Ecology

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Benthos

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a mode of life in aquatic ecosystems – attached to or resting on bottom, 3 subcategories include epifauna, periphyton, and infauna

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Plankton

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mode of life in aquatic systems – floating, weak swimmers, 2 subcategories are phytoplankton and zooplankton

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Nekton

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mode of life in aquatic ecosystems – swimming orgs, go where they want (e.g. fish, turtles, frogs, squid, seals, octopus)

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Neuston

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mode of life in aquatic systems – rest or swim on surface

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Epipelagic

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top layer of ocean, where light penetrates and photosynthesis may be performed

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Mesopelagic

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“twilight zone,” gets some sunlight but not enough to sustain photosynthesis

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Bathypelagic

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cold, deep, no sunlight, high pressure

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Abyssopelagic

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– the deep sea

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Salinity

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Amount of salt in parts per thousand

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Neritic

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zone in ocean zonation – from littoral to continental shelf

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Oceanic

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zone in ocean zonation – beyond continental shelf

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dimictic

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– lakes that have seasonal mixing twice a year

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meromictic

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lakes that have no mixing, permanently stratified

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oligotrophic

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lakes that have low nutrients, also, deep, sandy or gravel bottom, low plant growth, low decomposition at bottom (plenty of O2)

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eutrophic

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lakes that are nutrient rich, also shallow, muddy, high plant growth, summer stratified, lots of decomposition (depletes O2)

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epilimnion

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lentic systems – surface water = warmer, higher O2 content because of wind mixing, more abundant floral community, nutrients quickly depleted by algae

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metalimnion

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lentic systems – zone of transition, thermocline occurs, temperature and density changes rapidly with depth

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hypolimnion

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– lentic systems – water 4° C, low O2 content b/c more aerobic bacteria breaking down organic matter

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thermocline

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lentic systems, layerr of water that has a rapid temperature gradient and separates the warm upper water from the cold lower water

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compensation point

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where photosynthesis just offsets respiration

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Littoral Zone

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zone in lentic zonation – extends away from shore to limit of rooted plants
→shallow water around shore, light penetrates to bottom, rooted plants, high diversity, subzones of vegetation = emergent, floating, submergent

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Emergent

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lentic systems - plants that grow out of the water but may have roots in the water

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Floating

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lentic systems – plants that float on or above surface of water

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Submergent

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plants that grow under the water

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limnetic

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– zone in lentic zonation – extends to the depth of effective light penetration, ends at compensation point, open water area where light can still penetrate

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profundal

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zone in lentic zonation – extends below the depth of light penetration where photosynthesis cannot occur
→bottom and deep water region, fewer plankton and no nueston, this level is absent in ponds

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Ecotone

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transition between 2 different ecosystems, change might be abrupt or there might be a transition zone, typically these are areas of greater diversity

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turbidity

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cloudiness of water, amount of particulate matter

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alkalinity

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ease with which a body of water can buffer pH

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ecoregion

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A large area of land or water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities that, share a majority of species and
ecological dynamics and environmental conditions – they are biome subdivisions originally developed for resource managers; major ecosystems that result from predictable patterns of climate as influenced by latitude, global position, and altitude

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zonation

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the distribution of organisms into different biogeographic zones in a given system or type of system, can be vertical (ex. moisture gradient) or horizontal (ex. altitude gradient)

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stratification

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– a layering in one location (ex. emergent trees to lower canopy trees to understory)

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phanerophytes

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perennial buds carried well up in the air (more than 10in off ground) and exposed to varying climatic conditions (e.g. trees, tall shrubs)

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chamaeophytes

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perennial shoots or buds on the surface of ground to about 10 inches off ground, these buds can be protected by fallen leaves and snow (e.g. low shrubs)

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hemicryptophytes

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perennial buds at the surface of ground where they are protected by soil and leaves (e.g. grasses, etc.)

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cryptophytes

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– perennial buds buried in ground, as bulb or rhizome, where they are protected from freezing and drying

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therophytes

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– annuals, complete life cycle from seed to seed again in one season, surviving unfavorable periods as seeds, will grow when conditions are favorable

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epifauna

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subcategory under benthos – living on bottom (e.g. crabs, scallops)

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periphyton

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– subcategory under benthos – attach to stems and leaves of rooted plants

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infauna

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subcategory under benthos – buried in sediment (e.g. clams, worms

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phytoplankton

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photosynthesizing plankton

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zooplankton

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herbivorous and carnivorous plankton

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decomposer

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– trophic mode – break down organic matter to obtain energy, includes many insects, bacteria, and fungi

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photosynthesizer

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trophic mode – primary producers, derive energy from sunlight

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grazer

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trophic mode aquatic systems – eat living plant material (e.g. insects, sea urchins)

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deposit feeder

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trophic mode aquatic systems – eat organic material on bottom (e.g. worms, some snails and clams

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filter feeder

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trophic mode aquatic – remove food from water (e.g. clams, mussels, baleen whales)

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biome

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major regional or global community, such as a grassland or desert, characterized chiefly by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate.

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rain shadow

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high mountain ranges force air upward, rises, cools, and drops rain on first side of mountain

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lake effect

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dry air warms over land, when gets over lake it picks up moisture, it rises, cools, and then rains or snows, this is why Buffalo, NY gets so much snow, the Great Lakes!

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maritime climate

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climate on or near coast, less extreme than that of inland areas, temperatures are moderated by the ocean

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continental climate

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climate of inland areas, more extreme than maritime climates

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monsoon

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summer heat causes air masses to rise, moist air sucked off ocean to replace air, air rises and cools and dumps a lot of rain

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El Niño

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weather phenomenon caused by warmer water off the West coast of the Americas, changes what is normally wet and dry, makes certain areas very wet or very dry

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aspect

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the direction that a tree or mountainside is facing, on a south-facing slope, the aspect would be south

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adiabatic cooling

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warm air rises, expands, and cools, dropping rain

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atmospheric blanket

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the denser lower atmosphere that has more moisture to hold in heat and it bounces back much of the heat radiated by earth, higher altitudes cool rapidly at night because there is no atmospheric blanket to keep in the radiant heat

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reradiation

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solar energy enters earth and some of it is reradiated back out by earth, only some of that reradiated energy escapes into space, most is absorbed by stratospheric CO2

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Coriolis force

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– this is the force which causes winds in N. hemisphere to deflect right and in S. hemisphere to deflect left – it is because the surface of the rotating earth moves faster at the equator than it does near the poles

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• Conduction

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o Heat transfer between bodies in direct contact
• Sand + body

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convection

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o Transfer of heat between a solid and a moving fluid (air or water)

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Radiation

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o Transfer of heat between objects without contact
o Fire/Sun + body

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Evaporation

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o Heat lost as water evaporates
o Sweat

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Homeotherms

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maintain a constant body temperature

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Poikilotherms

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Tb varies with environmental Temperature

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Allen’s rule

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Endothermic species from colder climates will have shorter appendages, ears, etc

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Bergman’s Rule

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o Endothermic individuals will be bigger in colder climates
• Decrease Surface area in terms of volume

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Heterotherms

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Some Endotherms do not always maintain a constant Body Temperature

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Torpor

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Daily hibernation - bats, hummingbirds

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Hibernation

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Lower body temperature to match environemental temperature

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Estivation

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Hibernation in hot temperatures

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MAJOR CONCLUSION

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No moose in florida, no Lizards in Maine