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Pioneer Species

Species that colonize barren land first to allow others to come in. Examples include lichens, fungi, bacteria, fireweed, grasses, alder, and willow.

Keystone Species

Species like sea otters, American alligators, bees, large mammalian predators, sea stars, hummingbirds, and tiger sharks that have a significant impact on their ecosystem.

Indicator Species

Species sensitive to environmental changes used to assess ecosystem quality, such as red maple, sugar maple, American toad, and monarch butterfly.

Umbrella Species

Species selected for conservation efforts because protecting them safeguards many other species in the ecosystem.

Sentinel Species

Animals like earthworms, soil insects, gophers, moles, and mice used to detect risks to humans by providing advance warning of dangers.

Parasite

Organism living on or in another organism, metabolically dependent, leading to an inverse pyramid in ecosystems.

Parasitoid

Insect parasite whose larvae eventually kill its host.

Invasive Species

Species like cane toads, emerald ash borers, zebra mussels, and bullfrogs that pose threats by outcompeting local species for resources.

Facilitation

Organism providing passive benefits to other organisms in its proximity.

Productivity

Primary production, gross primary production (GPP), net primary production (NPP), and net ecosystem production (NEP) are measures of energy conversion and accumulation in ecosystems.

Origin of Species

Book by Darwin, basis of evolutionary biology, discusses natural selection

Silent Spring

Book by Rachel Carson on biomagnification and indiscriminate pesticide use

Keeling Curve

Graph of accumulated CO2 in the atmosphere observed at Mauna Loa

Land Ethic

Philosophy focusing on healthy ecosystems and rejecting human-centered views

Tragedy of the Commons

Depletion of public resources due to self-interest

Chernobyl (1986)

Nuclear radiation spill causing health issues

Detritus Feeding

Consumption of plant material by detritivores

Life History Theory

Trade-offs between different fitness components

Succession

Nudation, invasion, competition, climax stages in ecosystem development

Competitive Exclusion Principle

Two species competing for the same resource cannot coexist

Mutualism

Symbiotic relationship where both species benefit

Parasitism

Relationship where one species benefits at the expense of the other

Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium

Genetic variation remains constant in a population

Resource Ratio Hypothesis

Species competition based on resource levels

Allen's Rule

Endotherms in cold climates have shorter limbs

Lotka-Volterra Model

Describes predator-prey dynamics in ecological systems

Gaia Hypothesis

Living organisms interact with inorganic surroundings to maintain life

Red Queen Hypothesis

Constant adaptations to compete with other species

Müllerian mimicry

Harmful species mimic each other to mutually advertise their harmfulness and deter predators (Proposed by Henry Walter Bates and Fritz Müller)

Mertensian mimicry

A deadly mimic resembles a less harmful species to avoid detection (Proposed by M.G Emsley)

Vavilovian mimicry

Weeds evolve to share characteristics with domesticated plants (Proposed by Nikolai Vavilov)

Wasmannian/Auto mimicry

Parasitic organism mimics its host (the model) in order to live in the same nest of structure

Gilbertian mimicry

Potential host of a parasite drives it away by resembling the parasite

Peckhamian mimicry

Predators mimic harmless models to avoid being identified as predators by prey

Self mimicry

Body parts mimic other body parts within the same organism

Fixed action pattern

Instinctive behavior triggered by specific stimuli in a species

Migration types

Complete, Partial, Differential, Male American kestrels migrate longer than females, Interruptive

Photosynthesis

Process of converting light energy into chemical energy in plants

Chemosynthesis

Conversion of inorganic compounds into organic matter by some organisms

Taxon types

Monophyletic, Polyphyletic, Paraphyletic

Selection types

Stabilizing, Directional, Disruptive or diversifying

Ecological density

Number of individuals per area that can be colonized by a species

Miscellaneous ecological concepts

Allee effect (individual fitness ∝ population size), Connectance, Resilience, Resistance, Biomagnification

Niche types

Habitat, Food, Reproductive, Chemical

Population growth equations

Biotic potential, Per capita growth formula, Lokta-Volterra Equations

Diversity types

Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Zeta

Population genetics concepts

Population bottleneck (a disaster wipes out most of population leading to more interbreeding which can cause an extinction vortex), Founder effect (same as bottleneck but due to an organism habituating a new area not a natural disaster), Allelopathy, Coprophagy (eating of feces)

Marine and Terrestrial biomes

Lentic, Lotic, Tundra, Antarctic

Antarctic Hair Grass (Deschampsia antarctica) and Antarctic Pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis)

Two flowering plant species found in the Antarctic region.

Alpine Biome

Found at mountain tops with well-drained soil and no permafrost.

Arctic Biome

Located at the North Pole with permafrost, poor drainage, and marshes in summer.

Biodiversity in Arctic Tundra

Low biodiversity with notable plants like blueberry, crowberry, and animals like reindeer, Arctic fox, and polar bears.

Desert Biome

Covers 33% of the Earth's surface with low rainfall, high evaporation, and specialized vegetation and animals.

Deciduous Forest Biome

Covers 9% of the Earth's surface with diverse flora and fauna adapted to four seasons.

Boreal Forest/Taiga Biome

World's largest land biome with acidic soil, dominated by conifers, and unique features like muskeg.

Tropical Deciduous Forest Biome

Characterized by constant warm temperatures, two seasons, and deciduous trees losing leaves in the dry season.

Deforestation

Highest in Brazil, leading to forest degradation and desertification, with solutions like reforestation and carbon credit systems.

Environmental Pollution

Includes air, water, soil, noise, radioactive, thermal, and light pollution, with impacts on ecosystems and human health.

Nitrogen Oxides

Affects water bodies' pH, leaches aluminum from soil, dissolves magnesium and calcium

Dry Acid Deposition

Acidic dust and particles deposited on surfaces, making water bodies more acidic

Biomagnification

Toxins accumulate in higher trophic levels through contaminated organisms

Bioremediation

Use of microorganisms to break down pollutants for environmental cleanup

In-Situ Methods

Treating contaminants at the same site using biological systems

Ex-Situ Methods

Treating contaminants away from the original site

Phytoremediation

Use of plants to remove pollutants from ecosystems

Environmental Worldviews

Biocentric, Stewardship, Earth-centered, Ecofeminist, Anthropocentric, Deep Ecology

Population Growth

Generation time (avg. time between 2 consecutive generations), Reproduction potential, Habitat destruction, City expansion

Farming Practices

Impact on forest cover, groundwater, living organisms

Waste-to-Energy Plants

Pros and cons of converting waste to energy

Soil Types

Entisols, Gelisol/Cryosols, Alfisols, Andisols, Aridisols, Histosols, Inceptisols, Mollisols, Oxisols, Spodosols, Ultisols

Vertisols

Clay-rich soils that swell when wet and shrink upon drying, forming deep cracks.

Anthrosols

Soils heavily impacted by human activities like agriculture or irrigation.

Necrosol

Anthropogenic soil found in cemeteries due to human bodies.

Terra Preta

Rich black fertile soil in the Amazon region.

Nutrients

Essential elements like C, H, O, N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, B, Mb, Cl required for plant growth.

Nitrogen

Essential for amino acids, enzymes, and chlorophyll production in plants.

Phosphorus

Crucial for DNA, RNA, ATP, and photosynthesis in plants.

Potassium

Important for enzyme activation, metabolism, and disease resistance in plants.

Climax

Different types including climactic, edaphic, catastrophic, disclimax, subclimax, preclimax, and postclimax.

Legislation

Various laws like the Wilderness Act, Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, and others regulating environmental protection.

TEK

Indigenous ecological knowledge accumulated over centuries for sustainable resource management.

Fire Stick Burning

Aboriginal Australian technique of controlled burning for vegetation management.

7th Gen Stewardship

Iroquois principle emphasizing long-term sustainability and responsibility for future generations.

Forest Gardening

Sustainable plant-based food production based on woodland ecosystems.

Chagras System

Agroforestry system developed by Amazon indigenous communities based on shifting agriculture.

Multilayered Agroforestry

Agroforestry system with canopy, understory, shrub, herbaceous, and ground layers.

Tanada

Traditional Japanese agricultural technique using terraced fields to prevent erosion and conserve water.

Alpha diversity

Species richness within a specific ecosystem.

Beta diversity

Rate of diversity change throughout an ecosystem.

Gamma diversity

Total species richness across a larger landscape.

Lotka competition

A type of competition between two populations where α12 expresses the effect of one member of Population 2 on the growth rate of Population 1.

α12

It represents the effect of one member of Population 2 on the growth rate of Population 1 in Lotka competition.

α21

It expresses the effect of one member of Population 1 on the growth rate of Population 2 in Lotka competition.