Unit 1: The Living World | Ecosystems

PCBs

Polychlorinated Biphenyls used in electronics. Chemical products banned in 1979. Polluted groundwater.

Quantitative Data

data that uses numbers

Qualitative Data

data that uses qualities and characteristics to describe

Control

constant variable and unchanged throughout the course of the investigation.

Easter Island

an island where people died because of lack of natural resources

Ecology

study of living organisms in their nonliving world

Biotic factor

living item (ex: bacteria)

Abiotic factor

not living item (ex: mineral)

Ecological Hierarchy

species >population >community >ecosystem >biome >biosphere

Population

a group of individuals of the same species

Community

a group of populations interacting together

Ecosystem

a group of communities interacting together

Biosphere

another name for earth

Natural Selection

the process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring

Salinity

level of salt in the water

Brackish

medium levels of salinity. Often occurs in wetlands where salt and fresh water mix.

Potential Energy

The energy stored. PE = mgh

Kinetic Energy

The energy in movement: KE = ½ mv2

1st Law of Thermodynamics

Energy is not created nor destroyed…changes forms

2nd Law of Thermodynamics

No reaction is 100% efficient. Entropy is created after every energy transformation.

Entropy

Disorder and chaos in a system.

Ecological footprint

a measure of human impact on Earth's ecosystems. It's typically measured in area of wilderness or amount of natural capital consumed each year.

Carrion

the decaying flesh of dead animals

Photoautotrophs

organisms that use light to perform photosynthesis. Often plants and phytoplankton.

Chemoautotrophs

organisms that use chemicals to perform chemosynthesis. Often bacteria in deep sea vents.

Heterotrophs

organisms that consume to obtain energy. Often herbivores and carnivores.

Primary Consumer

first level heterotroph, eat producers (aka herbivore)

Secondary Consumer

organism that eats primary consumer

Tertiary Consumer

organism that eats secondary consumer

Food Chain

a series of who eats whom with one pp, one pc, one sc, one tc

Food Web

a diagram of who eats whom for all organisms

Gross Primary Productivity

the rate of photosynthesis taking place in an area

Net Primary Productivity

The biomass left over in a photoautotroph after photosynthesis and respiration takes place.

Nitrogen Fixation

Taking nitrogen in air (N2) and changing to nitrite (NO2) or ammonia (NH3)

Nitrification

Take nitrite and turning it into nitrate NO3

Assimilation

Organisms use nitrate and ammonium to make DNA and amino acids.

Ammonification

Taking NH3 and turning it into NH4.

Denitrification

Taking nitrate and ammonium and turning it back into nitrogen (N2) in the air.

Sink

in a biogeochemical cycle this acts as a storage place of an element

Source

in a biogeochemical cycle, this releases an element

Primary Succession

community change that occurs with new land formation: lichen moss small shrubs small trees large trees climax community

Secondary Succession

after a disturbance, community change that occurs with soil already present

Bottleneck Effect

cut down of genetic diversity due to loss of individuals in a population.

Non-native species

a species that is not known historically in an area. Ex: cane toads in Australia

Species diversity

a count of how many species are in an area.

Ecotone

a transitional zone between two communities. Ex: intertidal zone.

Niche

an organism's job in a community.

Hybrid

the offspring of two different species.

Lichen

a symbiotic relationship of a fungus and an algae

Germination

sprouting of a seed

Mutualism

a symbiosis where two species benefit from the relationship. Ex: oxpecker and rhino

Commensalism

a symbiosis where one species benefits and the other is neutral in the relationship. Ex: cattle egret and cow

Parasitism

a symbiosis where one species benefits and the other is harmed in the relationship. Ex: tapeworm and human

Competitive Exclusion Principle

species with the same niche in the same area cannot coexist

Keystone Species

often a dominant predator whose removal allows a prey population to explode and often decreases overall diversity. Ex: sea otter

Predation

the preying of one animal on others.

Mimicry

the close external resemblance of an animal or plant (or part of one) to another animal, plant, or inanimate

object

Interspecific Competition

competition between two different species.

Intraspecific Competition

competition the same species.

Aerobic

using oxygen

Anaerobic

using no oxygen