Studied by 26 people
predator-prey relationship
organism (predator) that eats another organism (prey)
symbiosis
close/long-term interaction between two species in an ecosystem
three types of symbiosis
mutualism (++), commensalism (+o), parasitism (+-)
competition
within or between species in an ecosystem where there are limited resources
resource partitioning
using resources in different ways/time in order to reduce the negative impact of competition of survival
food web
depicts the flow of energy and nutrients in two or more food chains
positive and negative feedback loops
play a role in food webs, when one species is removed from or added to a specific food web which can affected.
inflow of high quality energy
helps maintain structure and function of transferring matter between the environment and organisms
energy flow
sun —> producer which then flows to higher trophic levels
primary productivity
rate where solar energy is converted into organic compounds (photosynthesis)
gross primary productivity (GPP)
total rate of photosynthesis in a given area
net primary productivity (NPP)
rate of energy storage by photo-synthesizers in a given area; after subtracting the energy lost
NPP equation
GPP-R=NPP
10% rule
only about 10% of the energy is passed on from one trophic level to another
law of thermodynamics
energy levels are the same but some usable energy is converted into heat
carbon sink
the ocean floor (largest sink), atmosphere, organisms, fossil fuels, sediments, places where carbon gets stored
short-term carbon cycle
photosynthesis and respiration in animals/plants
long term carbon cycle
burial of organic life stores carbon for millions of year and is used for fossil fuels
atmosphere
largest reservoir of nitrogen cycle
nitrogen fixation
N2 in the air gets turned into usable nitrogen NH3 (ammonia) converted by bacteria
assimilation
plants take up nitrogen and make use of it
rock and sediments
major reservoirs of phosphorus
limiting growth factor
found in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems since there is no atmospheric form of P
oceans
primary reservoir of water in the cycle, ice caps and groundwater acting as smaller ones
five examples of terrestrial biomes
taiga, temperate rain-forests, tropical rain-forests, temperate grassland, desert
distribution of non-mineral natural resources like water and trees for lumber vary in terrestrial biomes because of
climate, geography, latitude, altitude, nutrient availability, and soil
freshwater biomes include
streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes, which are vital for drinking water
marine biomes inlude
oceans, coral reefs, marshland, and estuaries
function of algae
supply large portion of Earth’s oxygen and takes in CO2 from the atmosphere
distribution of non-mineral natural resources like fish species vary in aquatic biomes because of
salinity, depth, turbidity (murkiness), nutrient availability, and temperature
biodiversity
genetic, species, and habitat diversity in an ecosystem
environment stressors
natural or man-made events that disrupt the environment, genetically diverse populations have better response to this
population bottleneck
individuals in a population that are cut-off from each other (not many in the population) causing loss of genetic diversity
specialist species
thrive in narrow environment conditions or has a limited diet; vulnerable to death
generalist species
thrive in a wide range of environment conditions and make use of many different resources; more resistance
species richness
number of different species in an ecosystem (species evenness is relative abundance)
island biogeography
study of ecological relationships and distribution of organisms on islands
effect of islands on species
island species have evolved to be specialist v. generalists due to competition and limited resources. specialist species are more jeopardized when invasive/generalist species are introduced.
k-selected species
large, have few offspring, live in stable environments, mature slow, long life span, reproduce more, high competition
r-selected species
small, have many offspring, mature fast, short life span, reproduce once, low competition
biotic potential
maximum reproductive rate of population in ideal condition
ecological tolerance
range of conditions like temperature, salinity, flow rate, and sunlight that an organism can endure before injury or death
provisioning services
provide humans with necessities indirect value; T.O.C (energy, timber, medicine)
regulating services
natural indirect services that help save money (flood protection, pollination)
cultural services
celebrate and appreciate ecosystem values (heritage sites, education)
supporting services
provide an ecosystem for all other services; most important (nutrient recycling, primary production)
difference between periodic and episodic phenomenons
periodic repeats at regular, predictable intervals and episodic are infrequent and unexpected
primary succession
soil is made by mosses/lichens eroding rocks; takes a long time
secondary succession
soil already exists and the climax community is a rich forest that’s reached sooner
keystone species
their activities have a significant role in determining community structure and resilience
indicator species
their presence help indicate certain characteristics or quality of an ecosystem
pioneer species
first species to move in an unoccupied habitat during succession
ecological footprints
compare resource demand and waste production required for an individual or a society
sustainability
use of resources without depletion of the resources for future generations
environment indicators
biological diversity, food production, average global surface temperatures and CO2 concentrations, human population, and resource depletion
sustainable yield
the amount of renewable resource that can be taken without reducing available supply
overshoot
population exceeding the carrying capacity, causing resource depletion
dieback
major ecological effect of population overshoot due to the lack of available resources leading to famine, disease, and conflict
type 1 survivor-ship
low birth death rate and die until old age (k-selected species)
type 2 survivor-ship
constant death throughout their lifetime (k-selected species)
type 3 survivor-ship
have many offspring with high birth death rate, those who survive live for longer (r-selected species)
demographic transitition
transition from high to lower birth and death rates in a country going from pre-industrial to industrial
describe demographic transition
stage 1 (pre-industrial) → high births and deaths; ZPG
stage 2 →high births and low deaths (medicine introduced)
stage 3 → low birth and stable deaths (contraception and education for women)
stage 4 (industrialization) →stable births and death; ZPG
stage 5 →birth rates fall below death rates; population declines
affect the human population growth and decline
birth rates, infant mortality rates, death rates, family planning, nutrition, education, marriage
density-independent factors
abiotic factors like major storms, fires, heat waves, and droughts
density-dependent factors
clean water/air, food availability, disease transmission, territory size
rule of 70
dividing the number 70 by the percentage population growth rate shows population doubling time
example: 70/2% = 35 years
lithopshere
solid layer of earth including outer crust and soil portion of mantle
convergent boundaries
plates moving towards and colliding together
two ocean plates collide
subduction (island arcs)
two continental plates collide
no subduction (mountains)
ocean and continental collide
subduction
divergent boundaries
plates moving away from each other causing rift valleys, seafloor spreading, volcanoes (Mid-Atlantic Ridge)
transform boundaries
plates that slide past one another causing shallow earthquakes, fault zones, and long ridges (San Andreas Fault)
earthquake formations
plates rupture along a fault causing a sudden snap and released stored energy
convergent →plates collide and pressure builds
divergent →new crust created and other crust is pushed apart and cracks
difference between soil horizons and soil profile
soil horizons are individual layers and soil profile shows all layers
layers of soil
O layer: organic matter in stages of decomposition
A layer (topsoil): overlying organic material mixed with underlying minerals
E layer (leached): depleted soluble nutrients
B layer (subsoil): accumulation of metals and nutrients
C layer - least weathered portion with rock fragments and little organic material
R layer - bedrock
particle size
affect the porosity, permeability, and fertility of the soil
big particle sizes = easier plant growth (hold less water)
small particles = harder growth since they’re compacted close together (hold more water)
soil is made of up 3 main things
clay, silt, sand
watershed
area of land that drains all the streams and precipitation to a common outlet like a river, lake, or ocean
characteristics of watersheds
area, length, slope, soil, vegetation, amount & types, and divides with adjacent watersheds
rain shadow
dry area of land since high elevations block rain from reaching the land (leeward side of a mountain)
layers of the atmosphere
troposphere → weather occurs, most pressure
stratosphere →ozone layer, jet stream
mesosphere →coldest layer, meteor burn-up
thermosphere →hottest layer, absorb sun radiation
exosphere →satellites, hydrogen and helium in here
north pole pointed towards the sun
summer in N. hemisphere
winter in S. hemisphere
north pole pointed away from the sun
winter in N. hemisphere
summer in S. hemisphere
Coriolis effect
because the earth is spinning, winds are deflecting or changing direction even though they are traveling in a straight line
wind deflects →right in N. hemisphere and deflect ←left in the S. hemisphere
convection cells
warm air rising and cool air sinking
three types of convection cells
hadley cell (0-30 degrees N and S) -
ferrell cell (30-60 degrees N and S)
polar cell (60-90 degrees N and S)
el niño
temporary warming of the Pacific ocean current causes wind trades to weaken/reverse ( E → W)
Americas - less upwelling, increased rain and temperature, less food for predators and humans
Asia/Australia - dry conditions, drought/fires
la niña
extreme version of normal conditions where trade winds going E → W speed up and push warm water even further away; hurricanes decrease in Pacific and increases in Atlantic due to warm temperatures
Americas - increases upwellings, cool surface water temperatures
Asia/Australia - more rain, monsoons, flooding
upwellings
warm surface water is replaced with cold, nutrient water from the deep, supporting organisms and leads to an increase in fish population. ONLY HAPPENS ON THE WEST COAST OF THE AMERICAS
tragedy of the commons
shared, limited resources that can become depleted if not regulated; usually in public areas
the green revolution
increased food production and crop yield due to agricultural introduction to mechanization, GMO’s, fertilization, irrigation, and pesticides
pros and cons of green revolution
mechanization: increased crop yield but causes erosion/CO2 emission from fossil fuels
fertilizers: easy to use/cheap but causes eutrophication and contaminates waterways
pesticides: high crop yields/more food less land but kills non-target species and pesticide treadmill
irrigation: good crop yield but causes water-logging and soil salinzation
GMO’s - pest resistance/conserve energy and water but decreased biodiversity and affects animal proteins, food allergies
types of irrigation
furrow - filling ditches next to crop rows with water (low cost BUT water lost to evaporation/run-off
flood - flooding fields with water (waterlogging can happen)
spray - water is sprayed from nozzles (more efficient but evaporation/run-off loss + more expensive)
drip - pipes laid on the ground release small amounts of water to plant roots (most efficient since water is not evaporated but most expensive)
effects of irrigation
waterlogging → raises the table of groundwater and limits plants ability to absorb oxygen through their roots
salinization → salt stays in the soil after water evaporation causing the soil to become toxic/acidic
aquifers - become severely depleted due to over-use of water
pesticide treadmill
pests develop a resistance to pesticides causing an increase in pesticide application to crops; farmers repeat this process over and over again until no avail
concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO)
feedlots for livestock that are later consumed for food
are inexpensive BUT increase organic waste, are crowded, and are fed grain diets that are not sustainable
free-range grazing
animals graze on grass in their life-cycle and are free from antibiotics and chemical uses
but cost of the meat is increased and overgrazing causes erosion due to loss of vegetation
overfishing
demand for fish exceeds to time needed for fish to re-populate causing less biodiversity and scarcity in fish populations
Note 
Flashcard (33)