APES Vocabulary for Entire Year

Anthropogenic

something caused by human activities

Symbiosis

refers to long and short term interactions between two different species; includes mutualism, commensalism and parastitism

Mutualism

a relationship in which both species benefit (bees polinating flowers)

Commensalism

a relationship in which one species benefits while the other is unaffected (barnacles on a whale)

Parasitism

A relationship in which one species benefits at the expense of the other (ticks on a dog)

Competition

interaction between organisms and the fight for resources such as food, shelter, mates, water, habitat

Resource Partitionting

process by which several species use the enviroment differently to minimize competition; for example if one animal hunts in the daytime and another animal hunts in the same space in the nighttime

Biome

large-scale ecological region defined by specific climate, vegetation, and wildlife; mainly defined by precipitation and temperature

Taiga

biome characterized by coniferous forests, cold winters, low precipitation

Temperate Rainforest

biome characterized by deciduous trees, moderate climate, consistent rainfall

Temperate Seasonal Forest

biome characterized by warm summers and cold winters with moderate precipitation; deciduous trees

Tropical Rainforest

biome characterized by warm temperatures, high rainfall; biodiversity hotspot

Nuclear Fusion

atomic nuclei combine to form a single heavier one while releasing large amounts of energy, like our sun; a potential, but as of now unattainable, source of energy

Shrubland (Chaparral)

biome characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs; parts of southern California and around the Mediterranian Sea.

Temperate grassland

biome characterized by a dominant vegetation of grasses and a climate with very hot summer and cold winters, and moderate rainfall

Savanna

biome of tropical or subtropical grassland characterized by a mix of grasses and scattered trees, typically found in regions with distinct wet and dry seasons.

Desert

biome that is a dry, barren region with a lack of vegetation and little rainfall, typically recieving less than 10 inches per year.

Tundra

biome with a lack of tree growth and cold temperatures where the subsoil is permanentely frozen.

Marshland

type of wetland dominated by herbaceous plants like grasses and is typically along rivers, lakes, and coasts.

Estuary

partially enclosed coastal area where the tide meets the stream; ecologically vibrant area with young fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc

Algae

group of green aquatic, photosynthetic organisms that lack roots, stems, and leaves.

Salinity

saltiness or amount of salt dissolved in a body of water

Turbidity

cloudiness or haziness of a fluid

Carbon cycle

natural biogeochemical process where carbon atoms move through different reservoirs on Earth, including the atmosphere, biosphere, and geosphere

Source (in a nutrient cycle)

location or reservoir within an ecosystem where a nutrient is released or enters the cycle faster than it is absorbed

Wet Scrubbers

air pollution control device that uses a liquid to remove pollutants from industrial exhaust streams that neutralize harmful substances

Dry Scrubbers

air pollution control device that uses dry sorbent materials such as carbon or hydrated lime that chemically captures pollutants.

Electrostatic Precipitators

device that uses a high-voltage electrostatic charge to remove dust particles from a gas or exhaust; particles are collected on charge plates.

Limestone

sedimentary rock made from calcium carbonate; a carbon sink; can be used to neutralize soil

Noise Pollution

sound that causes a disturbance that negatively impact the health of humans and other organisms within the environment

Point source pollution

contamination that comes from a single source that can identified and traced back, such as chemicals from a discharge pipe

Nonpoint source pollution

contamination that can be traced back to multiple sources rather than one, such as oil runoff from roadways

Range of Tolerance

specific environmental conditons that an organism can withstand up to a certain extent; for example temperature extremes, oxygen availability, toxin exposure, pH

Coral Reef

aquatic ecosystem within the ocean that is built by coral polyps; high biodiversity and environmental importance

Oil Spill

when oil leaks into the water either accidentally, such as through a tanker or an oil rig, or naturally

Primary Productivity

the conversion of solar ennergy to the energy of chemical bonds in sugars during photosynthesis

Gross Primary Production (GPP)

the total amount of energy that results when autotrophs convert solar energy to glucose through photosynthesis.

Net Primary Production (NPP)

the energy or biomass that remains in an ecosystem after autotrophs have metabolized enough for their own maintenance through cellular respiration. (energy available for heterotrophs)

Trophic level

rank in the feeding hierarchy of a food chain.

Terrestrial

of, on, or relating to earth

10% rule

the average amount of energy passed from trophic level to trophic level is 10% of the energy that level received from the trophic level prior

Positive Feedback Loop

very bad in environmental science because of how the input of the situations causes the output to snowball. ex. climate change - snow melts - dark ground is revealed - sun´s rays are absorbed easily - heats up ground/environmetn even more

Negative Feedback Loop

good in environmental science. the input and output of fthis situation stabilize each other. ex. we breathe oxygen - we breathe out carbon dioxide - the plants take in CO2 - and release oxygen

Biodiversity

the variety of life across all levels of biological organization (variety in species, genes, populations, and communities)

Bottleneck effect

a huge decline in population/genetic diversity

Specialist species

a species that can survive only in a narrow range of habitats that contain very specific resources; vulnerable to extinction as environments change; example is panda

Generalist species

a species that can survive in a wide array of habitats or use a wide array of resources; most invasive species; example is raccoon

Dead Zone

an area in a body of water where the level of dissolved oxygen is low enough that organisms cannot survive.

Oxygen Sag Curve

graph that shows the decline of dissolved oxygen in a body of water where sewage, excess nutrients has been discharged.

Sediment

solid material that is moved and deposited in a new location through erosion; can be rocks, minerals, remains of plants/animals

Species richness

the number of different species found in an ecosystem

Ecosystem Services (provisioning, regulating, cultural, supporting)

services that the environmental does naturally that helps humans economically; Provisioning services: food production, water, fuel. Supporting: nutrient cyclng , soil formation, primary production, habitat protection. Cultural: Spiritual, aesthetic, educational and recreational uses. Regulating: Climate regulation, food regulation, water purification

Island biogeography

study of ecological relationships and distribution of organisms on islands. Specialists more common, but may be destroyed if generalist species are introduced; the closer to the mainland, the more diverse; theory is used to plan conservation areas to maximize benefits

Ecological tolerance

range of conditions (temp, salinity, flow rate, sunlight) that may be endured before an organism suffers injury or death

Natural disruptions

ecological/environmental changes that occur as a result of events such as meteorite, volcano, earthquake, heavy rain; can have environmental consequences as great as or greater than human-caused changes

Periodic

natural disruption occuring periodically, such as a spring rain that results in flooding and sediment deposition

Episodic

natural disruptions occuring at irregular intervals, such as an earthquake causing mudslides and erosion.

Random

natural disruptions occuring randomly, such as a meteorite collision causing the destruction of an ecosystem

Migration

movement of an organism or species from one environment to another; possibly seasonal or escaping environmental conditions as they change

Adaptations

organisms changing to better suit their environment, either short/long term scales with small changes at genetic level

Primary Ecological Succession

recovery of an ecosystem occuring from bare rock and no dirt present, possibly from a volcano, glacial scraping or pavement; takes hundreds of years to reach climax community

Secondary Ecological Succession

recovery of an ecosystem occuring when there is already dirt present, likely starting from a fire. Takes less time, only 150+ to reach climax community.

Keystone Species

species on which other species depend on in an ecosystem (Ex. beaver creates dams which create environments for other species to survive in, if removed they could no longer survive)

Indicator Species

organism that can be monitored as a proxy for the health of the environment (often the first affected by environmental change)

Pioneer species

firsts organism to colonize barren environments or disrupted ecosystems and initiate ecological succession (bacteria, lichen, grasses, etc)

Biomass

renewable organic material used for energy that can come from both plants and animals

K-selected species

large species, few offspring, stable environments, long maturity and life span, reproduce more than once (k-kangaroo)

r-selected species

small, many offspring, mature quickly, short life span, many reproduce just once (r-roach)

Biotic potential

maximum reproductive rate of a population in ideal conditions

Invasive species

introduced, nonnative species that can spread quickly; can reduce biodiversity, send species to extinction, alter habitats, etc...

Survivorship curve

line which shows the relative survival rate of a group of individuals the same age in a population

Type I survivorship curve

high survival probability in early and middle life, rapid decline in survival later in life; for example elephants and humans

Type II survivorship curve

roughly constant mortaility rate/survival regardless of age; for example birds

Type III survivorship curve

greatest mortality early in life, with relatively low rates of death later; for example acorns, cockroaches

Carrying Capacity (K)

maximum population size that a given environment can sustain

Population Overshoot

when a population exceeds its carrying capacity and resources are depleted leading to die back of the population

Dieback

many deaths due to famine, disease, conflict, etc as a result of overshoot

Famine

widespread scarcity of food

Mortality

rate of death within a population

Fecunditry

another word for fertility

Total Fertility Rate (TFR)

average number of children a female member of a population has during her lifetime

Infant mortality rate

number of babies out of 1000 that die during their first year of life

Malthusian Theory

the idea that populations will eventually outgrow its food supply and death rates will rise due to war, disease, and starvation

Density-dependent factor

limiting factor whose effects on a population are determined depending on population density. Ex: competition, disease transmission and preditation

Density-independent factor

limiting factor whose effects on a population are constant regardless of population density. Ex: droughts, storms

Rule of 70 (population calculation)

formula that estimates doubling times of population. Doubling time = 70 / % growth rate

Demographic Transition Theory (DTM) model

the idea that populations trends are based on a countries development from an economic prespective, considers birth and death rates

Tectonic Plate

large plates that make up earths crust and upper mantle.

Convergent Boundary

two tectonic plates push into each other, colliding, and it creates either a subduction zone (where the denser plate goes under the other one, melts and results in volcanos) or a mountain range. An example is Indian plate and eurasion plate, himalayan mountains.

Divergent Boundary

two tectonic plates move away from each other, diverge. An example is mid atlantic ridge in iceland.

Transform Boundary

two tectonic plates slide past each other, can make earthquakes: example is Pacific plate and north american plate, San Andreas fault.

Sand

tiny particles of rock and minerals, very permeable; largest sized particle in soil

Silt

loose sedimentary material, size inbetween clay and sand, somewhat permeable

Clay

thick heavy soil that is impermeable, smallest particle in soil

Water Holding Capacity

the amount of water absorbed by soil

Porosity

the ratio of void volume to a total volume of material

Permeability

the capacity of a porous material for transmitting a fluid.

Soil Texture Triangle

diagram that helps determine a type of soil based on how much silt, sand or clay it has.

Troposphere

bottom-most layer of earth's atmosphere, we live in it and it is where weather occurs

Stratosphere

layer of earth's atmosphere that contains the ozone layer, above the troposphere