Ecology

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autoecology

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study of relationship between individual organism or species and their environment

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synecology

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study of interrelationships among communities of organisms --> look for unity

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ecosystem

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formed by interaction of a community of organisms and their physical environment

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producers

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green plants (algae) autotrophs that make their own food

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consumers

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animals, heterotrophs

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decomposers

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bacteria and fungi

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relative density

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number of individual species divided by the total number of species in a sample

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relative frequency

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number of quadrants where you found the specific species divided by the total number of quadrants

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basal area

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area of a given section of land that is occupied by the cross-section of tree trunks and stems at their base

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relative dominance

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sum of basal area of specific species divided by basal area of all species

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topography

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the configuration of a surface and the relations among its man-made and natural features

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transect

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line on the ground along which sample plots or points are established for collecting data

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bisect

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vertical distrubution of plants and animals

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sociability

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how species are grouped in a community

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dispersion

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how vegetation is arranged

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vitality

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measures prosperity of species

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stratification

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how animals and plants are distributed in a habitat

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periodicity

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rythmic phenomenon in plant communities that is related to seasonal and/or climate change

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aspect dominance

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presence of conspicuous species

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seasonal dominance

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dominant in spring then go dormant

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crepuscular

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active at dusk ie. rats

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constance

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making comparisons of species within the same unit area

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fidelity

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degree of which a species is restricted to a particular community

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physiognomy

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structure of the dominant plants

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climate

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30 year average temperature and rainfall, adjusted over 10 years

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weather

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short term, temperature and rainfall pattern of year

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light

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visible portion of sun's spectrum

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insolation

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radiant energy received by earth

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intensity

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amount of energy, more at blue end of spectrum

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abscission layer

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layer of cells at the base of a plant part (like a leaf) that dissintegrates, causing that part to become separated.

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chlorophyll

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group of green pigments that convert radiant energy to chemical energy through the process of photosynthesis

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microclimate

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small, local region having a unique pattern of weather or weather effects

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relative humidity

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% moisture saturation of earth's atmosphere

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100% relative humidity

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air is holding as much moisture as it can at a particular temperature

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absolute humidity

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moisture in grams/m3

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dew

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forms when water vapor in the air comes in contact with a cold surface

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frost

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occurs when surface temp is 32F or bleow and water vapor contacts surface

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fog

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forms when water vapor in air comes in contact with minute particles in air that have hygroscopic properties (water holding)

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clouds

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can be formed when moisture in air rises

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smog

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particular matter, has tendency to tap heat

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Temperature inversion

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increase in 1000 ft elevation yields decrease in temperature by 3.3 F

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snow

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frozen precipitation, 32 F or lower

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sleet

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frozen rain

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soils

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weathered inorganic material from earth's crust (mantle) in a particular area

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pedology

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study of the origin and nature of soil

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edaphic

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plant communities that are distinguished by soil conditions rather than by the climate

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soil profile

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vertical arrangement of layers of soil down to the bedrock

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percolation

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the slow passage of a liquid through a filtering medium

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soil structure

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how soil clumps together

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podzol

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typical soils of coniferous, or Boreal forests, minerals are leached from horizon a and deposited in B horizon

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laterization

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tropical weathering, prolonged process of mechanical and chemical weathering in hot humid climates, minerals are leached from horizon A

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calcification

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in hot dry summers when evaporation exceeds precipitation, soil is kept sufficiently supplied with calcium

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chernuzem

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soils prevalent in the west, rich in organic matter

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azonal

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lack horizons, young

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biome

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major biotic community characterized by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate

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artic tundra

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few species, cold winter, short summer. animals have long fur and snow tunnels and plants stay low to the ground to stay safe from wind/migration

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taiga

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boreal forest, no permafrost so trees can grow. mostly conifers

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deciduos forest

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angiosperms dominate, 40-80 inches of precipitation evenly divided throughout year with a growing season of about 5-6 months

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grasslands

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15-35" of precipitation, well adapted to fire, support fewer species than deciduous because of less moisture

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chaparral

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mediterranean climate, wet winters are 6x wetter than dry summers, plants with seeds that are enhanced by fire

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tropical rainforest

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temp changes very little year-round, seasons determined by rainfall massive diversity of species

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savanna

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grassland dominated with scattered trees, (Africa) location where humans evolved, rainfall dictates season and affects when animals migrate and give birth

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desert

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low rainfall, 0-10 inches per year, temp ranges can be extreme depending on moisture in the air, life cycle of plants happens quickly to conserve water

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glucose

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type of sugar; the chief source of energy for living organisms

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beogeochemical cycles

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(nutrient cycles) movement of chemical elements between organisms and non-living compartments of atmosphere, aquatic systems and soils

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nitrogen cycle

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nitrogen can be converted from dead products to nitrate which can be used by plants

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phosphorous cycle

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process by which phosphorus is recycled in the ecosystem, resevoir is earths crust

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acretion

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process by which material is added to a tectonic plate or a landmass. This material may be sediment, volcanic arcs, seamounts or other igneous features

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diffusion

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movement of molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration

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osmosis

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special type of diffusion that involves water, concentration gradient, and selectively permeable membrane

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active uptake

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movement of a substance against across semi-permeable membrane against the concentration gradient (from low to high concentration), requires energy

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Leibig's law of minimum

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population growth is limited by the resource in shortest supply

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Shelford's law of tolerance

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The presence, number, and distribution of a species in an ecosystem are determined by whether the levels of one or more physical or chemical factors fall within the range tolerated by the species

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food web

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a number of interconnecting food chains

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food chain

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transfer of energy from the sources in plants to and through a series of organisms by a period of eating

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biomass

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mass of organic matter

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sapriphite

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organisms that feed on dead material

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turnover time

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reciprocal of time required to replace a quantity of substance equal to the amount of that substance in the ecosystem

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10% rule of ecology

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as we go up the food chain, the next organism receives 10% of the energy of the previous organism

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first law of thermodynamics

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energy may be transformed but never created or destroyed

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second law of thermodynamics

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loss of energy as moving down the food chain, increase in entropy

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homeostasis

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physiological processes that allow an organism to maintain internal equilibrium

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entropy

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a measure of the energy not available to do useful work

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rhizomes

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underground stem

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lentic

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standing water communities

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lotic

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running water community

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turbidity

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cloudy, may be a indication of productivity, suspended particles in water

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current

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concentration of vital gases like oxygen, distribution of small organisms

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BOD

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Biological oxygen demand,the amount of oxygen needed by aerobic microorganisms to decompose all the organic matter in a sample of water

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oligotrophic

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poor in nutrients

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eutrophic

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rich in nutrients

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niche

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functional role organism plays in environment

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benthos

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the organisms which live on, in, or near the seabed, also known as the benthic zone

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periphytic

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Growing attached on the surfaces of plants, other algae, or other substrates (barnicles)

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aufwuchs

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small animals and plants that encrust hard substrates, such as rocks, in aquatic environments

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nekton

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actively swimming animals in a body of water ranging from microscopic organisms to whales

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neuston

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organisms that float on the top of water or live right under the surface

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littoral zone

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closest to the shore

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limnotic zone

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open water

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profundal zone

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so deep there's not enough light for photosunthesis

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euphoric zone

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The upper region with total illumination

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epilimnion

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top-most layer, warm zone

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thermocline

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temperature gradient drops

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hypolimnion

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cold zone

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dimictic

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Having two thermal overturns per year

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algal bloom

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population explosion of algae

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endemic

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unique to a particular geographic location

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dystrophic

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low pH

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thermocline

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layer within a body of water or air where the temperature changes rapidly with depth

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chemocline

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chemically stratified lakes

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thigmotaxis

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innate behavioral response by an organism to a directional stimulus or gradient of stimulus intensity

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cold monomictic lakes

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overturns in winter

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warm monomictic

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temperature always above 4 C

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polymictic

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continually mixing, high altitude near equator

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oligomictic

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nutrient poor, thermally stable

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meromictic

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chemically stratified

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estuary

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semi-enclosed body of water that is openly connected with the sea

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geomorphology

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the science of understanding landform formation

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drowned river valley

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form where sea levels rise relative to the land either as a result of eustatic sea level change (where the global sea levels rise), or isostatic sea level change (where the land sinks)

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fjord

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steep walled inlet carved by glaciers and ice

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bar-built estuary

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long shore currents helped form and maintain, tend to continue to move in land if no jetty is built

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salt marsh

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low-lying wet land that is frequently flooded with saltwater

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tectonic

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pertaining to the structure or movement of the earth's crust

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river delta

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at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river, formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river

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salt wedge

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formed in estuaries when salt waters (which are heavier) move inland on and near the bottom and fresh waters (which are lighter) move toward the sound on top

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partially stratified

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flow of fresh and salt water is approximately equal

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homogenous

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salt water dominant

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natural arctic ecosystem with ice stress

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damage to shoreline, lack of photosynthesis

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tropical systems

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wealth of species, high diversity, niche specialization is very narrow

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dinoflagellate

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chiefly marine protozoa

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red tide

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algal bloom of sufficient quantity to cause discoloration (often red) in a body of water, can potentially cause irritation or death to exposed creatures due to release of a neurotoxin

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regression analysis

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any techniques for modeling and analyzing several variables, when the focus is on the relationship between a dependent variable and one or more independent variables