Exam 1 (General Ecology BIOL 211)

Why are greenhouse gases important?

keep earth warm and make it habitable

What are 2 examples of greenhouse gases?

CO2
CFC

What is the greenhouse effect/process?

some solar energy gets reflected back up, some is absorbed
some heat absorbed gets radiated back out
some escapes in to earth, some gets absorbed by clouds
clouds radiate some back to earth
all this traps heat in earth

Why are CFCs so harmful to the climate?

long lasting chemical
damages ozone

How does CO2 effect the air climate?

human acitivity makes more CO2
CO2 raises temp

How does CO2 effect water climate?

more CO2 dissolves in ocean
form bicarbonate and hydrogen ions
lowers pH of ocean

How does temp increase effect sea-level and how does it do this?

causes sea levels to rise
water molecules expand in heat

How does rising temperature effect weather events?

more extreme weather events
more high temps in day than low temps

What are 3 effects of climate change on species?

geographic range changes
accelerated extinctions
harmful to human health and economy

What is an example of how climate change effects human health?

extreme heat can lead to cardiovascular failure

What are a few landscape features that affect/create a microclimate?

vegetation
substrate color/type
presence of boulders

What sort of vegetation/features creates a cool microclimate?

cool under big shrubs
even cooler under leaf litter

What are important abiotic features of an aquatic environment?

temp
light levels
water movement

What is the purpose of an organismal response?

it helps regulate body temp

What is the only mechanism in an organismal response that can only be lost and not gained and give its symbol and give an example of how this happens?

evaporative heat loss
He
sweating

What is the only mechanism in an organismal response that can only be gained and not lost and give its symbol and give an example of how this happens?

metabolic heat
Hm
cellular respiration

What is Hcd in the organismal response and can it be gained and/or lost and give example?

conduction heat
gained and lost
transfer of heat between solid surfaces in contact

What is Hcv in the organismal response and can it be gained and/or lost and give example?

convective heat
gained and lost
transfer of heat between a solid object and moving fluid

What is Hr in the organismal response and can it be gained and/or lost and give example?

radiative heat
gained or lost
the sun or any object warmer than body

Using a cactus as an example, give 2 ways it can regulate temp and water?

has a stored water supply
has lots of white spines to reflect heat

Are temp and water regulation linked?

yes

What are 3 ways, not using the cactus example, that things can use to regulate temp?

posture
micro climate
water capture

What is the principle of allocation?

energy is limiting and must be allocated with priorities

What are 4 major things we allocate our energy to?

survival
maintenance
growth
reproduction

What is survival in the context of the principle of allocation?

basic things to keep you alive like keeping heart beating, bare minimum food and water in take

What is maintenance in the context of the principle of allocation?

eating enough food to be healthy
giving energy to repair body

In what abiotic range do organisms perform best?

a narrow abiotic range

What is phenotypic plasticity?

same genotype expressing a diff phenotype

What is the phenotypic plasticity hypothesis?

performance change not due to gene change but to adapting to environment

What is the local adaption hypothesis?

performance change due to an evolution in genes

What are 2 experiments that could be used to distinguish between the 2 hypothesis?

transplant study
common garden study

What is a transplant study example?

taking eggs where mother grew up in a cold environment and rearing them in hot environment and vice versa

What is a common garden study example?

taking eggs from hot and cold environment and rearing them in the same environment

What are 3 things that limit energy intake?

internal contraints
search time
handling time

There are 3 types of performance curves, what are characteristics of the type 1 curve?

does not take into account handling time

There are 3 types of performance curves, what are characteristics of the type 2 curve?

takes into account handling time
most common curve we see

There are 3 types of performance curves, what are characteristics of the type 3 curve?

takes into account if there is prey switching or hiding
would not expect specialists to have this type

What is something that can pull a performance curve down?

having a longer handling time

What is one thing that indicates good fitness in terms of allocation of energy?

having energy to allocate towards reproduction

What is the optimal foraging theory?

assumes individuals forage to optimize things like energy/amount of food
evolution of foraging behavior

What is the general approach when assessing optimal foraging of a species?

make observations
develop a model
generate quantitative predictions
test predictions
asses fit of data to model