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70 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Birds |
- dawn chorus: establishing territory/survival/noise Problems - noise pollution: louder birds survive (can't communicate effectively) - air pollution - water pollution - loss of habitat |
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Ecology |
- study of relationships between biotic (living: plants, animals) organisms with their abiotic (non-living: soil, air, water, weather, sun, rocks, humidity) environment - studied by observation and experimentation |
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Ecological Organization |
Biosphere Biome Ecosystem Community Population Individual |
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Biosphere |
all of the ecosystems and organisms on Earth (climate change) |
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Biome |
large-scale community of organisms, defined on land by dominant plant types that exist in geographic regions of the planet with similar climatic conditions - similar sun and rain Types - Tundra, Boreal Forest, Temperate Rainforest, Temperate Seasonal Forest, Woodland, Temperate grassland, Tropical Rainforest, Tropical Seasonal Forest, Subtropical desert |
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Tropical Rainforest |
- Temperature: 80 degrees (hot, wet) - Rain: 160-400 inches a year - Plants: orchids, thick canopy - Animals: butterflies, beetles, reptiles, mammals (in different areas) - Location: 6%, Amazon Basin, Equator, South Africa, South East Asia |
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Tropical Seasonal Forest |
- Temperature: 63 degrees and higher - Rainfall: 10-80 inches - Plants: trees that shed leaves, grasslands with some trees - Animals: Scorpions, giraffes, rhinos, bees - Location: Mexico/Central America, South Africa, Southeast Asia, North Australia |
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Subtropical Desert |
- Temperature: 32 - 150 degrees - Rain: less than 12 inches a year - Plants: annual/die every year, cactus, shrubs - Animals: nocturnal, lizards, bats, foxes - Location: Asia, Australia, Africa |
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Temperate Grasslands |
- Temperature: hot summers: over 100, cold summers - Rain: 10-30 inches annually - Plants: grass, flowers, few trees - Animals: Bisons, Cows, Horses, Prairie Dogs, Foxes, Ferrets, Wolves, Hawks - Location: Belts of Africa, North American Plains |
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Wooded Shrubland |
- Temperature: hot/dry in summer, cool/moist in winter 30-100 degrees - Rain: 200-1000 mm a year - Plant: Sage, Rosemary, Oregano, Shrubs/grasses, needle plants - Animals: bobcats, moose, black bear, snakes - Location: California, Chili, Mexico, Med. Sea Area, South Africa/Australia |
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Temperate Seasonal Forest |
- Temperature: - 30 - 30 cel. (hot summers, cold winters) - Rain: 750-1500 mm a year - Animals: hawks, snowy owls, woodpeckers, raccoons, possums, porcupines, foxes - Plants: deciduous forest, oak, maple, shrubs, mosses, herbs - Location: Eastern North America, Canada, Europe, China, Japan |
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Temperate Rainforest |
- Precipitation: important element, 55in a year (rain and snow) - Temperature: 32 - 54 degrees Fahrenheit - Plant Types: Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, Ferns, Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce, Mosses, Lichens - Animals: Raccoons, Beavers, Black Bears, Cougars, Elk - Geographical Location: Western North America, South America, Northwestern Europe, Australia, New Zealand |
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Boreal |
- largest biome - Precipitation: low: 250-750 mm a year - Temperature: cold, average of 32 fahrenheit ( 26 in winter) - Plants: Needleleaf, coniferous trees, evergreen, spruce, pine - Animals: Lynx, Bobcats, Snowshoe Rabbits, Elk, Moose, Red Squirrels - Geographical Location: North America (Alaska/Canada), Eurasia(Sweden, Russia, Finland) |
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Tundra |
- Temperature: coldest -18 to -58 degrees Fahrenheit - Precipitation: low, 6-10 inches (windy) - low biodiversity - Plants: no trees due to permafrost, moss, heath, lichen, bearberry, diamond leaf willow - Animals: Lemmings, Caribou, Arctic Hares, Arctic Foxes, Polar Bears, Ravens, Cod - Geographical Location: Northern Hemisphere, Arctic Region, Russia, Antartica |
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Ecosystem |
- assemblage of organisms together with their abiotic environment |
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Community |
- Interactions among different species |
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Population |
Consists of the many organisms of the same species living together in a given area |
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Individual |
individual organism of a species |
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Ecosystem Processes |
- Energy Flow: power of the ecosystem - Biogeochemical cycle: movement of elements like nitrogen and phosphorous which animals/plants need to grow |
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Trophic Levels |
Pyramid - energy(calories) is transferred from producers up pyramid til no energy, lost through heat/other functions - each level of pyramid is a trophic level - Soils/decomposers: breakdown plants/animals, recycle nutrients - Primary Producers/Photosynthesis (Plants, Algae, Bacteria): uses sun's energy - Primary Consumers/Herbivores (Birds, Squirrels, Insects): eat primary producers, energy exchange - Secondary Consumers/Carnivores/Omnivores (Snakes, Frogs) - Tertiary Consumers/Top Carnivores (Foxes) |
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Energy in an Ecosystem |
- only 1% of energy is absorbed by plants (GPP) - Photosynthesis: converts light energy to chemical energy - NPP passed on to primary consumers - Some energy is lost by primary consumer (heat, movement, breathe) - Energy is not recycled - is lost through trophic levels - used for: respiration, temperature regulation, movement - only 5-10% of energy is available to next trophic level - constant amount is necessary for ecosystem to thrive |
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Gross Primary Productivity |
- amount of energy absorbed by a plant |
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Net Primary Productivity |
- amount of energy taken in by plant thats used for growth/reproduction (passed on to next trophic level) Biomass - energy used for growing/reproducing - amount of mass available to next level |
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Food Web |
- concept that accounts for multiple trophic feeding interactions between each species and many species it may feed on, or that feed on it |
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Biogeochemical cycling |
(focusing on Nitrogen) Nutrient Recycling - carbon, nitrogen, or phosphorous enter living organisms - these are nutrients and are limited in supply - plants obtain nutrients from the atmosphere, water, soil, or eating other organisms - nutrients are recycled, not lost |
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Nitrogen |
- The air is 78% Nitrogen (nonreactive nitrogen, not usable for most organisms) - reactive nitrogen(usable): Ammonium or Nitrate ions |
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Four Ways Nitrogen enters an Ecoystem |
- non-reactive nitrogen can be fixed into reactive nitrogen 1. Nitrogen fixation producers 2. Atmospheric fixation 3. Industrial fixation 4. Fossil Fuel combustion |
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Nitrogen Fixation Producers |
Nitrogen fixation - bacteria/cyanobacteria that fix nonreactive Nitrogen into reactive form (ammonia) - producers: Lichens, Alder Tree cyanobacteria - plants absorb reactive nitrogen, use for proteins/nucleic acids - excreted through animal waste - Ammonification :recycled through decomposers/bacteria - Ammonium or Nitrates freely available for plants (denitrifying convert back) |
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Ammonification |
- bacteria making ammonia into ammonium (easily react-able Nitrogen) |
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Nitrifying Bacteria |
bacteria that converted ammonium to Nitrites, to Nitrates |
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Denitrifying bacteria |
- convert nitrate to nonreactive nitrogen gas |
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Atmospheric Fixation |
- lightning strikes, nitrogen gas is converted to ammonium, comes down with rainfall - used by ecosystem |
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Industrial Fixation |
Human - when synthetic fertilizer is manufactured, nitrogen gas and hydrogen gas to ammonia - often too much brought in |
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Combustion of Fossil Fuels |
- when a pollutant combusts, nitrogen oxides are formed in the atmosphere, converted to nitric acid and carried through rainfall, nitric acid and water combine to form nitrate |
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Forest Ecology |
a collection of both the abiotic and biotic components within a forest |
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forest structure |
- vertical and horizontal arrangement - heterogeneity and forest density - edge effects - islands and fragmentation - dead trees and snags - micro-environments |
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vertical/horizontal arrangement |
Vertical - forest floor - small plants - shrubs - trees - top floor (tall trees) Horizontal - span of forest (some species require more land) |
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Heterogeneity and forest density |
Heterogeneity - how similar parts of the forest are to each other (sunny or shady) - diversity thrives Forest Density - how many trees are there and how old are they - lots of trees at same age will all die together - more trees at different ages is better |
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Edge Effects |
- how the edge impacts the forest health - when area is logged(man-made or natural causes, disease), creating edge from forest to barren land - trees on edge are exposed to sun/wind, vulnerable to disease/falling down (the next layer of trees made vulnerable) |
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Islands and Fragmentation |
Islands - disconnected/isolated forest from surroundings (animals trapped) - prone to extinction Fragmentation - previously continued forest is fragmented into pieces (result of replanting) - cons: bad for animals (elk) |
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Dead Trees and Snags |
Dead Trees - are important for ecosystem - uses: nesting, nutrients(nitrogen/phosphorus) for decomposers, grows little trees(nurse-log) |
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Micro-Environments |
- different from floor to canopy - caused by humidity/temperature/sunlight levels |
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Function |
- part of an ecosystem that involves "how" things happen - Energy capture (from sun, by photosynthesis) - mineral and nutrient recycling (nitrogen cycle) - water movement (ecosystem needs to soak up water source, too fast causes erosion) - temperature and humidity (changes can mess with species, lichens) |
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Species Interactions |
Predator/Prey Relationships - interactions between 2 dif. species - what adaptations does the prey develop? (horns, thorns, speed) Symbiotic Relationships - commensalism: when one species benefits, but the other does not (bird nest doesn't help tree) - mutualism: both species benefit (algae(gets food) and fungus(shelter) to make lichen) - parasitism: one species benefits at the harm of another (tapeworm) |
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Community Characterisitics |
within a forest or ecosystem communities are complex systems that can be characterized by: - structure: the number of species and size of populations and their interactions - dynamics: how the members and their interactions change over time |
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species richness |
the number of species in an area |
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Community Dynamics |
- the changes in community structure and composition over time, often following environmental disturbances |
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disturbance |
any event that causes significant changes in plant and/or soil components of the system - examples: wind, fire, logging, disease, flooding, volcanic eruption, invasive species - may be partial loss in an area or forest or a large scale loss(Mt. St. Helens) |
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Mt. St. Helens |
What Happened - previously had basaltic eruptions in silver lake - 1980: cracks on surface, magma rising, magma pool forming in mountain made mountain swell, steam eruptions, earthquake activity - massive landslide from collapsed bulge, chamber opened - blast: large ash clouds/fragmented rock came out, pyroclastic flows traveled miles - killed forests/people with blast movement, covered area with ash/tephra, covered columbia river, displaced spirit lake - formed lakes/ponds How did people/environment recover - plan: dig through ash and plant in soil - ash area left to grow back naturally - glacier formed in crater - gophers brought up soil: plant seeds - recovery: animals/plants repopulating area (adapting to new soil) |
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succession |
- sequential appearance and disappearance of species in a community over time after a severe disturbance (recovery of community over time) - primary succession: complete disturbance creating new land (Mt. St. Helens) - secondary succession: part of land is disturbed |
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Successional Stages |
Stages - characterized by plants/animal species - before: bare area is killed by sun Early Succession - disturbance: soil is bare (lack of nutrients) - pioneer species arrive: nitrogen fixers build soil nutrients, species that like the sun grow fast - lichens, grasses, fireweed, Rhododendron, Red Alder - later: (more shade) maple trees, Douglas fir, salmonberry Mid Succession - once canopy is established: nutrients available, more shady forest floor, more moisture - mix of successional species - plants: shift to nutrient, shade, moisture preferring plants - more vertical arrangement - douglas fir, big leaf maple - later: western hemlock, western red cedar Late Succession(old growth) - multi-aged and sized tree species, developed shrub/small tree layer, developed understory with shade species - plants: douglas fir forests replaced by western hemlock (climax species) - climax communities: end of the line succession communities |
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Fire Ecology |
Fire ecology is a branch of ecology that concentrates on the origins of wildland fire and its relationship to the living and non-living environment. This school of thought recognizes that fire is a natural process operating as a component of an ecosystem |
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Importance of Forest Fires on forest ecology (plants, soils, nutrients) |
- ecosystems utilize fire disturbances to maintain ecosystem health and to regenerate - some trees need it to release seeds: Jack Pine, Red Wood, Manzanita - return nutrients to the forest soil that was previously being stored in biomass - clear dead wood for soil nutrition - black-backed woodpecker |
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Importance of fire in prairie ecosytems |
- slows down the invasion of trees from the edges of the prairie and from wind-blown seeds (prairie plants would not survive if forest plants came) - biomass build up: kills plants, prevents animals from feeding - speed up decomposition to return nutrients to the soil |
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Prescribed Burns as Forest Management |
- carefully planned - uses: create a mosaic of diverse habitats for plants and animals, to help endangered species recover, or to reduce fuels and thereby prevent a destructive fire - during cool months - back-burning - controversy: slash-and-burn |
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History of Fire in the U.S. |
Early 1900s - only suppressed fires - big blowup caused scare - expensive, lost in lives - controversy on suppression (N.A. were using frequent burning) 1950s - fire research station opened: Tall Timbers Research Station -1960-70: National Park Service and Forest service supported fire restoration Nature Conservancy - used large-scale fires on prairie |
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Fire Suppression impacting Forests |
- forests need fires - prairies need fire - die without - fuels buildup to create destructive fires - denies ecosystem of needed nutrients, spreading of seeds, biomass |
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Safer Path with Fire |
- works well in prairies - not so well in west: expensive, liability - managed wildfires: only using suppression when necessary (infringing on people) - letting forest fires occur |
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Evolution |
change in the genetic trait(s) of a population over time - not a choice, based on genetic mutation |
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Mechanisms for Evolutionary Change |
1. Mutation - ex: color mutation helps survival, gene is passed on and inherited - can be favored or non favored based on environment: causes natural selection - mutation rates vary - why: genetic code isn't copied correctly 2. Migration - ex: brown species migrates to new green population, breed, new genes introduced, color changes 3. Genetic Drift - ex: varied population, one variance is wiped out randomly, other variance becomes more dominant - causes: windstorm, flood, disease - small populations vulnerable 4. Natural Selection - ex: varied population, green variation vulnerable, brown species dominates - a result of a mutation |
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Natural Selection |
- nonrandom mechanism of evolutionary change - organisms with traits best adapted to their environment tend to survive and pass these traits in increasing numbers to next generation - mutations can change the genetic composition in a population on which natural selection acts Needs: - variation of traits (one that is favored) - variance in reproduction (based on success of trait) - heredity (trait needs to be inherited) - relevant to agriculture(pesticides), medicine(antibiotics, flees) |
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adaptation |
- heritable trait that aids survival and reproduction of an organisms in its present environment - a characteristic dominant in a population because it makes the organism a better fit for their environment - can be behavioral (killdeer) or physiological (camel/anteater), structural (white hare) Examples - creosote bush creates toxins, plants can't grow around it - stick insect camouflage - beaks depend on diet (galapagos finches) |
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Pocket Mouse |
- adaptation: color change (tan to darker to suit lava flow floor) - how: genetic mutation in hair caused darker mouse, bred and increased in population due to natural selection, rapid breeding makes advantage spread rapidly - can occur separately in different areas to produce same result |
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Antibiotic resistance |
- example of natural selection - development of antibiotic resistance in microorganisms - mutation caused one bacteria to be resistant, the resistant pass their genes on, over time, more gene-resistant bacteria |
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mimicry |
- mimicking appearance of environment (katydids look like leaves) - non-poisonous snakes mimic poisonous snakes |
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Anole Lizard |
Types of Anole Lizards - Grass-Bush Anole: slim and long tails, lives in grass - Trunk Anole: stalkier, long legs, small toe-pads, lives on ground - Twig Anole: short legs, slow, moves well on twigs), in trees - Canopy Anole: huge toe pads, climbs well, high in canopy - adaptations: leg length, toe-pad size, color Speciation - one species diverges into two species that don't breed with each other - how: reproductive isolation: separate geographically and change(natural selection), dulap colors(breeding) |
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Galapagos Finches |
Types of Finches - Walker Finch: small beak, for insects - Woodpecker Finch, robust beak, beetles, larvae - Cactus Finch: longer, sharp beak, cactuses - Ground Finches: 3 sizes for different eating tools - adaptations: beak size, chirping, size, color - bigger beak: drought - smaller beak: lots of water/vegetation |
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How Humans affect Adaptations |
Peppered Moth - lived in Europe, on white trees, variance of color but white dominant (darker colored moths were prey) - after urbanization: trees darker - dark moths had advantage, became more common |
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Co-evolution |
- evolutionary effect between two species, putting selective pressures on the other, influencing other's evolution Example: Moths and Bats (prey vs predator) - Bats use echolocation - Moth adaptation: can detect echolocation, can click to disrupt wavelength, fly erratically to avoid - Bat adaptation: put out another wavelength that moth can't detect |
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Moths and Bats |
Experiments - play echolocation to moths to determine their reactions - sending signal of bad taste or hiding location with clicks - controlled experiment with tethered moths, looking at how bats avoid them - feed moths to bats to see which ones are fooling them with poison signals |
