Ecology Practice Exam Flashcards

Flashcards based on Ecology Lecture Notes for exam preparation.

What is the primary origin of energy flow in ecosystems?

Sunlight

How does energy move through ecosystems?

One-way

What does energy eventually become in an ecosystem?

Heat lost to the environment

What is the origin of nutrient cycling in ecosystems?

Earth's abiotic reservoirs

How do nutrients move through ecosystems?

Cyclical (reused)

What is the major carbon pool in the atmosphere?

CO2

What key flux converts CO2 into sugars?

Photosynthesis

Which human influence increases CO2 levels?

Burning fossil fuels

What is the major nitrogen pool?

Atmosphere N2 gas

What key flux converts N2 to NH3?

Nitrogen Fixation

What human influence leads to N pollution?

Fertilizers & Fossil Fuel Burning

What is the major phosphorus pool?

Rocks lithosphere

What key flux releases phosphate into the soil?

Weathering rocks

What human influence leads to P runoff?

Fertilizers & Detergents

Why is decomposition important?

Nutrient Cycling

What is the name of the decomposition process where soluble compounds from dead material are removed by water?

Leaching

Which temperature helps decomposition proceed faster?

Warmer

What is succession?

The natural, directional change in a community's structure and composition over time.

What dominates early succession?

Pioneer species

What describes early trophic structure stages?

Simple food chains

What increases as succession occurs?

Biomass

Which mechanism of succession improves conditions for later speices?

Facilitation Model

What is primary succession?

Begins in area with no soil

What is an example of a pioneer species?

Lichen, mosses, microbes

What is secondary succession?

Occurs in an area where a biological community was previously present and soil remains intact.

What describes secondary succession pioneer species?

Grass, herbs, shrubs

What is a set of different sites, similar in all aspects except age?

Chronosequence

What is geographic ecology?

Geographic patterns of plant and animal life

What is the study of regional patterns of distribution of organisms?

Biogeography

What is the diversity at varying latitudes?

Diversity is higher at lower latitudes

What is endemic?

One habitat and nowhere else

What describes a biodiversity hotspot?

High diversity

Relating to latitudinal variations in species richness, what is an example of interspecific interactions?

Narrower niches and more intense interactions

What is an island?

Any isolated habitat

What are the primary drivers of species richness on islands according to the Equilibrium Model of Island Biogeography?

Immigration and extinction

When are immigration rates highest?

Highest on new island with no organisms

What describes landscape ecology?

Distribution and arrangement of ecosystems on a large scale

What is conservation biology?

How to conserve (protect, maintain, & restore) biodiversity

What is a discrete area that is relatively uniform compared to its surroundings?

Patches

What is the background or dominant land cover in a landscape that surrounds patches?

Matrix

What is a linear feature that connects patches and helps organisms move?

Corridor

What kind of tool does remote sensing employ?

Satellite or aircraft to gather data about Earth's surface

What uses reflective data to calculate temperature?

Satellite

What is ground truthing?

Verifying remote sensing data by collecting obs and measurements

What is uses to quantify patch shape?

P/A (Perimeter Area)

What describes the edge effect?

Same area, but patch effect changes the habitat space

What are causes of global climate change?

Land use/ Land cover change, invasive species, human population growth

What is the primary indicator found?

Warming of the Climate System is unequivocal.

What is the degree to which one patch is available to individuals in another patch?

Connectivity

What must species do pertaining to climate change?

Species must adapt, disperse, or go extinct

What is the affect of land use/ land cover change, ecosystem effects?

More than ½ of wetlands in the contiguous US have been drained

How are human populations affected by resources access?

Improve food and housing, strain natural resources

What is an invasive species?

Non-native (did not evolve in the area), alien/exotic, invasive (causing damage)

What problem do invasive species causes towards native species?

Outcompete native species for food, space, or light

What is one way you can affect global change in a positive way?

Reduce carbon footprint