Environmental Bio Final Flashcards

Environmental Science

study of how the natural world works, how the environment affects us, and how we affect the environment

Environmental Systems

earth is a series of systems, each with their own inputs, outputs, and efficiencies

Inputs

water, sunlight, soil, climate

Outputs

animals, plants, recreation, aesthetics

Where does most energy come from?

the sun

Biomass

total amount of living tissue among all organisms in an ecosystem

How are humans affecting the inputs, productivity, or outputs of Chesapeake Bay?

removal of too many oysters using destructive methods and putting too much nitrogen and phosphorous into the bay

Keystone species

particular sepcies that support an entire ecosystem with their behaviors

Watershed

the area of land mass that drains into a body of water

Eutrophication

an excess of nutrients in a body of water that causes explosive plant/algae growth, leading to a lack of oxygen in the water

Where is the excess nitrogen and phosphorous in Chesapeake Bay coming from?

agriculture, atmospheric deposition, urban fertilizer runoff, industrial wastewater

Biogeochemical Cycles

the natural exchange of elements between different reservoirs and environmental systems

Ecology

study of how organisms interact with each other and the environment

Species

group of organisms that can interbreed; individuals are not identical, with some variation in anatomy and physiology.

Population

group of the same species inhabiting a particular area

Community

all the different species inhabiting a particular area

Specialist

species that can only utilize a narrow range of resources/habitats, but is very efficient

Generalist

species that can utilize a wide range of resources/habitats, but is not as efficient

Mutualism

when species cooperate for mutual benefit

Antagonism

when one species is actively detrimental to another

Predation

any time an organism eats another organism

Niche Partitioning

result of competitive exclusion where different sepcies end up utilizing resources in different ways to avoid competition

Competitive Exclusion

two species competing for the exact same, limited resources cannot stably coexist

Extinction

when a population declines until no individuals are left

Carrying Capacity

maximum population size that can be supported by an ecosystem

Primary Producer

species that capture energy from the primary source and is the foundation food source in an ecosystem

Autotroph

organisms that capture carbon/energy from inorganic sources

Heterotroph

organisms that capture carbon/energy from organic sources

Trophic Level

relative position of an organisms in a food web

Biodiversity

the number of species in an area

Conservation Science

study of biodiversity, including evaluation, monitoring, and preservation

Hotspot

small area containing many different species

What is the value of biodiversity

use, existence, option, aesthetic, scientific, education, and cultural

What are major threats to biodiversity?

Exploitation, habitat degradation, and habitat loss

Bottlenecking

specific event can greatly reduce genetic diversity in populations

Conservation Tools

education, legal protection and enforcement, habitat protection, habitat restoration

Sustainability

path to using natural resources to enrich the lives of humans, but doing so in a way that doesn’t destroy the Earth’s capacity to support future humans

Free Market

economic system in which prices are determined by unrestricted competition for educated consumers among privately owned businesses

What do free markets have?

Educated consumer, unrestricted competition, privately-owned businesses

What causes market failure?

costs and benefits are not properly accounted for by sellers, consumers, or policy makers, consumers do not understand their choices, and no consumer choice (no competition)

External Costs

costs of an exchange not borne by the buyer or seller

Policy

formal plans, principles, and/or laws used to guide decision making

Subsidy

policy that incentivizes an economic activity or behavior by giving away resources