AP Biology Summer HW - ALL TERMS

Biotic factor

Any living factor in an organism’s environment

Abiotic factor

any nonliving factor in an organism’s environment

Population

A group of organisms of the same species

Ecosystem

Biological community and all abiotic factors that affect it

Habitat

the area where an organism lives

Niche

the role or position that an organism has in an ecosyste

Competitive exclusion principle

species with identical niches cannot coexist indefinitely, and competition will result in natural selection

niche partitioning

species occupy different niches to avoid competition

Photoperiodism

Physiological reaction of plants to the length of night or a dark period

Phototropism

Growth of a plant in response to a light stimulus; the shaded side contains more auxin and grows longer

Diurnal animals

active during daylight

Nocturnal animals

active during night

Crepuscular animals

active during twilight

taxis

the directed movement of an organism in response to a stimulus

kinesis

the undirected movement of an organism in response to an external stimulus

Aposematism

the advertising by an animal to potential predators that it is not worth attacking or eating

Mullerian Mimicry

when two dangerous species resemble each other

Capsaicin

a molecule that activates a receptor in mammals that causes the “spicy” taste; birds can't taste it

Pheromones

chemical marker in the form of scents to mark animal territory

Innate behaviors

developmentally fixed and closely controlled by genes with little or no environmental influence; basic survival skills

Learned behaviors-

those that are the result of experience; flexible and adaptive

Cooperative behaviors

tend to increase fitness of the individual and increase survival of the population

Kin selection

favors altruistic behavior (that reduces the organism’s fitness) by enhancing the reproductive success of relatives

Altruistic

Behaviors that lower the fitness of the individual but increase the fitness of another individual

Energy ___, matter ______.

flows, cycles

Main elements for organic compounds

carbon (C), hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and sulfur (S)

Net gain of energy

energy is stored, organism grows

Net loss of energy

loss of mass, death

Autotrophs

use CO2 (inorganic) to build organic compounds using energy from their environment

Photoautotrophs

capture light energy present in sunlight and perform photosynthesis

Chemoautotrophs

prokaryotes that capture energy from small inorganic molecules and use chemosynthesis to make organic compounds; without O2

Heterotrophs

need a source of pre-formed organic nutrients to capture energy, present in carbon compounds produced by other organisms

Scavengers

eat dead animals and plants

Detritivores

feed on detritus & the decomposing products of organisms

Decomposers

non-photosynthetic bacteria and fungi that extract energy from dead matter, including animal wastes, and make nutrients available

life history strategy

describes the series of events over an organism’s lifetime, such as how resources are allocated for growth, maintenance, and reproduction

r selected species

high number of offspring with low survivability, parent invests less energy in care; unstable environments

K Selected species

low number of offspring with high survivability; parent invests more energy in care; stable environments (carrying capacity)

Annual

one growing season, shorter life span, invests all energy into producing offpspring; common in ecological succession

Biennial

two growing seasons

Perennial

long growing seasons/lifespan; dies in fall/winter

Metabolism

the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions that take place inside cells and bigger structures; requires energy

Endotherms

use thermal energy generated by metabolism to maintain homeostatic body temperatures; steady temperature, must eat often

Ectotherms

lacks sefficient internal mechanisms for maintaining body temperature, but regulates behaviorally by moving to the sun or shade; eats less often

Food Chain

Follows a single path of energy flow

Food Web

Follows many paths of energy flow; more accurate

Trophic level

indicator of feeding level or position in the food chain; primary producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary, quaternary, ...

10% rule

only 10% of the previous level's energy is given to the next trophic level; heat lost due to excretion, metabolism, incomplete digestion, etc.

Types of Pyramids

Biomass, numbers, energy

Reservoirs

Locations where elements are stored for long periods of time

Biogeochemical systems

Flows of nutrients from living to nonliving components of the Earth

Carbohydrates

made of C, H, and O

Lipids

made of C, H, and O

Proteins

made of C, H, O, N, and S

Nucleic Acids

made of C, H, O, N, P, and S

Transpiration

release of water from plants into the air

Decomposition

the decay of organisms by decomposers; releases CO2 back into the atmosphere, soil, or water

Combustion

burning of fossil fuels releases stored CO2 into the atmosphere

Nitrogen fixation

nitrogen gas (N2) is fixed into ammonia (NH3), which ionizes into ammonium (NH4+) by acquiring hydrogen ions from the soil solution

Nitrification

bacteria convert ammonium (NH4+) via nitrite (NO2–) into nitrate (NO3–)

Assimilation

plants absorb nitrate from soil to make organic molecules

Ammonification

bacteria/fungi convert organic nitrogen from organisms into ammonia

Denitrification

bacteria convert nitrates (NO3–) back into nitrogen gas (N2)

Rock weathering

the weathering of rocks releases phosphate (PO43-) into soil and groundwater

Excretion

returns phosphates back to soil via the release of waste by organisms

Decomposition

returns phosphates back to soil

Molecules that require phosphorus

nucleic acids, phospholipids