Adaptations and Niches

What is a species?

A group of organisms that can potentially interbreed

What is a habitat?

The place in which a community, species, population or organism lives.

What is a population?

A group of organisms of the same species

What is a community?

Populations of different species living together and interacting

What is the environment?

External surroundings that act on an organism, population or community.

What is an ecosystem?

The interactions between a community and their abiotic environment

What is the range of tolerance?

The range in which a species can live

What is the zone of stress?

The place in which a species can live, but is under significant stress to maintain homeostasis

What is the optimal range?

The place in which a species can maintain homeostasis comfortably.

What is the scientific name of marram grass?

Ammophilia arenaria

What is the environment of marram grass?

Coastal dunes

How has marram grass adapted to its environment?

Fine narrow leaves, rolled leaves, thick waxy cuticle, long roots, hair on inner leaf

What is the temperature of a tropical biome?

High

What is the seasonal variation of a tropical biome?

Minimal

What is the precipitation of a tropical biome?

High

What plant communities are found in tropical biomes?

Very high plant biodiversity

What is the temperature of temperate biomes?

Medium

What seasonal variation do temperate biomes have?

Warm summers, cold winters, spring, and fall

What precipitation do temperate biomes have?

Medium/high

What plant communities do temperate biomes have?

Deciduous broad-leafed trees

What is the temperature of a taiga?

Low

What seasonal variation is found in taigas?

Short summers, long cold winters

How much precipitation is in a taiga biome?

Medium/high

What plant communities are found in taiga biomes?

Evergreen forests with conifer trees

What is the temperature of desert communities?

High (or really low, but this is rarer)

What seasonal variation is found in desert communities?

Minimal variation

How much precipitation is found in desert communities?

Very low

What kind of plant communities are found in deserts?

Little vegetation, typically with spines for leaves

What is the temperature of a grassland?

High/medium

What is the seasonal variation of a grassland?

Dry and cold seasons

What is the precipitation of a grassland?

Medium/high

What plant communities does a grassland have?

Grass species, little tree growth due to lack of water

What is the temperature of a tundra?

Very low

How much precipitation does a tundra have?

Medium/low

What plant communities do tundras have?

No trees due to lack of water, short growing season. Soil is frozen for most of the year, so little growth

The same biome will have similar communities because of what?

Convergent evolution

What adaptations do cacti have for desert biomes?

Thick waxy skin, CAM photosynthesis - Limits water loss

Pleated stem - Rapid expansion to store 1000s of liters of water

Widespread shallow roots - Quickly get water after a rain

Deep taproot - Access to deep water/moisture

What adaptations do fennec foxes have for desert biomes?

• Large ears - cooling

• Think fur on feet - insulates feet

• Light colored fur - Reflects heat and light

• Thick fur - Insulates at night

• Efficient kidneys - Conserves water

• Water from food - Less free water requirement

• Nocturnal - Avoid heat

What adaptations do flying lizards have for rainforest biomes?

• Gliding membrane - Avoid ground predators

• Flattened body - Better aerodynamics

• Sticky toes - Climb and cling to trees easier

• Cryptic coloration - Camouflage

What adaptations do spider monkeys have for rainforest biomes?

• Long tail - Acts like a fifth hand

• Curved fingers - Grip branches better

• Reduced thumbs - Improved ability to swing between trees

• Long limbs - Farther leaps between trees

What adaptations do philodendron have for rainforest biomes?

• Large leaves - Capture all sunlight possible

• Drip tips - Moves water off, stopping fungal growth

• Aerial roots - Allow plant to climb trees better, gets nutrients from the air

• Flexible stems, petioles - Adjust leaf angle for maximum light capture

What is a niche?

The role of a species in an ecosystem

What is a fundamental niche?

The resources and habitat a species could use

What is a realized niche?

The resources and habitat a species is actually able to, or actually uses

What are the benefits of having a specialized niche?

Advantaged when there are constant conditions

What are the cons to having a specialized niche?

Less adaptable, easily affected by changing conditions

What are the pros to having a generalized niche?

Easily adaptable to changing conditions and many environments

What are obligate aerobes?

Things that need oxygen to metabolize, use aerobic cellular respiration

What are obligate anaerobes?

Things that are inhibited or killed by oxygen, either use fermentation or anaerobic respiration

What is a facultative anaerobe?

Can do either aerobic or anaerobic respiration depending on the factors

Oxygen requirement can be determined by culturing organisms in what substance?

Thioglycollate agar

A species found at the top of a thioglycollate agar tube is most likely what?

An obligate aerobe

A species found at the bottom of a thioglycollate agar tube is most likely what?

An obligate anaerobe

A species found all throughout a thioglycollate agar tube is most likely what?

A facultative anaerobe

A Winogradsky column uses gradients of what two things to culture a wide variety of organisms?

Sulfide and oxygen

What is put in a Winogradsky column?

Pond mud, water, carbon source, sulfur source

Winogradsky column is incubated in ______ for several months.

Direct sunlight

What is autotrophic nutrition?

Inorganic compounds and environmental energy are turned into organic compounds

What is photoautotrophic nutrition

CO₂, H₂O, and light are turned into organic compounds (photosynthesis)

What is chemoautotrophic nutrition?

Various compounds such as Fe, or NH₃ are used to make organic compounds

What is heterotrophic nutrition?

Energy is obtained by consuming another organism

What is saprotrophic nutrition?

Enzymes are vomited onto the food (typically detritus) and digest externally before being absorbed

What is holozoic nutrition?

Food is eaten and digested internally

What is a detritivore?

Uses holozoic nutrition to consume detritus

What is a consumer?

Takes in live or recently killled solid organic matter and digests it holozoically

What are the steps of holozoic nutrition?

1. Ingestion - Eating the food

2. Digestion - Breaking the food down into macromolecules

3. Absorption - Moving food into cells

4. Assimilation - Using the food to make cell stuff or new cells

5. Egestion/Excretion - Removing unused food

What is mixotrophic nutrition?

Can do both autotrophic nutrition and heterotrophic nutrition

What are facultative mixotrophs?

Can do either autotrophic and heterotrophic nutrition

What are obligate mixotrophs?

Must do both autorophic and heterotrophic nutrition