Eoc Review 2010 - Ecology

Front 1

a close relationship where an organism needs another to survive

Back 1

symbiosis

Front 2

a type of symbiosis where both organisms benefit

Back 2

mutualism

Front 3

give examples of mutualism

Back 3

bee and flower
lichen (alga and fungus)
human and intestinal bacteria

Front 4

a type of symbiosis where one organism hurts the other

Back 4

parasitism

Front 5

give examples of parasites

Back 5

tapeworm
flea
tick

Front 6

a type of symbiosis where one organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed

Back 6

commensalism

Front 7

give examples of commensals

Back 7

barnacles on a whale
remora sharks on a bigger fish

Front 8

the organism on which a parasite lives

Back 8

host

Front 9

an organism that hunts and kills another for food

Back 9

predator

Front 10

the organism hunted by a predator

Back 10

prey

Front 11

What is the importance of predators to a population of prey?

Back 11

keep the population size from getting too large
kill weaker organisms and keep the population healthy

Front 12

What is the importance of parasites to a population of hosts?

Back 12

keep the population size from getting too large
kill weaker organisms and keep the population healthy

Front 13

the place an organism lives

Back 13

habitat

Front 14

the role an organism plays

Back 14

niche

Front 15

No two organisms can occupy the exact same what?

Back 15

niche

Front 16

Why can't two organisms occupy the same niche?

Back 16

competitive exclusion - they will compete until one wins and the other loses

Front 17

All the interactions of an organism with other organisms and their environment make up their what?

Back 17

niche

Front 18

What do we call factors that keep a population size down, and why are they important?

Back 18

limiting factors - keep a population from overgrowing and ruining their habitat

Front 19

What kind of population growth occurs when conditions are optimal (ideal)?

Back 19

exponential - J curve

Front 20

What are some examples of limiting factors?

Back 20

resources - food, water, space, nutrients, mates, disease, parasites...

Front 21

What would happen to a population that suddenly had a lot more available resources?

Back 21

population size would grow

Front 22

What would happen to a population that all of a sudden lost its resources?

Back 22

population size would shrink

Front 23

What is it called when a population of organisms dies out competely?

Back 23

extinction

Front 24

What is the biggest cause of extinction?

Back 24

habitat loss

Front 25

How are humans increasing extinction rates?

Back 25

using land (habitats) for other purposes - agriculture and housing, pollution, introduction of invasive organisms, climate change

Front 26

How does energy move in a food web?

Back 26

from source (usually the sun) to producer to primary consumer to secondary consumer and at each step to a decomposer

Front 27

Why must there be more producers than consumers?

Back 27

a consumer eats more than one producer

Front 28

Why is it important that nutrients like carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycle?

Back 28

We are not making new matter so it needs to be reused.

Front 29

living factors like plants, animals, bacteria, predators, prey and parasites

Back 29

biotic

Front 30

non-living factors like light, temperature, wind, and water

Back 30

abiotic

Front 31

all the members of one species in a given area

Back 31

population

Front 32

What are two methods of determining if two organisms belong to the same species?

Back 32

1. could they mate and have viable (live) offspring?
2. is their DNA similar enough?

Front 33

the maximum number of individuals that an ecosystem could support

Back 33

carrying capacity

Front 34

What are some other names for introduced or non-native species?

Back 34

invasive species
alien species
exotic species

Front 35

What is the proplem with non-native species in an ecosystem?

Back 35

They occupy the niche of a native species and cause it and others to go extinct, and they can easily overpopulate and ruin the ecosystem because they have no natural predators.

Front 36

What shape would show the most common relationship between the number of producers and consumers in an ecosystem?

Back 36

pyramid

Front 37

How much energy is generally passed from one level to the next in a typical food chain?

Back 37

10%

Front 38

What conditions would produce the most biodiversity?

Back 38

optimal - sunny, warm but not too hot, plenty of food and water, and a good ecosystem balance

Front 39

What happens if conditions move away from ideal or optimal?

Back 39

the less tolerant organisms would die first and then those organisms that depend on them would be threatened

Front 40

Where is most nitrogen found?

Back 40

as N2 gas in the atmosphere

Front 41

What process converts atmospheric nitrogen into a usable form for plants?

Back 41

nitrogen fixation

Front 42

How is nitrogen fixed?

Back 42

lightning, nitrogen fixing bacteria nodules on the roots of legumes, and some chemical reactions

Front 43

What type of plants have nitrogen-fixing bacteria on their roots?

Back 43

legumes - peas, peanuts, soybeans

Front 44

How do nitrogen-fixing bacteria and legumes help the soil?

Back 44

replace nitrogen not deplete it - reason for crop rotation

Front 45

What are the two biggest reactions in the CO2/O2 cycles?

Back 45

photosynthesis and respiration

Front 46

Give two reasons why the CO2 and O2 cycles are out of balance.

Back 46

fewer plants - less photosynthesis and more combustion of fuel in cars and factories - more CO2

Front 47

What is one problem caused by excess CO2 in the atmosphere?

Back 47

Climate change will change what plants can survive in an area; and without plants, animals can't survive.