Grasslands 350 Test 2 Terms and Short Answer

Chinook wind

warm, dry, and gusty wind that blows down the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains

fen

a type of peat-accumulating wetland that is fed by mineral-rich groundwater or surface water

alfisol

moderately leached, fertile mineral soils that typically form under forest or savanna vegetation in semi-arid to humid regions

peat

dark brown, fibrous, soil-like material formed by the partial decomposition of dead plant matter

mollisol

dark, soft, exceptionally fertile mineral soil that forms under native grassland or prairie ecosystems

rain shadow

dry area of significantly reduced rainfall on the sheltered side of a mountain range

ecosystem engineer

any organism that creates, significantly modifies, maintains, or destroys a physical habitat, directly or indirectly altering resource availability for other species

keystone species

an organism that has a disproportionately large effect on its ecosystem relative to its low abundance of biomass

trophic cascade

an ecological process where a change in the population of one species travels down the food chain, causing a domino effect of alternating increases and decreases in populations across lower levels

ecotone

a dynamic transition zone or boundary region where two or more distinct ecological communities, habitats, or biomes meet and integrate

hypsodonty

dental adaptation characterized by teeth with high crowns and short roots

Big 4 in the Tallgrass Prairie

Big Bluestem - Andropogon gerardi

Indian Grass - Sorghastrum nutans

Switchgrass - Panicum virgatum

Little Bluestem - Schizachyrium scoparium