ecology exam 3

Phenology

Study of cyclic and seasonal natural phenomena, especially in relation to climate and plant and animal life

Dominance

=basal area or aerial converage, species A/area sampled

Relative dominance

=Base area or coverage, Species A/total basal area or coverage, all species

Shannon- Weiner Index

Formula is used to measure the evenness of diversity where fi is the number of individuals in a given species. N is total number

A. Thienemann

Introduced idea of nutrient cycling, trophies feeding levels, and the trophic pyramid

First Law of Thermodynamics

Energy is neither created nor destroyed. Simply transformed from one for, or place to another

Second law of thermodynamics

States that when energy is transfered or transformed, part of energy is lost as waste. Only applies to a closed system, which the earth is not.

Landscape Mosaic

Quilt work of different types of land cover

Ecotone

One vegetation patch blends with another, creating a transition zone

Aldo Leopold

Potential abundance of wildlife species with small home ranges require two or more vegetation types is roughly proportional to the sum of the edge

Metapopulations

Habitats scattered as landscape patches, large and small, are inhabited by spatially separated subpopulations

C. Hart Merriam

described life zones of a mountain environment. The first ecologist to define precisely the relationship between climate and vegetation. He developed his life zone system after observing the sharp zonation of vegetation on SAN Francisco Mountain in Arizona

Endemic

Animals and plants who are restricted to a given region, or found in that region and nowhere else

Sir Alfred Wallace

Same theory as Darwin. Published Manuscript. Studied insects

The Wallace Line

an invisible, biogeographical boundary separates the distinct animal species of Asia and Australasia. Despite nearby islands being only miles apart, animals largely native to Asia (such as tigers and elephants) are found to the west, while Australasian species (like marsupials) are found to the east.

Kleptoparasitism

form of social parasitism in which the parasites obtain a portion of their food by stealing it from their host. Ex: Bald eagles stealing fish of osprey

Hemiparasites

photosynthetic, but draw water and nutrients from host plant

Commensalism

one species benefits and the other is unharmed

Coevoloution

Occurs when interactions between species

Endoparasites

Live within host

Ectoparasites

Live outside on the host

Microparasites

Include viruses’ bacteria, protozoans

Macroparasites

Include lice, fleas, ticks, mites, and parasitic worms

Epizootic

Rapid spread of viral and bacterial diseases in dense populations of animals

Epidemic

Rapid spread of viral and bacterial diseases in dense populations of humans

Definitive host

parasite becomes an adult and reaches maturity

Intermediates hosts

Harbor some developmental phase

Sexual Parasite

Male attaches to females, sometimes joining their tissues and circulatory systems. Make then function entirely as sperm producing organ for female.

Brood Parasitism

Leaching eggs in another nest for hosts to raise their young

Inclusive Fitness

if the genetics ties within a generation are closer than that of between generations, each member of a generation might be motivated to invest in a parent’s reproductive success rather than their own

William Hamilton

did genetic studies on ants, bees, and wasps

Bartz Hypothesis

the mating of a male and female who are unrelated but are each are product of intense inbreeding. Products of this union are essentially nearly genetically identical and therefore more genetically similar to each other than their parents. This genetic asymmetry is thought to encourage helping behavior in both sexes because each sibling can increase its inclusive fitness by assisting in the creation of brothers and sisters

Eusociality

species acts more like a single super-organism than a bunch of individuals.

1. Group care of young

2. Divison of labor

3. Overlapping generations

Population Bottleneck

a species suddenly drops to a very small number of individuals, decreasing genetic diversity

Community

collection of animal and plant populations interacting directly or indirectly909j

Guilds

feeding groups

Keystone species

predator controls the structure of the community and so must be regarded as the dominant species

Examples of keystone species

Otters

Carboniferous Forests

did not decompose in the way plants do today, oxygen concentration was double at the time. Became fossil forests that are the worlds coal reserves

Coal

most expensive fuel. efficient, tons of emissions

Natrual Gas

cleaner than coal- but still an emitter

Nuclear

cleanest man-made energy source

Petroleum

fuel source mostly for transportation

Calvin B. DeWitt

Professor at University of Wisconsin, integrated biblical stewardship with ecology and founded the Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies

Golley Food chain

Vegetation converts about 1% of solar energy intro plant tissue

Mice consume 2% of plant food

Weasels eat about 31% of Mice

Golley Mice

eat 2% of plant food. Mice lose 68% of energy assimilated

Golley Weasels

eat about 31% of mice. lose 93% of assimilated energy. Use so much a carnivore preying on them could not exist

Biogeography

study of organisms both past and present

Historical biogeography

is concerns with the reconstruction of the origin, dispersals, and extinction of various taxa

Ecological biogeography

study of present distribution of life and the interaction between the organism and the environment

Joseph Banks

brgan great flowering of natural sciences

Johannas Warming

wrote the first extbook on plant ecologu

Island Biogeography THeory MacArthur and Wilson

As the number of species residing on a island increases, the

extinction rate increases.

This increased rate results from three factors:

1. The increase in species richness means more possible species could

go extinct whatever the cause.

2. The potential for competitive interactions increases.

3. Given a finite resource base, as the number of species on the island

increases, the population size of each must decline.

Turnover Rate

the rate at which one species is lost and a replacement gained

Macarthur Wilson experiments

fumigated small mangrove islands in Florida to kill insects. Results: Species returned over time, number stabilized at equilibrium, exact species changed but total number stayed similar

Species at equilibrium

between immigration and extinction the number of species remains stable

Ecotone

transition zone between vegetation patches- blending together

Aldo Leopold

stated potential abundance of wildlife species with small home ranges that require two or more vegetation types is roughly proportional to the sum of the edge

Landscape Mosaic

quilt-work pattern of different land types

Corridors

strips of vegetation linking one path with another

Ecoregions

major ecosystems that result from predictable patterns of climate as influenced by latitude, global position, and altitude

Problems with Casuarina

gorws tall but vulnerable with wind, ripping through bedrock . Needs make soil acidic

Impact of Cats on Galapagos Islands

House mice showed an avesrion to cat feces on islands that cats were preesent and no aversion where they were not

Conclusion of cat/rat on galapagos

suggests that cats are a major determinant of the current distribution of endemic rodents, it also is likely that introduced rodents have played a part in the decline of endemics

Why islands are more susceptible to invasive species

lack of defenses, simplified food webs, endemic species

Bermuda Limestone

porpous, dissolves easily, affects water availbility and soil formation

Logging in Michigan

Farmers failed on land. FIres. Further soil life. Without forest cover streams heated up and sand eroded into the stream. The gravel bottoms of the streams were smothered in sand. Trout were introduced. Grayling went extinct

Community Dynamic examples

1. fundamental niche of a species acts as a primary constraint on its distribution and abundance

2. Species vary in their fundamental niches

3. Enviromental conidtions change in time and space

4. The fundamental niche is modified by species interactions

Animal induced succession

Climax Community

arrived at equilibrium or stready state with the physical and biotic environment. Will persist barring major distribuances

Climax

end point of succession

Characteristics of Climax

complex food chains, wide diversity of species

Seronity

Jack pine have seeds that remain in cone for years, fire melts resins that keep the code, then seeds go into newly prepared ground

Chronoseres/chronosequences

group of sites of known dates

Allogenic Environmental Change

can produce patterns of succession over time scales ranging from days to millennia or longer

Primary Succession

begins on sites that never supported life

Soil Succession

atmospheric nitrogen can later be broken down after being fixed by plants and made available in soil through decomp.

Succession and Species Diversity

plant diversity increase with site age (time since disturbance).

Secondary Succession

where life has been before

Shifting Mosaic

the community being composed of a mosaic of patches, each in a phase of successional development