AP Environmental Science Unit 2 - Biodiversity

Genetic Diversity

The range of genetic material present in a gene pool or population of a species.

Species Diversity

The number and relative abundance of species in a biological community.

Species

A group of organisms that is distinct from other such groups in terms of size, shape, behavior, or biochemical properties.

Species Richness

The number of species in a given area (pond, tree canopy, etc).

Species Evenness

Indicates whether a particular ecosystem is numerically dominated by one species or whether all of its species have similar abundances.

Phylogenies

The branching patterns of evolutionary relationships.

Evolution

A change in the genetic composition of a population over time.

Microevolution

Evolution below the species level.

Macroevolution

Evolution above the species level.

Instrumental Value

A species that has wroth as an instrument or tool that can be used to accomplish a goal.

Intrinsic Value

A species that has worth independent of any benefit it may provide to humans (such as the moral value of an animal's life).

Ecosystem Services

The benefits that humans obtain from natural ecosystems.

Provisional Services

Goods that humans can use directly.

Regulating Services

Ways natural ecosystems help to regulate environmental conditions.

Supporting Services

Services which ecosystems provide that would be extremely costly for humans to generate. Life absolutely depends on them.

Resilience

The ability of an ecosystem to continue to exist in its current state and provide benefits to humans.

Cultural Services

The cultural or aesthetic benefits an ecosystem provides.

Bottlenecking Event

When a drastic event greatly and randomly reduces a species and its population in size.

Inbreeding Depression

When organisms mate with closely related family members, leading to a higher chance of offspring having harmful genetic mutations.

Ecological Range of Tolerance

Range of conditions such as temperature, salinity, and pH that an organism can endure before injury/death.

Optimal Range

Range where organisms survive, grow, and reproduce.

Zone of Physiological Stress

Range where organisms survive, but experience some stress such as infertility.

Zone of Intolerance

Range where the organism will die.

Natural Distrubances

A natural event that disrupts the structure and/or function of an ecosystem.

Natural Climate Change

Earth's climate has varied over geologic time for various reasons (slight changes in earth's orbit/tilt).

Eccentricity

Change in size of earth's orbit around the sun.

Obliquity

Changes in the tilt of the Earth which affects how much sun radiation hits the poles.

Migration

Wildlife may move to a new habitat as the result of natural disturbances.

Adaptation

A new trait that increases an organism's fitness.

Fitness

An organism's ability to survive and reproduce.

Natural Selection

Organisms that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more offspring.

Selective Pressure/Force

The environmental condition that kills individuals without the adaptation.

Pace of Evolution

The more rapidly an environment changes, the less likely a species in the environment will be able to adapt to those changes.

Ecological Succession

A series of predictable stages of growth that a forest goes through.

Primary Succession

Starts from bare rock in an area with no previous soil formation.

Secondary Succession

Starts from already established soil in an area where disturbance cleared out the majority of plant life.

Predator Mediated Competition

A predator is responsible for keeping the top competitor in check to maintain species diversity.

Indicator Species

A species whose presence/absence from an ecosystem can tell us about its health.

Keystone Species

A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend.