Buter Biology Unit 2

Front 1

Ecology

Back 1

The study of living things and their environment

Front 2

Levels of the biospehere

Back 2

Biosphere, Biomes, Ecosystems, Communities,and Populations

Front 3

Biosphere

Back 3

Area of the earth where life exists; extends from oceans depths to a few kilometers above land

Front 4

Biomes

Back 4

Extensive areas of similar climate and vegetation; there are six terrestrial biomes and three aquatic biomes

Front 5

Terrestrial Biomes

Back 5

Tundra, Taiga/Boreal Forest,Deciduous Forest, Grasslands, Desert, Tropical Rainforest

Front 6

Tundra

Back 6

Extremely cold temperatures, low precipitation and permaforest present (hence why plants are short)

Front 7

Taiga/Boreal Forest

Back 7

More precipitation than tundra with long severe winters; Plants are coniferous, evergreen trees with needles; animals may migrate

Front 8

Deciduous Forest

Back 8

Abundant precipitation with four distinct seasons; Plants are deciduous (drop leaves annually); animals adapted to the seasons

Front 9

Grasslands

Back 9

Experience a dry season that prevents forest development. Plants (grasses) firn a dense mat called sod, and enrich sol when they decompose; animals may graze

Front 10

Desert

Back 10

The driest biome and temperature varies drastically between night and day, plants are succulent (store water in tissues) and animals may be nocturnal

Front 11

Tropical Rainforest

Back 11

Most precipitation, warmest temperatures; forest is layered (canopy, understory, floor). Plants have large leaves to collect sunlight, and animals are diverse due to numerous niches

Front 12

Aquatic Biomes

Back 12

Based on salinity (amount of salt). These include: Marine,Estuary, and Freshwater.

Front 13

Marine

Back 13

Highest salinity, divided into zones by depth and light.

Front 14

Plankton

Back 14

Marine floating organisms such as some algae and shrimp

Front 15

Estuary

Back 15

A type of wetland that occurs where freshwater meets saltwater. Includes a great diversity of organisms due to high nutrient content; many organisms use as a nursery area.

Front 16

Freshwater

Back 16

Lowest salinity, includes lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and inland wetlands. Plants have adaptions for limited oxygen; some fish can only be found in areas of high oxygen content

Front 17

Ecosystem

Back 17

A physically distinct, self supporting unit of interacting organisms and their enviroment, includes biotic (living things) and abiotic (nonliving things) factors.

Front 18

Four important processes of an ecosystem

Back 18

a. Production of energy (usually from sunligh)
b. Energy transfer
c. Decomposition
d. Reuse of nutrients

Front 19

Communities

Back 19

All of an ecosystems interacting biotic factors, these are broken down into populations

Front 20

Communities may be broken down into smaller units called _________.

Back 20

Populations

Front 21

Populations

Back 21

A group of individuals that belong to the same species and occupy the same area and share common resources; Each group has a specific niche

Front 22

Niche

Back 22

Total way of life; includes habitat, place in food web, competition, interlationships, and resource needs (temperature,water).

Front 23

Trophic Levels

Back 23

Levels of feeding in a community

Front 24

Organisms in a community can survive by either ________ or ________ food.

Back 24

Producing / consuming

Front 25

Producers (Autotroph)

Back 25

Produce food for themeselves, other organisms may eat these

Front 26

Consumers (Hederotroph)

Back 26

Must take in food; Include Primary consumers, Secondary and Tertiary consumers and Decomposers

Front 27

Primary Consumers

Back 27

Made of herbivores (ex. cows)

Front 28

Secondary and Tertiary Consumers

Back 28

Made up of either carnivores (ex. lions) or omnivores (ex. bears)

Front 29

Decomposers

Back 29

These consumers, as they consume, break down wastes and dead organisms and return nutrients to the soil

Front 30

Food Webs

Back 30

Made up of overlapping food chains. Shows feeding connections; arrows illustrate energy transfer

Front 31

Ten

Back 31

The percent of energy passed up through each level of the food web.

Front 32

Producers have _________________ (sun)

Back 32

Most avaliable energy

Front 33

Energy is ____ as it moves ____ through the food web.

Back 33

Lost / Up

Front 34

The "lost" energy (as it moves up the food web) is used to _______________ food.

Back 34

Catch, eat, and digest

Front 35

______________ break down wastes and dead organisms

Back 35

Decomposers

Front 36

Fungi, bacteria, and invertebrates are examples of _______

Back 36

Decomposers

Front 37

Biogeochemical Cycles

Back 37

The pathway through which a substance is recycled

Front 38

Water cycle

Back 38

Cycle that enters the ecosystem by precipitation; may infiltrate the soil (be absorbed) or run-ff into surface water

Front 39

Transpiration

Back 39

The loss of water by plants

Front 40

Carbon Cycle

Back 40

Powered by 2 main processes (Photosynthesis and Respiration)

Front 41

Photosynthesis

Back 41

Plants and algae capture CO2 from the air and change it into sugar (which have carbon)

Front 42

Respiration

Back 42

All living things break down sugars for energy, which returns CO2 to the atmosphere

Front 43

_____________ returns carbon to the soil and atmosphere

Back 43

Decomposition

Front 44

Humans burn _________ _____ which adds CO2 to the atmosphere

Back 44

Fossil Fuels

Front 45

Nitrogen

Back 45

Essential for living organisms so that they can build proteins; pleniful in the atmosphere, but is not usuable in this form

Front 46

Nitrogen Fixation

Back 46

Bacteria living in the root nodules of bean plants (legumes) convert nitrogen from the air into more usable form

Front 47

Competition

Back 47

A struggle for resources among organisms

Front 48

Symbiosis

Back 48

Two organisms of different species together in a close, permanent relationship; 3 types

Front 49

Mutualism (+,+)

Back 49

Two organisms benefit each other in Symbiosis. (ex. Termite and protozoan, Lichen - an alga and a fungus)

Front 50

Commensalism (+,0)

Back 50

One organism benefits and the other not benefited or harmed in Symbiosis. (ex. Barnacles and whales, Epiphytes - (ex. spanish moss and trees) )

Front 51

Parasitism (+,-)

Back 51

One organisms benefits and the other is harmed in Symbiosis. (ex. Tapeworm and human, Mistletoe and tree)

Front 52

J-Curve

Back 52

Populations wll grow until they reach thier biotic potential unless they are limited by factors in the enviroment

Front 53

S-Curve

Back 53

Limiting factors, sych as avaliability of food,water, and space establish a carrying capacity for populations

Front 54

Carrying Capacity

Back 54

The number of individuals an environment can support

Front 55

Sucession

Back 55

The idea that communities wil replace other communities in a predictable, orderly way; this happens because every community alters the physical factors if the environment; may be terrestrial or aquatic

Front 56

3 processes of sucession

Back 56

Pioneer species, Intermediate communities, and Climax community

Front 57

Pioneer Species

Back 57

The first organisms to inhabit an area; must be able to survive harsh conditions

Front 58

Intermediate Communities

Back 58

Multiple communities that each change the environment and "pave the way" for other communities

Front 59

Climax Community

Back 59

The final stages in succession; it is the most stable for that biome

Front 60

Types of succession

Back 60

Primary and Secondary

Front 61

Primary Succession

Back 61

Occurs in areas that have not supported communities before. May occur on bare rock, paved parking lots, sand dunes, or after volcanic eruption. Typical process: Lichen -> Moss -> Grasses -> Shrubs -> Trees

Front 62

Secondary Succession

Back 62

Occurs in areas that have supported communities before. May occur on abandoned farm land, after forest fires, or after heavy water pollution. Typical process: Grasses -> Shrubs -> Pine trees -> Hardwoods

Front 63

Animal Communities

Back 63

Change in response to changes in the plant communities and availability of prey

Front 64

Global Positioning System

Back 64

Satellite navigation system that allows the exact determination of a location. This is used for GIS (Geographic Information Systems) which can: Store, manage and integrate data relating to points, lines, and boundries, search for areas with a particular factor, geographic anaysis, etc.

Front 65

Biological Sampling

Back 65

Techniques that allow the scientist to quantitatively evaluate an area in terms of its biotic factors

Front 66

Mark/Recapture Method

Back 66

A method of Biological sampling that allows scientists to estimate the population number in an area. This is important in areas where the population is simply too large to count individualy. The scientist caputures a segment of the population and "marks" these individuals, the scientist then releases the marked indiviudals back into the population and repeats the process and counts the number of already marked individuals in the second sample

Front 67

Quadrant Analysis

Back 67

Scientists use a "quadrant" to select an area of an ecosystem. The quadrant (basicly, a large square) is a measured area that: Reduces the space a scientist must analyze, and ensures the size of the area remains the same if the scientist chooses to analyze several areas, or the same area over a period of time

Front 68

Water/Soil Analysis

Back 68

Using chemical tests or sampling techniques to determine the chemical or physical characteristics of ware or soil. (Ex. dissolved oxygen, pH, contamination, and microogranisms presence in soil or water)