AP BIO: Ecology Vocab

ecology

the relationship of organisms with each other and their environment

biosphere

organisms and environments on the planet

landscapes

multiple communities in the same area

biome

large, naturally occurring communities of flora and fauna (animals and plants) in a major habitat

community

a group of multiple species that occur together in a geographic area

population

a group of individuals of the same species in a given area

species

a group of organisms that can mate (have the most similar DNA)

population density

the number of organisms divided by unit of volume

population size

the number of organisms total

ecological system

interacting parts together at varying levels

biomass

the total quantity or weight of organisms in a given area or volume

species richness

number of unique species in an ecosystem

species evenness

measure of relative abundance of species in a community (number of fish vs number of plants)

biodiversity

a measure of how diverse an area is in number of species

net primary productivity (NPP)

measure of the flow of carbon movement and energy into the biotic component

ecotone

area of intergradation of and biomes

canopy

layer of trees

weather

the state of atmospheric conditions in a particular area at a given time

climate

average condition and patterns of variation over long periods

biotic

living components

abiotic

non living components

primary producers

transform carbon into useable form via the energy from the sun

consumers

transform carbon using ATP to break down sugar into more ATP

decomposers

can break down carbon from dead organisms, giving it back to the soil so plants can use it

anthropocene

age of the humans

invasive species

species introduced by humans to an ecosystem that it does not belong to; causes imbalance in the ecosystem

population

group of individuals of the same species

population density

number of individuals/ unit of volume

population size

number of individuals in a population

geographic range

range in which species are found

clumped

aggregated in patches

uniform

results in territoriality

random

independent of other individuals; not very common

survivorship

ability to survive from birth to different life stages

fecundity

number of offspring produced at different life stages

mortality

fraction of individuals that do not survive

density dependent factors

things in an ecosystem that can change depending on the population density (food, space, etc.)

density independent factors

things that do not rely on the population density (climate, pollutants in air, nutrients in food)

semel parity

one shot pattern of big-bang reproduction (only can reproduce once)

Iteroparity

repeated reproduction

competition

-/-

consumer resource

+/-

mutualism

+/+

commensdism

+/0

amensalism

-/0

autotrophs

inorganic materials turned into organic materials; primary producers

heterotrophs

get energy from breaking a part organic compounds organized by other organisms

decomposers

feed on waste products

trophic cascade

when one organism is removed and multiple organisms are affected— collapse of ecosystem

succession

replacing in a predictable sequence

ecological transition

distinctly different community formed

niche

function of a species in a community