Ecosystem Services and Island Biogeography

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts related to ecosystem services, island biogeography, and the impacts of natural disruptions on ecosystems.

Intrinsic Value

Ecosystems are valuable independent of any benefit to humans.

Instrumental Value

The worth of ecosystems as instruments or tools, like for crops or pharmaceuticals.

Ecosystem Services

The benefits provided by ecosystems, which can be classified into four main categories.

Provisions

Goods produced by ecosystems that humans can use directly, such as lumber, furs, and medicinal plants.

Regulating Services

Natural ecosystems help in regulating environmental conditions, such as carbon removal.

Cultural Services

Awe-inspiring beauty provided by ecosystems, often experienced in parks versus urban areas.

Support Services

Essential ecological functions such as pollination and water filtration.

Anthropogenic Activities

Human-induced actions that can disrupt ecosystem services.

Island Biogeography

The study of ecological relationships and distribution of organisms on islands.

Founder Effect

Changes in a population that descend from a small number of colonizing individuals leading to reduced genetic variation.

Habitat Fragmentation

The splitting of habitats into smaller, isolated fragments due to human activities, affecting species.

Resistance

A measure of how much disruption can affect the flows of energy and matter in an ecosystem.

Resilience

The rate at which an ecosystem returns to its original state after a disruption.

Interglacial Period

Warm periods between ice ages where glaciers retreat and sea levels rise.

Migration

Seasonal movement of animals from one habitat to another in response to environmental changes.

Adaptive Response

Change in behavior or movement of wildlife in reaction to seasonal or geographic shifts in resources.