Ecology

ecology

the study of living (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) parts of the environment and how they interact

abiotic

rocks, water, sunlight, air, etc

biotic

plants, fungi, animals, bacteria, etc

biotic interactions

between organisms of the same species and between different species

abiotic interactions

between organisms and their environment; water, sunlight, temps, etc. Interactions can be harmful or beneficial

goal of ecology

understand the interactions to conserve biodiversity (variety of living organisms)

organism

an individual living thing

population

a group of members from the same species

community

two or more different populations living in the same area

ecosystem

all biotic and abiotic parts of the local environment

biome

many ecosystems in a large area that share the same climate

biosphere

the global collection of all biomes

carnivore

eat only animals/meat

herbivore

eat only plants

omnivore

eat both plants and animals

food web

shows all possible predator-prey interactions in an ecosystem

mutualism

organisms interact in a way where both benefit

commensalism

organisms interact in a way where one benefits and the other is neither harmed nor benefited

parasitism

organisms interact in a way where one is benefitting and the other is being harmed

producers

capture solar energy and convert it to chemical energy

consumers

eat producers and absorb/use their energy

decomposers

will eat all other organisms after they’re dead and absorb their energy

trophic level

each group of organisms that have the same ecological function in a food chain.

producers in the pyramid

the bottom level, they hold the most energy

primary consumers

eat producers. 2nd level, hold less energy

secondary consumers

eat other consumers/producers. 3rd level. Hold less energy

tertiary consumers

eat other consumers. They hold the least amount of energy

niche

same thing as a trophic level. It is an organism’s role in the environment

10% rule

when organisms convert energy 90% is lost as heat. That means they only absorb 10% of the energy

biodiversity

the variety of organisms in a specific area

high energy

high biodiversity

more nutrients

more biodiversity

many habitats

high biodiversity

warm/wet climate

more biodiversity

archaebacteria

extremophile, unicellular prokaryotes, live in high temps, low pH (acidic), and highly saline environments

eubacteria

prokaryotes and unicellular. Normal bacteria you encounter daily (scientists genetically engineer bacteria to produce substances we need) antibiotics, vaccines, ethanol, gene therapy, clean oil spills

protista

eukaryotic organisms that AREN’T plants, animals, or fungi. Uni and multicellular. Reproduce sexually and asexually. Examples: algae, amoebas, slime molds. Used as food additives. Agar is largely algae based.

fungi

eukaryotic organisms that absorb nutrients from dead organic matter. also used as food

Chitin

a tough carbohydrate found in fungi’s cell walls

Hyphae

long threads that make up a fungi’s physical form

lichen

a symbiotic relationship with algae and fungi. Lichen break down rock to create soil

plantae

eukaryotic organisms that use photosynthesis to make food. All multicellular, almost all autotrophic, cell walls made of cellulose

Cuticle

a waxy coating on leaves to prevent water loss.

Flowers

special reproductive structures only found in plants known as angiosperms.

Animalia

eukaryotic organisms that must eat other organisms for energy. All multicellular, all heterotrophic, no cell walls.

Invertebrates

animals with no backbone ; insects, octopuses, worms, arachnids. They have exoskeletons

vertebrate

animals with a backbone ; humans, dogs, whales, lizards. Have endoskeletons

Viruses

not considered living, no organelles or cellular structure. Can’t reproduce on their own, can’t grow, have no metabolism. made of only DNA or RNA.

capsid

protein coat on viruses

retrovirus

has only RNA. Mutates rapidly and evolves quickly. HIV is an example

Zoonotic virus

A virus that originates in animals and “jumps” to humans

Lytic replication

viruses that rapidly reproduce within a host cell, leading to its destruction.

lysogenic replication

a process where a virus incorporates its genetic material into its host cell’s genome.

climate

a long term weather condition in a region

terrestrial biome

land based biome

tropical

near the equator, a lot of direct sunlight. Stable climate either hot/wet (rainforest) most of the year or hot/dry (desert)

Temperate

between 30 degrees and 60 degrees north or south of the equator. Wide range of temperatures → 4 seasons. Can be deserts grasslands or forests

High latitude

between 60 degrees and 90 degrees north or south of the equator or high altitude. cold temperatures

taiga

cold/wet coniferous (pine) forests

tundra

little rain, small plants only (no trees)

permafrost

cold frozen soil. Found in the tundra

sustainability

all living things require food, habitat, water, etc. If resources are limited in an ecosystem, populations may not continue growing

carrying capacity (k)

the largest population an ecosystem can support

exponential growth

when resources are abundant, populations may double every generation

logistic growth

when resources are limited, populations will balance at the carrying capacity

finite resources

resources that are limited

human carrying capacity

11 billion people

invasive species

one that is not native to a region. Can upset the balance in a food web. They out-compete native species and can lead to the extinction of native species

keystone species

regulates the populations of several other species → if it is removed, an ecosystem may collapsegree

greenhouse effect

gases like CO2, methane, and water vapor absorb and reflect the sun’s energy… trapping some of it on earth. leads to global warming