Communities and Ecosystems

Describe community:

Populations living and interacting with each other

Describe what interspecific means:

Relationships that occur between species

Describe and provide example for herbivory:

Primary consumer (herbivore) feeding on producer (plant); white tailed deer eating clover

Describe and provide example for predation:

Consumer feeding on another consumer; canadian lynx and snowshoe hare

Describe and provide example for interspecific competition:

Members of specific species compete for resources; white tailed deer and cottontail rabbit both eat clover

Describe and provide example for parasitism:

one organism feeds on or off of another and does harm to the other; tapeworm in cow intestines

Describe and provide example for pathogenicity:

microorganism capable of causing disease in its host; influenza virus, candida fungi

Describe and provide example for mutualism:

two species living together that both benefit from; bees and flowering plants

Describe the mutualistic relationship between zooxanthellae and coral:

coral provides fungi with location to grow, zooxanthellae provide coral with food to make calcium carbonate

Describe the mutualistic relationship between root nodules and legumes:

bacteria provides legumes with nitrates by converting atmospheric nitrogen into compounds usable to plants, legumes provide bacteria with organic compounds

Describe the mutualistic relationship between fungi and orchids:

fungi provides orchid roots with nutrients

Describe invasive species:

any plant, animal, or microorganism that is introduced to an ecosystem outside its native range and has potential to cause harm

Outline why invasive species become problematic:

Lack natural predators, Little competition, Rapidly spread, Harm endemic species, Reduces native biodiversity

Describe an animal example of an invasive species:

burmese python in Florida everglades, eats mammals, birds, reptiles

Describe an plant example of an invasive species:

kudzu, intentional human introduction, decreases soil erosion, fast growth and covers other plant species

Describe the purpose of Chi Squared:

shows associations between species

State the confidence level (p value) used in biology Chi squared:

95%

State when to reject the null hypothesis in Chi squared (answer should include information on relationship between Chi Squared Value and critical value):

if the calculated Chi squared value is higher than critical value

Distinguish between top down and bottom up factors in communities:

top-down factors are controlled by consumers and predators, bottom-up factors are availability of resources at lower trophic levels

Describe allelopathy in plants:

the release of chemical inhibitors by plant, preventing growth of competitors

Describe the use of antibiotics by some plants:

kill off bacteria in the soil around them preventing disease

Describe ecological succession:

progression in communities over time

Describe climax community:

succession has ended and most stable ecosystem for biome conditions had been reached

Distinguish primary and secondary succession, then provide an example of each:

primary succession starts on lifeless new land, secondary succession starts on existing soil affected by disturbance

Describe ecosystems:

multiple communities interacting with their nonliving environment

Describe what an open system means which reference to an ecosystem:

open system takes into account abiotic factors, involved the transfer of energy and nutrients

Describe an autotroph:

autotrophs synthesis organic molecules from simple inorganic substances in the environment

Describe a heterotroph:

obtains organic molecules from other organisms

Distinguish between a saprotroph and detritivore:

detritivores are organisms that ingest non-living organisms, saprotrophs secrete digestive enzymes and absorb decaying organic matter

Describe a mixotroph:

organisms that are able to both create their own food and gain energy from other organisms