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community
all living organisms in one area
population
group of individuals of same species (elk herd)
ecosystem
all living and nonliving things in an area (plants, animals, rocks, soil, water, air)
biome
the plants and animals found in a given region (determined by climate); determining factors are precipitation, temp, and latitude
competition
organisms fighting over a resource like food or shelter; limits pop. size
predation
one organism using another for energy source (hunters, parasites)
mutualism
relationship that benefits both organisms
commensalism
relationship that benefits one organism and doesn’t impact the other (birds nest in trees)
symbiosis
any close and long-term interaction between two organisms of different species
resource partitioning
different species using the same resource in different ways to reduce competition
tropical rainforest
closer to equator, nutrient-poor soil (high temp and rainfall - rapid decomp of org matter; acidic soil + high rainfall - nutrient leaching)
temperial
using different times- wolves/coyotes, night/day
boreal forest
higher lat (60°+), nutrient-poor soil (low temp & low decomp rate of dead org matter)
morphological partitioning
using different resources based on different evolved body features
spatial partitioning
using different areas of a shared habitat (different length roots)
temperate forest
mid lat (30°-60°), nutrient-rich soil (lots of dead org matter - leaves & warm temp/moisture for decomposition)
salinity
how much salt there is in a body of water, determines which species can survive & usability for drinking
littoral
shallow water w emergent plants
limnetic
where light can reach (photosynthesis), no rooted plants, only phytoplankton
profundal
too deep for sunlight, no photosynthesis
benthic
murky bottom where inverts (bugs) live, nutrient-rich sediments
wetland
area w soil submerged/saturated in water for at least part of the yr but shallow enough for emergent plants
estuaries
areas where rivers empty into ocean, mix of fresh n salt, high productivity (mangrove swamp, salt marsh)
intertidal zone
narrow band of coastline bw high and low tide, diff organisms adapt to living in diff zones
photic zone
area where sunlight can reach
carbon sink
reservoir that takes in more carbon than it releases (ocean, plants, soil)
carbon source
reservoir that releases more carbon than it takes in (fossil fuel combustion, animal agriculture, deforestation)
combustion
digging up or mining FFs and burning them as energy source, released CO2 into atm
sedimentation
calcium carbonate precipitates out as sediments and settles on ocean floor
burial of carbon
over long periods of time, pressure of water compresses C-containing sediments on ocean floor into sedimentary rock (limestone, sandstone, long-term C reservoir)
nitrogen reservoir
holds N for shorter period of time compared to C cycle; plants, soil, atm
nitrogen fixation
process of N2 gas being converted into biologically available NH3 (ammonia) or NO3- (nitrate)
assimilation
plants and animals taking N in and incorporating it into their biomass
ammonification
soil bacteria, microbes, and decomposers converting waste and dead biomass into NH3 and returning it to soil
nitrification
conversion of NH4 (ammonium) into nitrite (NO2-) and then nitrate (NO3-) by soil bacteria
denitrification
conversion of soil N (NO3-) into nitrous oxide (N2O) gas which returns to the atm
leaching
being carried out of soil by water
eutrophication
synthetic fertilizer use leads to nitrates leaching
phosphorus sinks
rocks, soil, sediments, ocean
phosphorus reservoirs
rocks, phosphorus-containing sediments
assimilation (phosphorus)
plants and animals taking in P and incorporating it into their biomass (plants through roots, animals through consumption)
sedimentation (phosphorus)
phosphate doesn’t dissolve well into water; much of it forms solid bits of phosphate that fall to the bottom as sediment
geological uplift
tectonic plate collision forcing up rock layers that form mountains (allows for weathering, phosphorus cycle restarts)
evaporation
water gains enough energy to go from the liquid to gaseous state
transpiration
process by which plants lose water vapor through tiny holes called stomata on the underside of their leaves
evapotranspiration
sum of evaporation and plant transpiration from earth’s surface to the atm
precipitation
rain, sleet, snow, hail, and other forms of water falling from the sky
infiltration
process of water on the ground surface entering the soil
permeable
the ability of a material to allow the passage of a liquid, such as water
primary productivity
rate that solar energy is converted into organic compounds via photosynthesis over a unit of time (kcal/m²/yr)
gross primary productivity
the total amount of sun energy that plants capture and convert to energy through photosynthesis
net primary productivity
the amt of energy (biomass) leftover for consumers after plants have used some for respiration
respiration loss
plants use up some of the energy they generate via photosynthesis by doing cellular respiration (movement, internal transportation, etc)
ecological efficiency
the portion of incoming solar energy that is captured by plants and converted into biomass, only 1% of incoming sunlight is captured and converted into GPP and 40% of the 1% remains as NPP
1st law of thermodynamics
energy is never created or destroyed
2nd law of thermodynamics
each time energy is transferred, some is lost as heat
10% rule
in trophic pyramids, only about 10% of the energy from one level makes it to the next level (other 90% is used by organism and lost as heat)
producers
(plants) “produce” - convert sun’s light energy into chemical energy (glucose)
primary consumers
animals that eat plants (herbivores)
secondary consumers
animals that eat primary consumers or herbivores (aka carnivores and omnivores)
tertiary consumers
animals that eat secondary consumers or carnivores and omnivores (aka top/apex predators)
food web
shows how matter and energy flow through an ecosystem, from organism to organism
food chain
show one, linear path of energy and matter
trophic cascade
removal or addition of a top predator has a ripple effect down through lower trophic levels
water reservoir
oceans, ice caps, groundwater reserves