AP BIO CH 52 VOCAB

Ecology

The study of how organisms interact with each other

Biosphere

The entire portion of Earth inhabited by life, the sum of all the planet's ecosystems

Global ecology

The study of the functioning and distribution of organisms across the biosphere and how the regional exchange of energy and materials affects them

Landscape

an area containing several different ecosystems linked by exchanges of energy, materials and organisms

Landscape ecology

the study of how the spatial arrangement of habitat types affects the distribution and abundance of organisms and ecosystem processes

Ecosystem

All the organisms in a given area as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact; one or more communities and the physical environment around them

Ecosystem ecology

The study of energy flow and the cycling of chemicals among the various biotic and abiotic components in an ecosystem

Community

All the organisms that inhabit a particular area; an assemblage of populations of different species living close enough together for potential interaction

Community ecology

The study of how interactions between species affect community structure and organization

Population

a group of inidividuals of the same species that live in the same area and interbreed, producing fertile offspring

Population ecology

the study of population in relation to their environment, including environmental influences on population density and distribution, age structure and variations in population size

Organismal ecology

The branch of ecology concerned with the morphological, physiological and behavioral ways in which individual organisms meet the challenges posed by their biotic and abiotic environments

Climate

The long-term prevailing weather conditions at a given place

Macroclimate

large-scale patterns in climate; the climate of an entire region

Microclimate

climate patterns on a very fine scale, such as the specific climatic conditions underneath a log

Abiotic

Nonliving; referring to the physical and chemical properties of an environment

Biotic

pertaining to the living factors-the organisms-in an environment

Biome

Any of the world's major ecosystem types, often classified according to the predominant vegetation for terrestrial biomes and physical environment for aquatic

Disturbance

A natural or human-caused even that changes a biological community and usually removes organisms from it. Disturbances such as fires and storms, play a pivotal role in structuring many communities

Tropical forest

dry: a terrestrial biome characterized by relatively high temperatures and precipitation overall but with a pronounced dry season; rain: a terrestrial biome characterized by relatively high precipitation and temperatures year-round

Desert

A terrestrial biome characterized by very low precipitation

Savanna

a tropical grassland biome with scattered individual trees and large herbivores and maintained by occasional fires and drought

Chaparral

A scrubland biome of dense, spiny evergreen shrubs found at midlatitudes along coasts where cold ocean currents circulate offshore; characterized by mild, rainy waters

Temperate grassland

a terrestrial biome that exists at midlatitude regions and is dominated by grasses and forbs

Northern coniferous forest

a terrestrial biome characterized by long, cold winters and dominated by long, cold winters and dominated by cone-bearing trees

Temperate broadleaf forest

a biome located throughout midlatitude regions where there is sufficient moisture to support the growth of large, broadleaf deciduous trees

Tundra

a terrestrial biome at the extreme limits of plant growth. at the northernmost limits, it is called arctic tundra, and at high altitudes, where plant forms are limited to how shrubby or matlike vegetation, it is called alpine tundra

Photic zone

the narrow top layer of an ocean or lake, where light penetrates sufficiently for photosynthesis to occur

Aphotic zone

The part of an ocean or lake beneath the photic zone where light does not penetrate sufficiently for

Pelagic zone

open ocean

Abyssal zone

The part of the ocean's benthic zone between 2,000 and 6,000 m deep

Benthic zone

The bottom surface of an aquatic environment

Detritus

Dead organic matter

Thermocline

a narrow stratum of abrupt temperature change in the ocean and in many temperate-zone lakes

Turnover

the mixing of waters as a result of changing water-temperature profiles in a lake

Lakes

Standing bodies of water that range in size with differing salinity, oxygen concentration and nutrient content. Can become stratified and possess photosynthetic organisms. Humans contribute to the eutrophication process by runoff from fertilized land and dumping of wastes.

Oligotrophic

a nutrient-poor, clear lake with few phytoplankton

Eutrophic

nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen) become highly concentrated in a body of water, leading to increased growth of organisms such as algae or cyanobacteria; A body of water that has a high rate of biological productivity supported by a high rate of nutrient cycling. The high nutrient content typically correlates with lower oxygen levels.

Wetland

a habitat that is inundated by water at least some of the time and that supports plants adapted to water-saturated soil

Streams and rivers

An aquatic biome. The most prominent physical characteristic is current. Can be stratified into vertical zones. Have a unique chemical environment and also may contain photosynthetic organisms

Estuaries

The area where a freshwater stream or river merges with the ocean

Intertidal zone

the shallow zone of the ocean adjacent to land and between the high- and low-tide lines

Oceanic pelagic zone

most of the ocean's waters far from shore, constantly mixed by ocean currents

Coral reef

Typically a warm-water, tropical ecosystem dominated by the hard skeletal structures secreted primarily by corals. Some coral reefs also exist in cold, deep waters.

Marine benthic zone

the ocean floor

Dispersal

The movement of individuals or gametes away from their parent location. This movement sometimes expands the geographic range of a population of species.