APES Full Vocab Units 1 - 9

Vocab Units 1 - 9

Ecosystem

A community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.

Biotic factors

Living components of an ecosystem.

Abiotic factors

Non-living physical and chemical elements in the ecosystem.

Producer (Autotroph)

Organisms that produce energy through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.

Consumer (Heterotroph)

Organisms that obtain energy by consuming other organisms.

Decomposer

Organisms that break down dead or decaying organisms.

Food chain

A linear sequence of organisms through which nutrients and energy pass.

Food web

A complex network of interconnected food chains.

Trophic levels

The hierarchical levels in an ecosystem, comprising producers at the base and successive levels of consumers.

Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)

The total amount of energy produced by producers in an ecosystem.

Net Primary Productivity (NPP)

GPP minus the energy used by producers for respiration.

Biogeochemical cycles

The movement of elements and compounds through the biosphere, including the water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur cycles.

Biodiversity

The variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

Species richness

The number of different species represented in an ecological community.

Species evenness

How close in numbers each species in an environment is.

Ecosystem services

The benefits humans receive from ecosystems, including provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting services.

Island biogeography

The study of the species composition and species richness on islands.

Ecological tolerance

The range of conditions that an organism can endure before injury or death.

Natural disruptions

Events such as fires, hurricanes, or floods that can alter ecosystems.

Adaptation

A trait that helps an organism survive and reproduce.

Ecological succession

The process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time.

Keystone species

A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend.

Population dynamics

The patterns and processes of change in populations.

Carrying capacity (K)

The maximum population size that an environment can sustain.

Exponential growth

Growth whose rate becomes ever more rapid in proportion to the growing total number or size.

Logistic growth

Growth that occurs when a population's growth slows or stops following a period of exponential growth.

Density-dependent factors

Factors whose effects on the size or growth of the population vary with the population density.

Density-independent factors

Factors that affect population size regardless of the population's density.

Survivorship curves

Graphs that represent the number of individuals surviving at each age for a given species or group.

Total fertility rate (TFR)

The average number of children a woman would have in her lifetime.

Replacement-level fertility

The number of children a couple must have to replace themselves.

Demographic transition

The transition from high birth and death rates to lower birth and death rates as a country develops.

Plate tectonics

The theory explaining the structure of the Earth's crust and many associated phenomena.

Soil horizons

Layers of soil that differ in color and composition.

Weathering

The breaking down of rocks and minerals by various factors including water, wind, and biological activity.

Erosion

The process by which soil and rock are removed from the Earth's surface by wind or water flow.

Watershed

An area of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas.

Aquifer

An underground layer of water-bearing rock.

El Niño

A climate pattern that describes the unusual warming of surface waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.

La Niña

A climate pattern that describes the cooling of surface ocean waters along the tropical west coast of South America.

Atmospheric layers

The layers of gases surrounding Earth, including the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere.

Tragedy of the commons

A situation in which individuals, acting in their own self-interest, deplete shared resources.

Clearcutting

A forestry practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down.

Green Revolution

A set of research, development, and technology transfer initiatives that increased agricultural production worldwide.

Irrigation

The artificial application of water to land to assist in the production of crops.

Fertilizers

Substances that are added to soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants.

Pesticides

Chemicals used to kill pests, including insects, rodents, fungi, and unwanted plants (weeds).

Monoculture

The cultivation of a single crop in a given area.

Overfishing

The removal of a species of fish from a body of water at a rate that the species cannot replenish.

Urban sprawl

The uncontrolled expansion of urban areas.

Sustainable agriculture

Farming practices that meet current food needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs.

Renewable energy

Energy from sources that are naturally replenishing but flow-limited.

Nonrenewable energy

Energy from sources that are finite and will eventually deplete.

Fossil fuels

Natural fuels formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.

Nuclear energy

Energy released during nuclear fission or fusion.

Hydroelectric power

Electricity produced from the energy of moving water.

Photovoltaic cells

Devices that convert light energy directly into electrical energy.

Energy efficiency

Using less energy to perform the same task.

Cogeneration

The simultaneous production of electricity and useful heat.

Energy conservation

The practice of reducing energy use.

Air pollution

The presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to living organisms.

Primary pollutants

Pollutants emitted directly from a source.

Secondary pollutants

Pollutants not directly emitted but formed when primary pollutants react in the atmosphere.

Photochemical smog

Air pollution produced by the action of sunlight on pollutants such as hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides.

Acid deposition

The falling of acids and acid-forming compounds from the atmosphere to the Earth's surface.

Indoor air pollutants

Pollutants that occur within buildings and structures.

Thermal inversion

A reversal of the normal behavior of temperature in the troposphere, where a layer of cool air at the surface is overlain by a layer of warmer air.

Clean Air Act

A United States federal law designed to control air pollution.

Point source pollution

Pollution that comes from a single, identifiable source.

Nonpoint source pollution

Pollution that comes from many diffuse sources.

Eutrophication

The enrichment of water bodies with nutrients, leading to excessive growth of algae.

Dead zones

Areas in water bodies where aquatic life cannot survive due to low oxygen levels.

Biomagnification

The increasing concentration of a substance in the tissues of organisms at successively higher levels in a food chain.

Solid waste

Any garbage or refuse, sludge from a wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or air pollution control facility.

Landfill

A site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and the most common method of organized waste management.

Leachate

Contaminated liquid that results when water seeps through solid waste or other polluted materials.

Incineration

The process of burning waste materials to reduce their volume.

Waste-to-energy

Generating energy in the form of electricity or heat from the primary treatment of waste.

Hazardous waste

Waste with properties that make it dangerous or capable of having a harmful effect on human health or the environment.

Sewage treatment

The process of removing contaminants from municipal wastewater.

Primary treatment

Initial stage of sewage treatment that removes large solids and sediment.

Secondary treatment

Biological process to remove dissolved and suspended organic matter using bacteria.

Tertiary treatment

Advanced cleaning stage that removes nutrients and pathogens.

Noise pollution

Harmful or annoying levels of noise, as from airplanes, industry, or urban traffic.

Thermal pollution

Degradation of water quality by any process that changes ambient water temperature.

Greenhouse effect

The trapping of heat in the Earth's atmosphere by greenhouse gases.

Greenhouse gases (GHGs)

Gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect (e.g., CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, H₂O vapor, O₃).

Global warming

The ongoing rise in global average temperature near Earth's surface.

Climate change

Long-term alteration of temperature and typical weather patterns in a place.

Carbon footprint

The total greenhouse gas emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual or organization.

Sea level rise

An increase in the level of the world's oceans due to melting glaciers and thermal expansion.

Ocean acidification

Decrease in the pH of Earth's oceans caused by uptake of CO₂ from the atmosphere.

Invasive species

Non-native species that spread rapidly and cause harm to native ecosystems.

Endangered species

Species at serious risk of extinction.

CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species)

Treaty to ensure that international trade in wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.

Kyoto Protocol / Paris Agreement

International agreements aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.