Bio ecology

organism

a single living thing that functions as an individual

species

a group of organisms capable of breeding and producing fertil offspring

population

a group of organisms that belong to the same area and live in the same area

geographic range

the places a population lives

native range

where a population originated

expanded range

new habititats a population immigrated to

predicted range

where a population could live

population density

the number of individuals found in a given area

factors that cause density to increase

births, immigration

factors that cause density to decrease

deaths, emmigtation

population distribution

the way individuals are spaced out across a habitat

clumped distribution

when organisms accumulate in patches

uniform distribution

when organisms are evenly space out

random distribution

unpredictable distribution of organisms

survivorship curve show the

relative proportion of surviving individuals at any given age

offspring survival depend on

number of individuals born, parental investment

type 1 curve

few offsprings produced, low offspring mortality, high parental investment, sharp increase in death rate at old age (large mammals such as humans, hippos, rhinos, elephants)

type 2 curve

average number offspring produced, medium offspring mortality, medium parental investment, equal survival all ages (rodents, lizards, birds)

type 3 curve

many offspring produced, high offspring mortality, no parental investment, low chance of making it to old age (plants, insects, fish)

population growth is heavily influenced by

its age structure

during early population growth, the number of individuals is

low and resources are abundant; will grow exponentially

exponential growth

when resources are unlimted and populations are allowed to reproduce at their max capacity

population will grow at a rate of

2 to the power of (# of elasped reproductive cycles)

logistic growth

when population slows then stops following a period of exponential growth

a limiting factor of food, water, shelter or mates can

limit the population growth to the enviroments carrying capacity can support

carrying capacity

the max population size an enviroment can support

limiting factor

any biotic or abiotic factor that prevents a population from growing

limiting factors determine

the carrying capacity of the ecosystem

density dependent limiting factor

a limiting factor that is strongly influenced by the density of the organism in a given area ( food supply, overpopulation, disease, parisitism, predation)

density independent limiting factor

a limiting factor that affects all populations of any size and density equally (hurricane, drought, fire, flood, habitat loss)

community

an interacting group of many different species in the same location

member of community often interact with each other in

helpful +, harmful-, neutral o ways

symbiosis

any relationship where two species live closely together

mutualism

(+/+) a relationship that benefits both organisms involved

commensalism

(+/o) a relationship where one organism benefits and the other is unaffected

parasitism

(+/-) a relationship where one organism (parasite) benefits and the other organisms (host) is harmed

predation

(+/-) one organism (predator) captures and feeds on another (prey)

How is predation different from parasitism

prey dies right away in predation

predators and prey oscillate

through period of exponential growth at different intervals

why do prey population initally rise

low predators

why do predator population lag behind

b/c it takes time to reproduce

why do prey population crash

high predation

why do predator population crash

no prey

maintaining balance between predator and prey populations are

important for stable, healthy ecosystems

competition

(-/-) occurs when two or more individuals simultaneously occupy the same niche and require a single resource that is in limited supply; both organisms are harmed; (food, mates, shelter, sunlight, water)

niche

the role of job an organism performs in its ecosystem

interspecific competition

two different species compete for the same resource

intraspecific competition

member of same species compete for the same resource

if two species occupy the same niche: competitive exclusion

two species occupy the same niche and stably coexist; one spcies will out compete the other

if two species occupy the same niche: resource partitioning

two competitng species evolve to utilize different parts of the same resource, reduces competition, allows both species to coexist

ecosystem

a system formed by the interaction of biotic and abiotic factors

biotic factor

any living part of the enviroment with which an organism interacts (food, mates, disease, predators, plants)

abiotic factor

any nonliving part of the enviroment with which an organism interacts (sunlight, temp, water, soil, shelter)

all energy in an ecosystem comes from the

sun

light energy is captured

autotrophs and converted into chemical energy for the next organism in the food chain

food chain

shows the flow of energy from one organism to the next

producer

any autotrophs capable of making their own food; producers provide energy for every other organism in the food chain, always at the bottom of the chain)

consumer

any heterotroph that obtains energy by eating other organisms

consumer: carnivores

kills and eats only other animals

consumer: herbivores

eats only plants, leaves, roots, seeds, or fruits

consumer: omnivores

eats both plants and other animals

consumer: scavengers

consume the carcases of previously killed animals

consumer: vulture

decomposers, break down organic matter of dead organisms to produce detritus

consumer: detritivores

chew or grinf detritus into smaller pieces

detritus

small pieces of decaying remains

food web

a network of feeding interactions, through which both energy and matter move; arrow points in the direction of energy flow

apex predator

consumer at the top of the foodchain with no natural predators

keystone species

a species that plays a vital role in maintaining structure, stability, and diversity in an ecosystem

energy pyramid

shows the reduction of energy avaliable as you move up each level

each level on the pyramids is called

trophic level

each trophic level can support

less and less organisms because energy is lost as you move up the pyramid

rule of 10

only 10% of available energy is passed onto the next trophic level, 90% of the energy is lost to sustain the organism

biogeochemical cycles

describe the movement of elements through an ecosystem

matters such as

water, carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous is recycled through the ecosystem

energy from the sun is

not recycled, instead it is lost as heat as it moves through an ecosystem

water cycle: uses for water

medium, hydrolysis, digestion, photosynthesis, homeostasis (heat capacity), waste removal (urine)

water cycle: physical and chemical processes

water vapor (cools down), precipitation, run off (water on surface), percolation, evaporation

percolation

water moving slowly through same object

water cycle: biological processes

transpiration

transpiration

evaportation off a leaf

carbon cycle: uses for carbon

under every organic compound, everything

carbon cycle: biological processes

endless cycle of photosynthesis (C02 to C6H12O6) and cellular respiration (C6H12O6 to C02), sometimes organisms die and turn to fossil fuel

carbon cycle: human activities

combustion fossil fuel (CxHx+O to CO2+H20)

carbon cycle: physical/ chemical processes

carbon sink, ocean acidification, H20+CO2 to H2CO3

carbon sink

region that can store a lot of carbon (ocean)

carbon cycle: geological processes

volcanoes eropt and release stored carbon into atmosphere

nitrogen cycle: uses for nitrogen

DNA/RNA, amino acids=proteins

nitrogen cycle: biological processes

N2 gas; nitrogen fixing bacteria take N2 and make ammonia, nitrate, nitrite; animal eats plant, animal dies, returns back to soil; denytrifying bacteria

denitrying bacteria

takes nitrogen solids and make it into gas

nitrogen cycle: physical/ chemical processes

lightening strikes add nitrogen, make nitric oxide

nitrogen cycle: human cycle

N2+H2 to NH3(ammonia), ammonia is a main component in fertilizers causes runoff into water causing algal bloom

phosphorous cycle: uses for phosphorous

proteins, ATP, DNA, Phospholipids, found in rocks

phosphorous cycle: biological processes

phosphorous taken up by plant, animal eat plant, animal dies, returns back to soil

phosphorous cycle: geological processes

erosion wears away rock, rock erodes into water, deposits phosphorous, compress into solid again

phosphorous cycle: human activities

mining (crush rocks to get phosphorous), create fertlizer which causes runoff= algal bloomy

biome

a groupd of ecosystems with the same climate, rainfall, elevation, latitude (rainforest, desert, grassland)

biomes are shaped by the

ecosystem within them

ecological succession

the orderly process where an ecosystem changes overtime

in each stage of succession a new

plant community replaces the old community

each stage of succession can

support different organisms