APES- unit 2 vocab

Adaptation

A characteristic that improves an individual's ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment.

Anthropogenic

Human-induced changes on the natural environment

Biodiversity

The amount of biological or living diversity per unit area. It includes the concepts of species diversity, habitat diversity and genetic diversity.

Ecosystem Services

Important environmental benefits, such as clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and fertile soil in which to grow crops, that ecosystems provide

Evolution

Change in a kind of organism over time; process by which modern organisms have descended from ancient organisms.

Generalist Species

a species with a broad niche that can tolerate a wide range of conditions and can use a variety of resources

indicator species

Species that serve as early warnings that a community or ecosystem is being degraded.

keystone species

a species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend, such that if it were removed the ecosystem would change drastically.

pioneer species

First species to populate an area during primary succession; like mosses or algae

population bottleneck

a type of genetic drift in which population size is sharply reduced due to some catastrophic event

primary succession

An ecological succession that begins in an area where no biotic community previously existed

provisioning services

Benefits of biodiversity that humans use, including lumber, fur, meat, crops, water, and fiber

regulating services

the ways that ecosystems control important conditions and processes, such as climate, the flow of water, and the absorption of pollutants

resilience

the rate at which an ecosystem returns to its original state after a disturbance

secondary succession

type of succession that occurs in an area that was only partially destroyed by disturbances

specialist species

Species with a narrow ecological niche. They may be able to live in only one type of habitat, tolerate only a narrow range of climatic and other environmental conditions, or use only one type or a few types of food.

species richness

the number of different species in a community

supporting services

Benefits of biodiversity that allow ecosystems to exist, such as primary production (photosynthesis), soil formation, and nutrient cycling

Tolerance range

Range of an abiotic factor in the environment in which an organism can survive.

species evenness

tells us whether a particular ecosystem is numerically dominated by one species or whether all of its species have similar abundances

invasive species

species that enter new ecosystems and multiply, harming native species and their habitats

dependent variable

The measurable effect, outcome, or response in which the research is interested; this variable depends upon another variable

independent variable

The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.

cultural ecosystem services

the emotional, psychological, and recreational benefits that people obtain from nature

slash and burn agriculture

System of cultivation that usually exists in tropical areas where vegetation is cut close to the ground and then ignited. The fire introduces nutrients into the soil, thereby making it productive for a relatively short period of time. Long term, the release of CO2 into the atmosphere can lead to climate change.

theory of island biogeography

a theory that demonstrates the dual importance of habitat size and distance in determining species richness

estuary

A habitat in which the fresh water of a river meets the salt water of the ocean.

Daphnia

A common type of water flea; often used in toxicology experiments

Hypoxic

pertaining to a low level of oxygen

climax community

a stable community that no longer goes through major ecological changes

Niche

An organism's particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living.

Ecology

The study of how living things interact with each other and their environment