1/22
Flashcards based on lecture notes about Ecology and Environmental Science, covering topics from basic definitions to energy flow in ecosystems.
Name | Mastery | Learn | Test | Matching | Spaced |
---|
No study sessions yet.
Ecology
The study of the interactions of living organisms with one another and with their nonliving environment of matter and energy.
Inference
A logical conclusion that is based on observations or prior knowledge but that has not been scientifically tested.
Scientific Method
A systematic method used in scientific investigations of the natural world, which includes designing and carrying out controlled experiments to test hypotheses.
Observational Study
A scientific study in which the scientist attempts to gain scientific information by observing natural phenomena without interfering with the normal order of the environment.
Quantitative
Referring to quantities or numerical data.
Qualitative
Referring to qualities or non-numerical data.
Risk-benefit analysis
A method used to analyze the potential negative impacts of a project against the potential positive economic and social benefits.
Biosphere
The part of Earth inhabited by plants and animals, encompassing all communities of living things on Earth.
Biome
A large area of Earth characterized by distinctive climate and soil conditions with a biological community adapted to those conditions.
Population
A group of individuals of the same species living in a particular geographic area at the same time.
Habitat
The place or type of environment where an organism or a population of organisms lives.
Community
Populations of all species living in a particular area at a particular time.
Biotic
Referring to the living organisms and their products in an ecosystem.
Abiotic
Referring to the nonliving components of an ecosystem.
Ecosystem
A community of different species interacting with one another and with the abiotic environment.
Chemotroph
A producer that converts the energy found in organic chemical compounds into other forms of energy without the use of sunlight.
Exotic Species
A species that has migrated to or has been introduced by humans to a geographic area.
Indicator Species
A species sensitive to small changes in environmental conditions, used to indirectly monitor the health of the environment.
Keystone Species
A species that is critically important to the balance and survival of the particular ecosystem in which it lives.
Energy Flow
The one-way transfer of energy within an ecosystem.
Trophic Level
A step in the transfer of matter and energy along a food chain or through a food web; each organism is assigned to a level based on its primary source of food.
Energy Pyramid
A model that illustrates energy flow from producers at the beginning of food chains to consumers farther along.
Pyramid of Numbers
A model that illustrates the number of organisms of a particular type that can be supported at each trophic level.