Unit 2 APES

ecosystem diversity

the number of different habitats availiable in a given area

species diversity

the number of different species in an ecosystem and the balance (evenness) of the population sizes of all species in the ecosystem

genetic diversity

how different the genes are of individuals within a population

higher biodiversity means …

higher ecosystem / population health

richness

total number of different species found in an ecosystem

bottleneck event

an environmental distrubance that drastically reduced population and kills organism regardless of their genomes

inbreeding depression leads to …

higher chance of offsprings having harmful genetic mutations becaue they’re getting similar genotype from both parents

resilence

ability of an eosystem to return to its origingal condition after a major distrubance

higher species diverstiy =

higher ecosystem resilience

what are the three levels to biodiversity

ecosystem, species, genetic

ecosystem services

goods and services provided by natural ecosystems that are beneficial to humans

provisioning services

goods taken directly from ecosystems or made from natural resources (wood, paper, food)

regulating services

natural ecosystems regulate climate/air quality, reducing storm damage and healthcare costs

supporting services

natural ecosystems support processes we do ourselves, making them keeper and easier

cultural services

money generated by recreation or scientific knowledge

examples of human disrupting ecosystems to function

clearing land for cities that remove trees that store co2; overfishing

examples of provisioning services

fish, hunting, paper, rubber

examples of regulating services

trees filtering the air; trees taking in co2 and producing oxygen

examples of support services

wetland plant roots filtuer pollutants; bees and other insects pollinate crops

examples of cultural services

national parks; fishing; new medicines

the two rules of island biogeography

larger islands support more total species; islands closer to the mainland support more species

there is a ____ correlation between island size and species richness

positive

there is an _____ relationship between island distance and species richness

inverse

ecological range of tolerance

range of conditions such as temp, salinity, and pH that an organism can endure before injury/death

optimal zone

range where organisms survive, grow, and reproduce

zone of physiological stress

range where organisms survive, but experience some stress such as infertility, lack of growth, decreased activity, etc

zone of intolerance

range where the organism will die

periodic disturbances

occurs with regular frequency (dry - wet seasons)

episodic disturbances

occasional events with irregular frequency (hurricans, droughts, fires)

random disturbances

no regular frequency (volcanoes, earthquakes, and asteroids)

fitness

ability to survive and reproduce

natural selection

organisms that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more offspring

selective pressure / force

the environmental condition that kills individuals without the adaptation

the longer the lifespan of the organism, the ____ the rate of evolution

slower

primary succession

starts from bare rock in an area with no previous soil formation

secondary succession

starts from already established soil, in an area where a distrubance cleared out the majority of plant life

pioneer / early succession species

appear first, when ground is simply bare rock, or bare soil after a disturbance

mid successional species

appear after pioneer species have helped develop deeper soil with more nutrients by their cycles of growth / death

pioneer or early succession species characteristics

seeds spreaad by wind / animals, fast growing, tolerant of shallow soil and full sunlight

mid-successional species characteristics

relatively fast growing, larger plants, that need deeper soils with more nutrients than pioneers, sun tolerant

late succesional / climax community species

appear last, after soil is deepened and enriched with nutrients by cycles of growth and death by early and mid successional species

late successional or climax community species characteristics

large, slow - growing trees that are tolerant of shade and require deep soils for large root networks