Ecology Test #1

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156 Terms

1

ecology

Scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment

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2

replicate

repeating an experiment using different samples to determine the research's reliability

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statistical analysis

determines how likely any difference between experimental groups is due to chance

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scientific method

A series of steps followed to solve problems including collecting data, formulating a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis, and stating conclusions.

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5

hypothesis

A testable prediction, often implied by a theory

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6

soil

The loose, weathered material on Earth's surface in which plants can grow.

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0 horizon

the top layer of the surface containing inorganic solids, decaying organic matter, and living organisms

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8

A horizon

mixture of minerals, clay, silt, and sand

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B horizon

A soil horizon composed primarily of mineral material with very little organic matter

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C horizon

The least-weathered soil horizon, which always occurs beneath the B horizon and is similar to the parent material.

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11

soil texture

the soil quality that is based on the proportions of soil particles

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12

biome

A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms

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13

Tundra

An extremely cold, dry biome.

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permafrost

Ground that is permanently frozen

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15

arctic tundra

Biome that encircles the Earth just south of ice-covered polar seas in the Northern Hemisphere

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climate change

Change in the statistical properties of the climate system when considered over periods of decades

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Desert

An extremely dry area with little water and few plants

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Shrubland

Arid terrestrial biome characterized by shrubs and tending to occur along coasts that have dry summers and receive most of their rainfall in the winter.

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19

temperate forests

occur in eastern North America, Japan, northeastern Asia, and western and central Europe. Dominated by tall deciduous trees. Well-defined seasons include a distinct winter. Logged extensively, only scattered remnants of original temperate forests remain.

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20

tropical rainforest

a broadleaf evergreen forest found in wet and hot regions near the equator.

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tropical seasonal forest

biome characterized by deciduous and evergreen trees, a dry season, and animal species that include monkeys, elephants, and Bengal tigers

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hyrdologic cycle

the movement of water through the biosphere

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23

lotic

flowing water

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lentic

standing water

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grassland

A biome where grasses are the main plant life

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riffles

shallow areas of swiftly flowing water

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pools

deeper, slower moving sections

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gougers

burrow into waterlogged limbs and trunks of fallen trees

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29

shredders

an aquatic invertebrate such as a stonefly nymph that feeds by cutting and tearing organic matter.

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detrital

sedimentary rocks made from the broken fragments of other rocks that are compacted and cemented together

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headwater

a tributary stream of a river close to or forming part of its source

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lakes

A body of water that is surrounded by land it can be fresh water or salt water.

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estuary

A habitat in which the fresh water of a river meets the salt water of the ocean.

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salt marsh

A marsh containing nonwoody emergent vegetation, found along the coast in temperate climates.

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mangrove forest

trees and shrubs growing in saline/brackish coastal habitats in tropics

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coral reef

A structure of calcite skeletons built up by coral animals in warm, shallow ocean water.

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sediments

Loose materials such as rock fragments, mineral grains, and bits of shell that have been moved by wind, water, ice, or gravity

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nutrient runoff

A type of runoff that leads to algae blooms, eutrophication, and fish kills

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coral bleaching

A phenomenon in which algae inside corals die, causing the corals to turn white.

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kelp beds

large dense patches of kelp

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photic zone

Portion of the marine biome that is shallow enough for sunlight to penetrate.

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pelagic zone

open water above the ocean floor

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benthic zone

the muddy bottom of a lake, pond, or ocean

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microclimate

Climate within a small area that differs significantly from the climate of the surrounding area

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macroclimate

Patterns on the global, regional and local level.

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46

photosynthesis

Conversion of light energy from the sun into chemical energy.

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47

conduction

The direct transfer of heat from one substance to another substance that it is touching.

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48

convection

The transfer of heat by the movement of a fluid

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49

ectotherm

An animal whose body does not produce much internal heat

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50

endotherm

An organism that is internally warmed by a heat-generating metabolic process

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thermoneutral zone

range of environmental temperatures within which the metabolic rates are minimal

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torpor

extreme mental and physical sluggishness

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hibernation

Long-term torpor that is an adaptation to winter cold and food scarcity.

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54

gravitational potential

Water flows downhill, following a gradient of potential energy

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pressure potential

moving from area of higher to lower pressure

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osmotic potential

The tendency of water to move across a permeable membrane into a solution

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matric potential

The energy associated with attractive forces on the surfaces of large molecules inside cells or on the surfaces of soil particles.

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diffusion

Movement of molecules from an area of higher concentration to an area of lower concentration.

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osmosis

diffusion of water

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60

isoosmotic

the movement of water is equal in both directions

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hyperosmotic

solution with a greater concentration of solute

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hypoosmotic

lower solute concentration

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metabolic water

water released during cellular respiration

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64

Camels

animals that hold water in hump, have reflective hair, and face the sun

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65

Saguaro Cactus

plants that open stomata at night

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Desert scorpion

only comes out at night

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Desert cicada

out at hottest part of day, perch on branch tips

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trophic levels

levels of nourishment in a food chain

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69

autotroph

An organism that makes its own food

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70

photosynthetic

use CO2 as carbon source, and sunlight as energy

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chemosynthetic

having the ability to use the energy from chemical reactions to construct organic food molecules

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heterotroph

An organism that cannot make its own food.

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73

infrared

long wavelength low energy

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ultraviolet

short wavelength high energy

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photosynthetically active radiation

Wavelengths of light that photosynthetic organisms use as a source of energy.

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photon flux density

the number of photons of light striking a square meter surface each second

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3-PGA

3 carbon molecule that is made from the splitting of RuBP

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78

C4 photosynthesis

process that first converts CO2 into a 4-carbon molecule in the mesophyll cells, converts that product to malate and then shuttles it to the bundle sheath cells, where the malate releases CO2 and rubisco picks it up as if all were normal

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CAM photosynthesis

The photosynthetic pathway in which carbon fixation takes place at night, and the resulting carbon acids are stored until daylight when they are broken down into pyruvate and CO2.

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80

herbivore

A consumer that eats only plants.

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carnivore

A consumer that eats only animals.

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detritivores

feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter

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cellulose

A substance (made of sugars) that is common in the cell walls of many organisms

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84

allelopathic

describes a plant that produces and releases chemicals that inhibit the growth of nearby individuals of the same or another species

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detritivores

feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter

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aposematic coloring

warning colors

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87

Mullerian mimicry

two or more unpalatable species resemble each other

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88

Batesian mimicry

A type of mimicry in which a harmless species looks like a species that is poisonous or otherwise harmful to predators.

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89

Darwin

English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection (1809-1882)

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90

natural selection

A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.

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Mendel

Father of genetics

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alleles

Different forms of a gene

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ecotypes

populations with adaptations to unique environments

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disruptive selection

form of natural selection in which a single curve splits into two; occurs when individuals at the upper and lower ends of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals near the middle

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directional selection

Form of natural selection in which the entire curve moves; occurs when individuals at one end of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals in the middle or at the other end of the curve

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stabilizing selection

Natural selection that favors intermediate variants by acting against extreme phenotypes

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97

geographic speciation

The creation of a species due to a geographic separation

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98

sympatric speciation

The formation of new species in populations that live in the same geographic area

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genetic drift

A change in the allele frequency of a population as a result of chance events rather than natural selection.

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mutation

A change in a gene or chromosome.

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