Apes Unit 1

Community

all living organisms in an area

ecosystem

all living and nonliving things in an area (plants, animals, rocks, water, air, etc)

Biome

the plants and animals found in a given region (determined by climate)

Mutualism

relationship that benefits both organisms (coral reefs)

competition

organisms fighting over a resource like food/ shelter. Limits population sizes

predation

one organism using another for energy source

commentsalism

relationship that benefits one organism and doesn’t effect the other

Herbavors

eats plants for energy

true predators (carnivors)

kill and eat pray for energy

parasites

use host organisms for energy, often without killing the organism and often living in it

parasitoids

lays eggs inside a host organism; eggs hatch and larvae eat host for energy

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

temporal partitioning

using resource at different times such as wolves and coyotes hunting at different times of day

spatial partitioning

using different areas of a shared habitat

morphological partitioning

using different resources based on different envolved body species

Tropical rainforest

close to equator, nutrient poor soil (high competition due to high # of plant species)

Boreal Forest

nutrient poor soil (low temperature and low decomposition rate of dead organic matter)

Temperate Forest

nutrient rich soil (lots of dead organic matter + warm/ moist climate)

Salinity

How much salt there is in a body of water determines which species can survive and is usable for drinking

depth

influences how much sunlight can penetrate and reach plants below the surface for photosynthesis

flow

determines which plants and organisms can survive, how much oxygen can dissolve into water

temperature

warmer water holds less dissolved O2 so it can support less aquatic organisms

Rivers

High O2 due to flow mixing water and air, also carries nutrient rich sediments

lakes

standing bodies of freshwater (key drinking source)

Littoral zone

shallow water with emergent plants

Limnetic zone

where light can reach (photosynthesis)→ no rooted plants, only photoplankton

Profundal zone

Too deep for sunlight (no plants)

Benthic zone

murky bottoms where bugs lives, nutrient-rich sediments

wetland

area with soil submerged/ saturated in water for at least part of the year, but shallow enough for emergent plants

Coral Reef

warm shallow waters beyond the shoreline; most diverse ocean biome on earth; coral takes CO2 out of the ocean to create calcium carbonate exoskeleton (the reef) and also provide CO2 to the algae

Intertidal zones

narrow band of coastline between high and low tide; organisms must be adapted to crashing waves and sunlight during low tide

Open ocean

low productivity area as only phytoplankton can survive in most of the ocean

Photic zone

area where sunlight can reach

Aphotic Zone (abyssal)

area too deep for sunlight

Carbon Cycle

the movement on molecules that contain carbon (CO2, glucose, CH4) between sources an sinks

Carbon sink

reservoir that takes in more carbon than it releases (like the atmosphere, leading to global warming

Carbon source

reservoir that releases more carbon than it takes in (fossil fuel combustion, deforestation, cows)

Plants algae and phytoplankton in the carbon cycle

removes CO2 from the atmosphere and converts it to glucose

animals in the carbon cycle

Uses CO2 to break glucose down and release energy and CO2 back into the atmosphere

direct exchange

CO2 moves directly between the atmosphere and the ocean by dissolving into and out of the water at the surface ocean and atmosphere

sedimentation

calcium carbonate precipitates out as sediment and settles on the ocean floor`

Burial

over a long period of time the pressure of water compresses carbon containing sediments into the ocean floor into sedimentary stone (limestone, sandstone→long term reservoir)

extraction and combustion

digging up or mining fossil fuels and burning them as an energy source, releases CO2

Assimilation (phosphorus)

Phosphorus is absorbed by plant roots & assimilate into tissues; animals assimilate Phosphorus by eating plants or other animals

Nitrogen cycle

Movement of N containing molecules between sources and sinks/resevoirs

nitrogen sinks

take nitrogen out of the atmosphere at increasing rates

Nitrogen sources

release nitrogen into the atmosphere

Nitrogen Reservoirs

Hold nitrogen for a relatively short amount of time (compared to carbon)

Nitrogen Fixation

Process of N2 gas being converted into biologically available NH3 (ammonia) or NO3 (nitrate)

Bacterial fixation

certain bacteria that live in the soil, or in a symbiotic relationship with plant root molecules convert N2 to ammonia (NH3)

Synthetic fixation

fossil fuel combustion converts N2 into ammonia (NH3)

Assimilation (Nitrogen)

plants & animals taking nitrogen in and incorporating it into their body. Plant roots take in NO3 - or NH3 from soil; animals assimilate Nitrogen by eating plants or other animals

Ammonification

soil bacteria, microbes & decomposers converting waste & dead biomass back into NH3 and returning it to soil

Nitrification

conversion of NH4 into nitrite (NO2) & then nitrate (NO3 ) by soil bacteria

Denitrification

conversion of soil Nitrogen (NO3) into nitrous oxide (N2O) gas which returns to atmosphere

N2O (nitrous oxide)

Greenhouse gases, which warm the Earth’s climate. Produced by denitrification of nitrate in agricultural soils (especially when waterlogged/overwatered)

Ammonia volatilization

Excess fertilizer use can lead to NH3 gas entering atmosphere. NH3 gas in atmosphere causes respiratory irritation in humans & animals.

Leaching & Eutrophication

Synthetic fertilizer use leads to nitrates (NO3) leaching, or being carried out of the soil by water. Nitrates run off into local waters, causing algae blooms that block the sun & kill other aquatic plants

Phosphorus Cycle

Movement of Phosphorus atoms & molecules between sources & sinks/reservoirs

Rocks & sediments containing Phosphorus mineral

major reservoirs in the phosphorus cycle

Synthetic source of Phosphorus

mining phosphate minerals & adding to products like synthetic fertilizers & detergents/cleaners

Excretion/ decomposition

Animal waste, plant matter & other biomass is broken down by bacteria/soil decomposers that return phosphate to soil

sedimentation (phosphorus)

Phosphate doesn’t dissolve very well into water; much of it forms solid bits of phosphate that fall to the bottom as sediment; sediments can be compressed into sedimentary rock over long time periods by pressure of overlying water

Geological uplift

tectonic plate collision forcing up rock layers that form mountains; Phosphorus cycle can start over again with weathering & release of phosphate from rock

Primary Productivity

The rate at which solar energy is converted into organic compounds via photosynthesis over a unit of time (rate of photosynthesis of all producers in an area over a given period of time)

High Primary Productivity

high plant growth, lots of food & shelter for animals, usually more biodivers

Net primary Productivity (NPP)

The amount of energy (biomass) leftover for consumers after plants have used some for respiratio

Respiration loss (RL)

Energy plants used during cell respiration or other activities.

Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)

The total amount of sun energy (light) that plants capture and convert to energy (glucose) through photosynthesis

Calculation for Net Primary Productivity

Net primary productivity= gross primary productivity- Respiration loss

Low H2O, nutrients, and tempatures

factors that can decrease net primary productivity

Conservation of Matter & Energy

Matter & energy are never created or destroyed; they only change forms

2nd Law of Thermodynamic

Each time energy is transferred, some of it is lost as heat

10% rule

in trophic pyramids, only about 10% of the energy from one level makes it to the next level; the other 90% is used by the organism & lost as heat

Tertiary Consumer

animals that eat secondary consumers or carnivores &omnivores (aka-top/apex predators)

secondary consumers

animals that eat primary consumers or herbivores (aka - carnivores & omnivores)

primary consumers

animals that eat plants (herbivores)

producers (plants)

“produce”-really convert sun’s light energy into chemical energy (glucose)

Food webs

Shows how matter & energy flow through an ecosystem, from organisms to organism

Arrows in a food web

indicates direction of energy flow (points to the organism taking in the energy

Food chain

show one linear path of energy & matter

Trophic cascade

removal or addition of a top predator has a ripple effect down through lower trophic Levels