Ecology and Population Management Flashcards

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering food chains, trophic levels, ecological succession, population estimation techniques, pyramids of energy/biomass, invasive species management, and population growth dynamics.

Producer (autotrophs)

Organisms that produce their own food using photosynthesis, converting solar energy into chemical energy.

Primary Consumer

Herbivores that feed on producers and transfer chemical energy from plants to the next trophic level.

Secondary Consumer

Carnivores or omnivores that eat primary consumers (herbivores).

Tertiary Consumer

The top predator in an ecosystem that feeds on other consumers.

10% Rule

The principle that only an average of $10\%$ of energy is transferred to the next trophic level, while $90\%$ is lost through movement, heat, and waste.

Primary Succession

The process of colonization occurring after a major event (like a volcanic eruption or tsunami) that leaves an area bare with no organisms.

Nudation

The state of an area being bare and lacking any inhabiting organisms before succession begins.

Secondary Succession

The recovery of an ecosystem after a disturbance (like fire or flooding) where the soil and some organisms remain.

Seral stage development

A stage in succession where shrubs, grasses, and young trees outcompete early colonizers, increasing biodiversity and structure.

r-selected species

Opportunistic species characterized by shorter lifespans, high reproductive rates, and minimal parental care that rapidly colonize unstable environments.

K-selected species

Species in stable environments that live longer, breed later in life, have fewer offspring, and provide significant parental care.

Trap Happy

A condition in mark-recapture where animals are more likely to be caught again, leading to a higher number of recaptures ($m$) and an underestimate of the total population ($n$).

Trap Shy

A condition in mark-recapture where animals avoid being caught again, resulting in a higher estimate of the total population ($n$).

Pyramid of Energy

A diagram illustrating the flow of energy through trophic levels, showing how energy decreases moving up the food chain due to the $10\%$ rule.

Pyramid of Numbers

A diagram representing the count of individual organisms at each stage of a food chain; it can be inverted if a single producer supports many consumers.

Pyramid of Biomass

A representation of the total living matter present at each trophic level; it is inverted when the biomass of consumers exceeds that of producers.

Invasive Species

Introduced species that establish a population in a new area where they lack native predators, often causing detrimental effects on native biodiversity.

1080 baits

Pesticides made from a poisonous compound in native plants used to kill invasive mammals; native animals can safely eat small amounts due to co-evolution.

Biological Control

The management of introduced species using biological agents such as general predators, specialized predators, microbial diseases, or parasites.

Dry Land Salinity

The transport of underground salts to the surface by a rising water table, primarily caused by the removal of deep-rooted native vegetation.

Quadrat

A square frame placed randomly on the ground to count individuals of a species to estimate total population size.

Open Ecosystem

A population environment where individuals can migrate (immigrate or emigrate), affecting the overall population size along with birth and death rates.

Population Growth Formula

$$\text{Growth} = (\text{birth rate} + \text{immigration rate}) - (\text{death rate} + \text{emigration rate})$$

Abiotic Effects

Non-living factors such as sunlight, temperature, and water that dictate energy bases, metabolic rates, and population limits.

Transect

A line drawn through a community to record organisms at set intervals to determine species distribution and environmental gradients.

Environmental Gradients

Gradual changes in biological communities caused by varying abiotic conditions along the length of a transect.