6.1 Ecology

Flashcards covering introduction to ecology, biogeography, and climate change.

Ecology

The study of the interactions of living organisms with their environment.

Organismal Ecology

Looking at a single organism and its adaptations that allow it to live in its specific habitat.

Population

A group of interbreeding organisms in the same area at the same time, capable of interbreeding.

Population Ecology

How population numbers change over time, including birth rates, death rates, and migration.

Conspecifics

Same species.

Community Ecology

All of the living organisms in a given area; all the different species.

Heterospecifics

Different species interacting, like predation or parasitism.

Butterfly-Ant Interaction

A mutualistic relationship where caterpillars release ant-like pheromones to attract ants for defense, providing the ants with sugar.

Ecosystem Ecology

A community and the abiotic factors in that area (nonliving factors such as water, soil nutrients, and atmospheric gases).

Biogeography

The distribution of life across Earth and the factors that influence this distribution.

Endemic Species

Species found in a limited geographical area.

Generalist Species

Species found in many different ecosystems around the globe; widespread species.

Photosynthesis

Using atmospheric carbon dioxide and sunlight to produce their own energy.

Chemosynthesis

Producing energy from a chemical gradient, such as in deep-sea hydrothermal vents.

Torpor

Reducing metabolic rate to conserve energy during extreme temperatures.

Hibernation

A specific type of torpor for colder environments.

Estivation

Torpor in hot temperatures, often seen in desert animals.

Ocean Upwelling

Wind pushing offshore, dragging the top layer of water and pulling up nutrient-rich water from the bottom.

Turnover

The cycling of nutrients in freshwater lakes due to changes in temperature.

Water has maximum density at this temperature.

Four Degrees Celsius

Thermocline

A temperature gradient in a lake where different layers of water have different temperatures.

Winter Lake Conditions

The coldest water is at the surface, dense water at the bottom, with little oxygen and dormant nutrients.

Spring Turnover

Warmer, denser water at the surface sinks, pushing nutrient-rich water from the bottom to the top.

Summer Lake Stratification

Warmest water at the top, coldest at the bottom, creating a temperature gradient.

Fall Turnover

Surface water cools, becomes dense, and sinks, pushing nutrient-rich water from the bottom to the top.

Weather

Short-term atmospheric conditions.

Climate

Long-term averages of weather conditions.

Milankovitch Cycles

Fluctuations in Earth's orbit around the sun.

Greenhouse Gases

Gases in the atmosphere that trap radiating heat, preventing it from escaping into space.

Greenhouse Effect

The trapping of heat in the Earth's atmosphere by greenhouse gases.

Fossil Fuels

Long chains of hydrogen and carbon where energy is stored.

Combustion

Burning fossil fuels to harvest energy, releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.