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38 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
Continental shelf
extended perimeter of continent; in
photic zone
Biosphere
the global sum of all ecosystems
Ecosystem
an ecological community together with its
environment, functioning as a unit
Ecology
the scientific study of the interactions between
organisms and their environments.
The environment can be divided into which two major components?
abiotic and biotic
biotic
living factors: include all living organisms in the area.
abiotic
Consists of nonliving chemical and physical factors: temperature, forms of energy available, water, and nutrients.

Strongly influence the patchy distribution (global and regional) and special adaptations of organisms.
Birds and mammals can tolerate the greatest temperature extremes because they are ________.
endotherms
Reptiles are more limited in the climates they can tolerate because they are __________.
ectotherms.
Oceans cover about ______ of the Earth’s surface.
71%
what are the two major factors
that shape aquatic communities?
light and availability of nutrients.
intertidal zone
where the ocean meets land, the shore is pounded by waves during high tide and exposed to the sun and drying winds during low tide.
continental shelf
submerged portions of a continent, that includes the pelagic realm, (open water) and benthic realms, (sea floor).
phytoplankton
microscopic algae and. cyanobacteria
zooplankton
small drifting animals such as fish, and marine mammals.
pelagic zone/realm
all open water
photic zone
200m down, top portion of the water where light penetrates. Includes the intertidal and continental shelf. photosynthesis by Phytoplankton and zooplankton live here.
aphotic zone
Called the twilight zone. Below the photic zone, not enought light for photosynthesis.

200m-1000m small fish and crustaceans, and some light exists.

below 1000m- completely dark. Most animals here are deposit feeders.
How does temperature affect freshwater communities?
during summer, lakes may have separate temperature levels with the cool water at the bottom where fish will spend most of their time unless decomposers deplete the oxygen.
How does nitrogen and phosphorous affect freshwater environments?
nitrogen and phosphorous are nutrients for algae which stimulate excess growth. Heavy algae reduces light into the water and when the algae die, there is a serious lack of oxygen.
What is are algal blooms and why are they dangerous?
nitrogen and phosphorous are nutrients that usually limit the amount of phytoplankton.
Explain how the properties of a river change between its source and its outlet, and how this impacts the biotic components of this biome.
At the outlet, the water is cool and clear, fast moving and narrow, low in nutrients. Downstream, the river widens and is slower, sediments and phytoplankton usually make the water murkier.
Estuaries
are productive areas where rivers meet the ocean
– The saltiness of estuaries ranges from less than 1% to 3%
– They provide nursery areas for oysters, crabs, and many fishes
– They are often bordered by extensive coastal wetlands
Coral reefs
are found in warm tropical waters, in photic zone.
– Produced by animals that secrete calcium carbonate and have a
symbiotic relationship with single-celled, photosynthetic algae
– Reefs support a huge diversity of invertebrates and fishes
Explain why species in widely separated biomes may have similar features.
Widely separated biomes may look similar because of convergent evolution, the appearance of similar traits in independently evolved species living in similar environments.
Freshwater biomes include...
akes, ponds, rivers, streams, and
wetlands
what are important abiotic factors of freshwater ecosystems.
Current, sunlight, temperature and nutrients
Terrestrial ecosystems are grouped into eight major types of biomes, what are they?
1 savannas
2 desserts
3 grasslands
4 chaparral
5 broadleaf forests
6 tundra
7 rainforest
8 coniferous forests
tropical
forests
occur in the warm,
moist belt along the equator

– Warm, long days year round;
abundant rainfall (>60 inches/yr)

– The most diverse ecosystem on Earth
savanna
Drier, tropical areas and some
nontropical areas are characterized by the savanna.

− Dominated by grassland and scattered trees.

− 3 seasons: cool and dry, hot and dry, and warm and wet; 12-20 inches of rainfall/yr
Deserts
– They are characterized by low and unpredictable rainfall (<12 inches/yr)

– Some are very hot (daytime 140 F)

– Growth and reproduction are keyed to
rainfall
chaparral
this biome is a
shrubland with cool, rainy winters
and dry, hot summers

– Limited to coastal regions

– vegetation is adapted to periodic fires
What is desertification?
the conversion of semiarid regions to desert.
Why are fires important in some biomes?
burnt shrubs (highly flammable) use food reserves in their roots to regenerate.

Some chaparral shrubs will only germinate after a fire.

burnt vegetation fertilize the soil with mineral nutrients, promoting re-growth of the plant community.
Temperate grasslands
found in the interiors of the
continents, where winters are
cold

– Drought, fires, and grazing
animals prevent trees from growing

– Farms have replaced most of
North America’s temperate
grasslands
Temperate broadleaf forests
grow where there is sufficient moisture to support the growth of large trees.

– Characterized by deciduous trees and rich soils.

– Hot summers, cold winters; high annual precipitation; distinct
seasons; 5-6 month growing
season.
northern coniferous
forest
or taiga, is the largest terrestrial biome on Earth.

– Long, cold winters, and short,
occasionally warm, wet summers

– The soil is thin, nutrient poor, and acidic.
arctic tundra
lies between
the taiga and the permanently
frozen polar regions

– It is a treeless biome
characterized by extreme cold,
wind, and permafrost

– Permafrost is continuously
frozen subsoil