BIO150 Exam 5 Vocabulary Practice

A set of vocabulary flashcards based on the BIO150 Exam 5 Study Guide covering behavior, population ecology, community interactions, and ecosystem dynamics.

Levels of Biological Organization (Ecologist Scale)

organisms, populations, communities, and ecosystems.

Proximate Mechanisms

The immediate, mechanistic causes of a behavior, such as hormonal, neural, or developmental processes.

Ultimate Mechanisms

The evolutionary reasons for a behavior, explaining why it evolved in terms of its contribution to survival and reproduction.

Condition-dependent behavior

A behavior that is expressed differently based on an individual's state or environmental context; it can be under genetic control while remaining flexible.

Cognition

A complex level of mental processing that involves awareness, reasoning, recollection, and judgment, going beyond simple learning.

Honest Communication

Signals that provide accurate information to the receiver, maintained in a population when it is beneficial for both the sender and receiver.

Kin Selection

A form of natural selection where individuals help relatives, increasing the survival of shared genes and allowing altruistic behaviors to persist.

Population Growth Equation

$I + B = D + E$, where $I$ is immigration, $B$ is births, $D$ is deaths, and $E$ is emigration.

Demography

The study of the vital statistics of a population, such as its age structure, which helps researchers understand how the population size changes over time.

Survivorship Curve

A graph showing the number or proportion of individuals surviving to each age for a given species or group (e.g., humans, beavers, or rabbits).

Semelparity

A life history strategy characterized by a single reproductive episode before death.

Iteroparity

A life history strategy characterized by multiple reproductive cycles over the course of a lifetime.

Carrying Capacity

Represented by the symbol $K$, it is the maximum number of individuals of a population that a particular environment can support.

Interference Competition

A type of competition where individuals interact directly through physical force or intimidation to prevent others from using a resource.

Exploitation Competition

A type of indirect competition where organisms consume the same limited resources, thereby depleting them for others.

Fundamental Niche

The entire range of environmental conditions and resources a species could potentially occupy and use in the absence of competition or predation.

Realized Niche

The actual set of conditions and resources a species uses after accounting for interactions like competition and predation.

Müllerian Mimicry

A form of mimicry where two or more harmful or unpalatable species resemble each other, providing mutual protection.

Batesian Mimicry

A form of mimicry where a harmless or palatable species resembles a harmful or unpalatable one to avoid being eaten.

Succession

The predictable process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time.

Resistance

A measure of how much a community is affected by a specific disturbance.

Resilience

A measure of how quickly a community returns to its original state after a disturbance.

Productivity

The rate of generation of biomass in an ecosystem, often measured as Net Primary Productivity (NPP).

Autotroph

An organism that produces organic molecules from inorganic sources, forming the base of a food chain (e.g., plants).

Heterotroph

An organism that obtains energy and nutrients by consuming other organisms (e.g., consumers).

Pyramid of Productivity

A graphical representation showing that energy decreases at each higher trophic level due to inefficiency in energy transfer.

Nitrogen Fixing

The conversion of atmospheric nitrogen ($N_{2}$) into biologically available forms like ammonia ($NH_{3}$).

Dead Zones

Low-oxygen (hypoxic) areas in oceans or large lakes caused by excessive nutrient pollution, which kills marine life.

Habitat Fragmentation

The process by which large, continuous habitats are divided into smaller, isolated patches, impacting species survival.

Edge Effects

The distinct environmental conditions (such as different microclimates or increased predation) that occur at the boundaries of fragmented habitats.

Biodiversity Hotspots

Relatively small geographic areas with high species richness and high concentrations of endemic species that are under threat.