocean

Front 23

eutrophic lake

Back 23

A lake that has a high rate of biological productivity supported by a high rate of nutrient cycling

Front 24

global ecology

Back 24

The study of the functioning and distribution of organisms across the biosphere and how the regional exchange of energy and materials affects them

Front 25

intertidal zone

Back 25

The shallow zone of the ocean adjacent to land and between the high- and low-tide lines

Front 26

landscape ecology

Back 26

The study of how the spatial arrangement of habitat types affects the distribution and abundance of organisms and ecosystem processes

Front 27

limnetic zone

Back 27

In a lake, the well-lit, open surface waters farther from shore

Front 28

littoral zone

Back 28

In a lake, the shallow, well-lit, waters close to shore

Front 29

macroclimate

Back 29

Large-scale patterns in climate; the climate of an entire region

Front 30

marine benthic zone

Back 30

The ocean floor

Front 31

microclimate

Back 31

Very fine scale patterns of climate, such as the specific climatic conditions underneath a log

Front 32

neritic zone

Back 32

The shallow region of the ocean overlying the continental shelf

Front 33

northern coniferous forest

Back 33

A terrestrial biome characterized by long, cold winters and dominated by cone-bearing trees

Front 34

oceanic pelagic zone

Back 34

Most of the ocean's waters far from shore, constantly mixed by ocean currents

Front 35

oligotrophic lake

Back 35

A nutrient-poor, clear lake with few phytoplankton

Front 36

organismal ecology

Back 36

The branch of ecology concerned with morphological, physiological, and behavioral ways in which individual organisms meet the challenges posed by their biotic and abiotic environments

Front 37

permafrost

Back 37

A permanently frozen soil layer

Front 38

photic zone

Back 38

The narrow top layer of an ocean or lake, where light penetrates sufficiently for photosynthesis to occur

Front 39

savanna

Back 39

A tropical grassland biome with scattered individual trees and large herbivores and maintained by occasional fires and drought

Front 40

temperate broadleaf forest

Back 40

A biome located throughout midlatitude regions where there is sufficient moisture to support the growth of large, broadleaf deciduous trees

Front 41

temperate grassland

Back 41

A terrestrial biome dominated by grasses and forbs

Front 42

thermocline

Back 42

A narrow stratum of rapid temperature change in the ocean and in many temperate-zone lakes

Front 43

tropical rain forest

Back 43

A terrestrial biome characterized by high levels of precipitation and high temperatures year-round

Front 44

tropics

Back 44

Latitudes between 23.5 degrees north and south

Front 45

tundra

Back 45

A terrestrial biome at the extreme limits of plant growth. At the northernmost limits, it is called arctic tundra, and at high altitudes, where plant forms are limited to low shrubby or matlike vegetation, it is called alpine tundra

Front 46

turnover

Back 46

The mixing of waters as a result of changing water-temperature profiles in a lake

Front 47

wetland

Back 47

A habitat that is inundated by water at least some point of the time and supports plants adapted to water-saturated soil