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106 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Succession |
describes the gradual and continuous change in species composition and community structure over time following a disturbance
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Primary Succession |
succession on a newly exposed site that was not previously occupied by soil and vegetation
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Secondary Succession
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succession on a site that has already supported life but that has undergone a disturbance
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climax community
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distinct end point of succession
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Seral Stage
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each phase of succession
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facilitation
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each colonizing species made the environment a little different so that it became more suitable for other species, which then invaded and outcompeted the earlier residents
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chronosequence
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sequential changes in community structure over physical distance, primarily influenced by time
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tolerance
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mechanism of succession to which early colonists neither facilitate nor inhibit later colonies
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theory of island biogeography
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explains the process of succession on newly formed islands, where a gradual buildup of species proceeds from a sterile beginning
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species-area hypothesis
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the number of species should increase with increasing island size
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source pool
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the pool of species that is available to colonize the island
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species distance hypothesis
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the number of species should decrease with increasing distance of the island from the mainland (source pool)
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SLOSS debate
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single large or several small
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landscape ecology
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examines the spatial arrangement of elements in communities and ecosystems
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movement corridors
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thin strips of land that may permit the movement of species between patches
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edge effects
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special physical conditions that exist at the boundaries of “edges” of habitats
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Biomes |
large-scale ecological communities
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climate
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prevailing weather pattern in a given region
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Coriolis force
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any surface flow is deflected toward the west as a result of the earth’s roation
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Hadley Cell
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the cell nearest the equator in which warm air rising forms clouds that provide rainfall which maintains tropical rain forests
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subsidence zones
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areas of high pressure and are the sites of the world’s hot deserts
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Ferrel cell
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circulation between 30 and 60 latitude in which net surface flow is poleward with strong western winds
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Polar cells
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cool air descends with little moisture left resulting in desert-like conditions
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solar equator |
area receiving the most solar energy |
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abiatic cooling
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temperatures decrease with increasing elevation
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orographic lifting
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warm moist air encounters the windward side of a mountain and flows upward and cools, releasing precipitation in the form of rain or snow
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rain shadow
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precipitation is noticeably reduced
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desertification
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overstocking of land for domestic animals can greatly reduce grass coverage through overgrazing
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permafrost
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a layer of permanently frozen soil below 0.5-1 m
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coastal upwelling
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surface currents move water away from the continents, it is replace by water from greater depths
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Langmuir circulation
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smaller-scale circulation patterns
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intertidal zone
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area where the land meets the sea
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nertic zone
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extends from the intertidal zone to the edge of the continental shelf
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pelagic zone
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open ocean
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epipelagic zone
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top of pelagic zone
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mesopelagic
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second of pelagic zone
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Bathypelagic
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third of pelagic zone (4000)
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Abyssal
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fourth of pelagic zone (6000)
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Hadal
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last of pelagic zone
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phytoplankton
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photosynthetic organisms that grow and reproduce
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zooplankton
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graze on phytoplankton
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benthic
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feed on the rain of dead material from above
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supralittoral
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splash zone
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upper littoral zone
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submerged only during the highest tides
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mid-littoral zones
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submerged during the highest regular tide and exposed during the lowest tide each day
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low littoral zone
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exposed only during the lowest tide
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pneumatophores
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black mangroves special aerial roots
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lentic
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calm, and running-water habitats (lakes/ponds)
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lotic
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fast-moving streams and rivers
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spring overturn
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spring storms mix water layers, creating uniform conditions of temperature and oxygen
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epilimnion
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upper layer warmed by the sun and mixed well by the wind
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thermocline
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transition zone where the temperature declines rapidly
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hypolimnion
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cool layer too far below the surface to be much warmed and with low light levels
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compensation point
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lower limit of the photic zone (photosynthate production equals energy used by respiration)
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oligotrophic
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least productive lakes
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eutrophication
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the process of aging and degradation is natural
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dissolved oxygen
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the amount of oxygen that occurs in microscopic bubbles of gas mixed in with the water and that supports aquatic life
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anoxic
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unable to support most life (contain little to no oxygen)
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riparian zones
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where roots can tap into groundwater
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Ecosystems ecology
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concerned with the movement of energy and materials through organisms and their communities
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energy flow
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the movement of energy through the ecosystem
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biomass
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a quantitative estimate of the total mass of living matter in a given area, usually measured in grams or kilograms per square meter
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biogeochemical cycles
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movement of limiting chemicals through ecosystems
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food chain
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simple feeding relationships between organisms
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trophic level
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each feeding level
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autotrophs
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harvest light or chemical energy and store that energy in carbon compounds
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secondary consumers
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carnivores that feed on tissues of other animals
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tertiary consumers
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secondary carnivores
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detritus
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waste products and remains
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detritivores or decomposers
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break down dead organisms from all trophic levels
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food web
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more elaborate interwoven depiction of the relationships between plants and animals
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connectedness webs
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all known links are drawn and equal importance is attached to each link
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energy web
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interaction strengths, based on quantities of food consumed and indicated by the thickness of connecting links are calculated
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functional web
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identifies the most important feeding relationships
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Production efficiency
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the percentage of energy assimilated by an organism that becomes incorporated into new biomass
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trophic-level transfer efficiency
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the final measure of efficiency of consumers as energy transformers
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pyramid of numbers
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the number of individuals decreases at each trophic level
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pyramid of biomass
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weigh the organisms in each trophic level
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standing crop
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the total biomass in an ecosystem at any one point in time
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pyramid of energy
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shows energy production rather than standing crop
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linkage density
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the number of links per species
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keystone species
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species within a community that has a role out of proportion to its abundance
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dominant species
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one that has a large effect in a community because of its abundance or large biomass
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ecosystem engineers
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create, modify, and maintain habitats that are used by other organisms
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indicator species
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species whose status provides information on the overall health of a food web or ecosystem
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umbrella species
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species whose habitat requirements are so large that protecting them would protect many other species existing in the same food web or habitat
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flagship species
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a single large or instantly recognizable species
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primary production
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the production of organic compounds through the process of photosynthesis
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Gross Primary Production
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equivalent to the carbon fixed during a given time period of photosynthesis
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Net Primary Production
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gross primary production minus the energy lost in plant cellular respiration
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nutrients
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key elements in useable form
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limiting factor
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the scarcest in relation to need
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Liebig’s law of the minimum
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species biomass or abundance is limited by the scarcest factor
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decomposition
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the physical and chemical breakdown of dead plant and animal biomass
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leaching
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transfers water-soluble materials away from the organic matter
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fragmentation
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soil animals break down organic matter into small pieces, eventually creating a large surface area for microbial colonization
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chemical alteration
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fungi and bacteria chemically change dead plant material
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soil organic matter
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identity of the dead organic matter is no longer recognizable
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decomposition constant
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characterizes the decomposition rate under specified conditions
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residence time
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time required for litter to decompose under these conditions
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biogeochemcial cycles
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biological, geological, and chemical transport mechanisms
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biosphere
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one giant interconnected ecosystem
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eutrophication
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the process by which elevated nutrient levels leads to an overgrowth of algae and the subsequent depletion of water oxygen levels
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biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)
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the difference between the production of oxygen by plants and the amount of oxygen needed for the respiration of the organisms in the water
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turnover
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completely replenishes in 3-4 years
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aquifers
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tapping into underground water supplies |
