IB Biology - Ecology

Anaerobic organisms

occur in the absence of oxygen or do not require oxygen to live. For example, anaerobic bacteria produce energy from food molecules without the presence of oxygen.

Autotrophs

organisms that use solar energy or chemical energy to manufacture the organic compounds they need as nutrients from simple inorganic compounds obtained from their environment.

Biomass

the total mass of living matter within a given unit of environmental area.

Limestone

• a sedimentary rock consisting mainly of calcium carbonate

• remains of marine animals or chemically precipitated from the sea.

Peat

• type of organic soil made up of partially decomposed plant material.

• found in wetland areas and is formed over thousands of years.

• high carbon content and is often used as a fuel source.

Waterlogged soil

a soil that is soaked or saturated with water.

Combustion

A rapid reaction between oxygen and fuel that results in energy

Oil & Gas formation

dead sea organisms are buried under layers of sediment. heat and high pressure turns the organic material into oil.

Carbohydrates

• important source for fuel and energy for animals

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

a colourless, odorless gas present in the atmosphere and formed during respiration,

Carbon flux

the flow of carbon from one carbon pool to another.

Cell respiration

cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy, carbon dioxide, and water.

Fossilised organic matter

when remains of organisms of a past geologic age have been preserved in a fossil form.

Gigatone

equivalent to a one billion tonnes.

Methane (CH4)

an odourless, colourless, flammable gas. It is the major constituent of natural gas, which is used as a fuel, and is an important source of hydrogen and a wide variety of organic compounds.

Coal formation

prehistoric plants (TERRESTRIAL) buried undecomposed in oxygen-depleted water of swamps/bogs converted by heat and pressure.

Aerosol

a collection of tiny solid or liquid particles in the atmosphere that can come from natural sources (such as wildfires) or people's activities (such as burning fossil fuels). Some aerosols make the atmosphere warmer because they absorb energy. Others have a cooling effect because they reflect sunlight back into space.

Biofuel

a type of fuel produced from plants or other forms of biomass. Examples of biofuels include ethanol, biodiesel, and biogas.

Biomass

material that comes from living things, including trees, crops, grasses, and animals and animal waste. Some kinds of biomass, such as wood and biofuels, can be burned to produce energy.

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

a colourless, odourless greenhouse gas produced naturally when dead animals or plants decay. It is used by plants during photosynthesis. People are adding ____ into the atmosphere, mostly by burning fossil fuels.

Climate change

a significant change in the Earth's climate, including changes in weather patterns, the oceans, ice and snow, and ecosystems around the world.

Climate

the average weather conditions in a particular location or region at a particular time of the year. Climate is usually measured over a period of 30 years or more.

Coral reef

a marine ridge or reef consisting of coral and other organic material consolidated into limestone.

Fossil fuel

a type of fuel created over millions of years as dead plant and animal material becomes trapped and buried in layers of rock, and then heat and pressure transform this material into a fuel deep within the Earth. Examples of fossil fuels include coal, oil, and natural gas.

Global warming

the increase in temperature near the surface of the Earth as a result of natural causes. However, the term is most often used to refer to recent and on-going warming caused by people's activities.

Greenhouse gases

natural or man-made gases that trap heat in the atmosphere and contribute to the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases include water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases.

Infrared radiation

a type of electromagnetic radiation. The Earth gives off energy in the form of infrared radiation, which is not visible to the naked eye and feels like heat to the human body.

Long wave radiation (infrared light)

radiation emitted in the spectral wavelength greater than 4 µm corresponding to the radiation emitted from the Earth and atmosphere.

Methane (CH4)

a colourless, odourless greenhouse gas that occurs both naturally and as a result of people's activities. Methane is produced by the decay of plants, animals, and waste, as well as other processes.

Nitrous oxide (NOx)

a colourless, odourless greenhouse gas that occurs both naturally and as a result of people's activities. Major sources include farming practices (such as using fertilizers) that add extra nitrogen to the soil, burning fossil fuels, and certain industrial processes.

Ozone (O3)

a gas made up of three atoms of oxygen bonded together. High in the atmosphere, ozone naturally shields the Earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation and closer to the Earth's surface is a pollutant that is formed by other pollutants that react with each other. ___ is also a greenhouse gas.

Radiation

energy that travels in the form of a particle or a wave and exists in many different forms, such as electromagnetic radiation, X-rays, ultraviolet radiation, infrared radiation, and visible light.

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation

a type of electromagnetic radiation, not visible to the naked eye that is produced by the sun. Most UV radiation is blocked by ozone high in the Earth's atmosphere, but some of it reaches the Earth's surface and can lead to skin cancer and eye damage.

Water vapour (H2O)

water that is present in the atmosphere as a gas, and as a greenhouse gas it plays an important role in the natural greenhouse effect.

Enhanced Greenhouse effect

Rising global temperatures due to greenhouse gases being put into the atmosphere because of human activities

ocean acidification

decreasing pH of ocean waters due to absorption of excess atmospheric CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels

coral bleaching

A phenomenon in which algae inside corals die, causing the corals to turn white.

Living Plants

Assimilate carbon using photosynthesis

Living Animals

take in carbon by consuming plants

Decomposer organisms

Assimilate carbon by decomposing dead plants and animals

Soils and Organic molecules

Contain carbon in organic molecules from dead organisms which have not been decomposed.

Fossil Fuels

Contain carbon as hydrocarbon molecules from fossilization of organic molecules

Sedimentary Rocks

Contain carbon as carbonate compounds in rocks

Corals and Shellfish

Contain carbon in their shells as carbonates

Phytoplankton

Assimilate carbon using photosynthesis

Oceanic Food webs

Animals in oceans consume phytoplankton and other animals passing carbon through food webs

Sea water

Carbon dissolves and also forms hydrogen carbonates

Photosynthesis

Converts carbon dioxide into glucose and oxygen

Respiration

Converts glucose and oxygen into carbon dioxide and water

Decomposition

Converts organic molecules into carbon dioxide and water

Diffusion

Moves carbon dioxide from the air to the sea, or vice versa

Combustion

Releases carbon dioxide and water from organic molecules

Fossilization

Converts carbonates in coral and molluscs into sedimentary rocks

Feeding

Moves Carbon containing organic compounds from organism to organism

Volcanic eruption

Releases large amounts of carbon dioxide from rocks

Species

Groups of organisms that can potentially interbreed to produce fertile offspring

Population

Groups of organisms of the same species, who live in the same area at the same time

Community

Populations of different species living together and interacting with each other

Autotrophs

organism that can produce its own food through photosynthesis

Heterotrophs

Can't make carbon compounds. Therefore must be digested and absorbed from diet

Saprotrophs

Common decomposers. Feed on decaying matter. Obtain organic nutrients from dead organisms by external digestion.

Consumers

Feed on living organisms by ingestion

Detritivores

Obtain organic nutrients from detritus (material from living organisms e.g dead leaves or roots, decomposing animals etc) by internal digestion.

Closed system

Allows energy in and out

Mesocosms

Small experimental area set up in an ecological research programme

Quadrat sampling

Classic tool used in ecological research especially for biodiversity.

Abiotic Factors

non-living chemical or physical factors(ex. water, nitrogen, oxygen, salinity, pH, soil nutrients and composition, temperature, amount of sunlight, precipitation) of a system

Biotic Factors

Biological influences on organisms within an ecosystem

Crossbreeding

when members of different species breed together.

Inorganic nutrients

substances neccesary to sustain life that do not contain carbon: such as minerals and water

Ecosystem

A community of interdependent organisms and the physical environment they inhabit.

Interbreeding

breeding that occurs only with its species and that produces fertile offspring.

Sustainable communities

communities that are capable of being maintained at a steady level without exhausting natural resources or causing severe ecological damage.

Chi Square Test for Association

A statistical method of testing for an association between two categorical variables. Specifically, it tests for the equality of two frequencies or proportions.