Ap Biology Ecology Part 2

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predation

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any animal that totally or partly consumes a plant or another animal

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true predator

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kills and eats another animal

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parasite

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spends most (or all) of its life living on another organism (the host) obtaining nourishment from the host by feeding off its tissues

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parasitoid

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insect that lays its eggs on the host

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herbivore

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eats plants

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granivores

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seed eater herbivore (totally consumes)

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grazers

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eats grasses herbivore

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browsers

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herbivore that eats leaves of other plants

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symbiosis

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two species that live together in close contact during a portion (or all) of their lives

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mutualism

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(+,+) both species benefit

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commensalism

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(+,0) one species benefits, while the second is neither helped nor harmed

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parasitism

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(+,- ) the parasite benefits from the living arrangement while the host is harmed

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secondary compounds

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toxic chemicals produced in plants that may discourage would-be herbivores

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camouflage (cryptic coloration)

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any color, pattern, or shape, or behavior that enables an animal to blend in with its surroundings

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aposematic coloration (warning coloration)

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conspicuous pattern or coloration of animals that warns predators that they sting, bite, taste bad, or are otherwise to be avoided

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mimicry

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occurs when two or more species resemble one another in appearance

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mullerian mimicry

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several animals, all with some special defense mechanism, share the same coloration

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batesian mimicry

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animal w/o any defense mimics the coloration of an animal that does

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ecological succession

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change in the composition of species over time

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climax community

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final successional stage of constant species composition

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pioneer species

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plants and animals first to colonize a newly exposed habitat

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primary succession

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occurs on substrates that never previously supported living things

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secondary succession

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begins in habitats where communities were entirely or partially destroyed by some kind of damaging event

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trophic levels

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plants and animals organized into groups that reflect their main energy source

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primary producers

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autotrophs that convert sun energy into chemical energy

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primary consumers

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herbivores that eat the primary producers

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secondary consumers

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primary carnivores that eat the primary consumers

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tertiary consumers

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secondary carnimores that eat the secondary consumers

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detritivores

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consumers that obtain their energy by consuming dead plants and animals (detritus)

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decomposers

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smallest detritivores

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ecological pyramids

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show relationship between trophic levels

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ecological efficiency

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describes the portion of energy represented at one trophic level that is transferred to the next level

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food chain

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linear flowchart of whom eats whom

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food web

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expanded, more complete version of a food chain. shows all the major plants and the animals that eat them and each other

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nitrogen fixation

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N2 to NH4+ by nitrogen-fixing prokaryotes; N2 to NO3- by lightning and UV radiation

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nitrification

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NH4+ to NO2- and NO2- to NO3- by various nitrifying bacteria

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denitrification

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denitrifying bacteria convert NO3- back to N2

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ammonification

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detrivorous bacteria convert organic compounds back to NH4+

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biomes

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biosphere divided into regions that exhibit common environmental characteristics

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tropical rain forests

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characterized by high temperature and heavy rainfall

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epiphytes

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plants that live commensally on other plants

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savannas

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grasslands with scattered trees

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temperate grasslands

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receive less water and are subject to lower temperatures than are savannas

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temperate deciduous forests

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occupy regions with warm summers, cold winters, and moderate precipitation

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deserts

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hot and dry. growth of annual plants limited to short periods following rain

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taigas

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characterized by coniferous forests ( pines, firs, needle-leaved) winters cold w/ snow only

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tundras

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winters so cold the ground freezes. in the summer, the topsoil thaws

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permafrost

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in a tundra, the deeper soil that is permanently frozen

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fresh water biomes

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ponds, lakes, streams, rivers

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marine biomes

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estuaries, intertidal zones, continental shelves, coral reefs, pelagic ocean

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global climate change

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burning of fossil fuels and forests increases CO2 in the atmosphere and cuases more heat to be trappe din the earth's atmosphere

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ozone holes

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areas of major ozone thinning mostly over Antarctica, Arctic, N. Russia

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biological magnification

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as one organism eats another, the toxin becomes more and more concentrated

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algal blooms

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massive growths of algae and other phytoplankton

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eutrophication

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process of nutrient enrichment in lakes and the subsequent increase in biomass