unit 1

community

(a bunch of) populations sharing habitat

competition

compete for the same resources

predation

one population consumes another

symbiosis

long term interactions between organisms

symbiosis (parasitism)

• +\-

• parasite benefits from living\consuming the host

symbiosis (mutualism)

• +\+

• both benefit from interaction

  • ex. protection

symbiosis (commensalism)

• +\meh

• one benefits and host isn’t affected

population

members of the same species living in the same area

ecosystem

abiotic environment + biotic community

types of aquatic ecosystems

• marine

• fresh water

types of biomes (land ecosystems)

• tropical forest

• boreal forest

• savanna

• tundra

• desert

• mountains

• chaparral

• polar ice

• temperate forest

• temperate grassland

biome

community of plants and animals living in a certain climate

tropical rainforest

• near the equator

• high rainfall

• warm, wet climate

• high biodiversity

temperate deciduous forest (seasonal)

• cold, dry winters

• hot, humid summers

• shed leaves in winter

temperate rainforest

• mild, frost-free winters

• even rainfall

coniferous forest

• AKA boreal forest or taiga forest

• midway between equator and poles

• short, warm, moist summers

• long, cold, dry winters

• Christmas trees

deserts

• pretty much all latitudes

  • mostly 30 degrees north and south of equator

• low rainfall

• plants adapted to hold water

grasslands

• any latitude

• seasonal drought, fire, grazing

  • stop trees and shrubs from overgrowing

savannas

• warmer grasslands

• scattered trees

temperate grasslands

• mild grasslands

• few trees

• also prairies and steppes

scrublands

• AKA shrublands, chaparrals, woodlands

• western coastal regions between 30 degrees and 40 degrees north and south of the equator

• dominated by shrubs and short trees

tundra

• arctic

• most inhabitable

• cold and dry

• short growing season

  • low biodiversity

• permafrost

• variety of plants and animals

freshwater biome

• little to no salt

• ponds, lakes streams, rivers

• drinking water

ponds

• standing water

• smaller than lakes and seasonal

lakes

• standing water

• larger than ponds and more permanent

• four zones

littoral zone

• top, near shore

• lots of sun

• wide variety of plants and animals

limnetic zone

• AKA open water zone

• photosynthesis

• phytoplankton, zooplankton, freshwater fish

profundal zone

• AKA deep water zone

• too dark for photosynthesis

• less dissolved oxygen

benthic zone

• soil and soil organisms at bottom of lake

• decomposers

streams and rivers

• drain a landscape

• three zones

  • source zone

  • transition zone

  • floodplain zone

source zone

• where streams and rivers start

• water at high elevations collect from precipitation and snowmelt

• cold, fast moving, lots of dissolved oxygen

  • few plant species

transition zone

• where headwaters merge

• wider, slower moving, less dissolved oxygen

• warmer, more nutrient rich

  • larger variety of plants and animals

floodplain zone

• water spills onto land forming wetlands and temporary lakes

• warm, nutrient rich, less dissolved oxygen

  • greatest variety of plants and animals

ways that atmospheric carbon dioxide is taken from the atmosphere

• photosynthesis

  • sunlight is used to transform carbon dioxide into energy

• ocean

ways that carbon dioxide returns to the atmosphere

• cellular respiration

• decomposition

  • compressed organisms turning into fossil fuels

• combustion

cellular respiration

• organisms break down organic compounds to produce usable energy

• release carbon dioxide in the process

• C6H12O6 + O2 —> CO2 + H2O + cellular energy

carbon reservoir

• where large amounts of carbon are stored

• rocks, water, sediments

• bodies of living organisms

geological carbon cycle

• carbon from rocks into oceans

  • weathering and rainwater

• bicarbonate used in shells

  • sink and form sediment and rocks

human impacts on carbon cycle

• fossil fuels

• deforestation

ways that nitrogen is removed from the atmosphere

• nitrogen fixation

  • lightning

  • nitrogen-fixing bacteria

ways that nitrogen returns to the atmosphere

denitrification

nitrogen reservoirs

atmosphere

nitrogen-fixing bacteria

• N2 —> NH3 (ammonia)

• transforms into ammonia used by plants

ammonification

bacteria and fungi return ammonia and ammonium ions to environment from decomposing organisms

nitrification

bacteria convert ammonia and ammonium into nitrites, then nitrates

denitrification

bacteria convert nitrites and nitrates into nitrogen gas

phosphorus is what kind of nutrient in ecosystems?

limiting

limiting nutrient

• in shortest supply

• limits growth

phosphorus reservoirs

rock and deep ocean sediments

not found in atmosphere

how phosphate is released

weathering

how phosphate ions are used

• plants

  • move up the food chain

how phosphorus returns to rocks

decomposing organisms are compacted into layers of soil and rock

how humans influence the phosphorus cycle

• animal waste and phosphate sediments to make fertilizer

  • enter aquatic systems as runoff

water “reservoir”

• oceans

• ice

• groundwater

groundwater

• between soil particles and in cracks

• percolated, unevaporated water

• freshwater reservoir

aquifers

groundwater reservoirs where we access freshwater

human impacts on water cycle

• digging wells

• collecting raiinwater

• desalinisation

hydrologic cycle is driven by

the sun

how water enters the atmosphere

evaporation

how water leaves the atmosphere

• precipitation

  • rain and snow

transpiration

• water enters through roots

• water evaporates through stomata (leaf pores)

• used to move ions and minerals and cool

niche specialist

species that can survive in a narrow range of environmental conditions

photosynthesis

CO2 + H2O + light energy —> C6H12O6 (glucose) +O2

gross primary productivity

how much photosynthesis is occuring in a given area and time

net primary productivity

• how much photosynthesis occurs over given area and time minus the respiration

• gross primary productivity- respiration = net primary productivity

species richness

• number of different species in an area

• more species = higher species richness

species evenness

• species abundance in an area

• equal individuals in an area = higher species evenness

ecosystem resilience

ability of an ecosystem to adapt to change and return to equilibrium state after disturbance

specialist species

• specific habitat, food, environmental conditions

• sensitive to changes/threats

generalist species

• variety of habitats, foods, environmental conditions

• can adapt more to habitat changes