Unit 8 term study

Behavior

an animals response to a stimulus (internal or external)

\#Nature vs Nurture (Genetic and environmental factors)

Allows for survival and reproduction (Subject to natural selection)

\#Proximate cause

"How" a behavior occurs or is modified

\#Ultimate Cause

"Why" a behavior in context of natural selection

\#Behavior can be

Innate or Learned

\#While learned behaviors lean one way more—

Behaviors have both innate and learned components

\#Innate Behavior (Instinct)

Developmentally fixed

\#Learned Behavior

Depends on environmental influences

\#Ethology

the study of how evolutionary processes shape inherited behaviors and the ways that animals respond to specific stimuli

\#Fixed action patterns (FAPs)

a sequence of unlearned acts directly linked to a stimulus

\#(FAPs) points

-Actions are unchangeable
-Carried out to completion
-Triggered by Sign stimulus

\#Migration

a regular, long-distance change in location

\#Migration is triggered by

Environmental cues (Sun position, Earths magnetic field, Celestial cues)

\#Signal

a stimulus transmitted from one animal to another

\#Signal-points

Visual, Auditory, Tactile, Electrical, Chemical

\#Pheromones

Chemical signals released by an animal that communicate information and affect the behavior of other animals of the same species.

\#Stimulus response chains

When a response to a stimulus serves as the next stimulus for a behavior (Waggle dance)

\#Directed movements

movements towards or away from a stimulus

\#Kinesis

A change in the rate of movement or the frequency of turning movements in response to a stimulus

\#Taxis

a directed movement toward (positive) or away (negative) from a stimulus

\#Phototaxis

movement in response to light

\#Chemotaxis

Movement in response to chemical signals

\#Geotaxis

movement in response to gravity

\#Learning

The modification of behavior based on specific experiences.

\#Imprinting

A long-lasting behavioral response to an individual

\#Imprinting happens during

A sensitive period of development (early stage of life)

\#Special learning

Establishing memories based upon special structure of animal's surroundings

\#associative learning

The ability to associate one environmental feature with another (Monarch butterflies \=foul taste)

\#social learning

Learning through observation and imitations of the observed behavior

\#Natural selection favors

Behaviors (Inate or learned) that increase survival and reproduction

\#Foraging

food-obtaining behavior

\#Animals better at foraging will be more

Successful in finding food

\#Mating behavior

animals can be monogamous or polygamous (polygyny or polyandry)

\#sexual dimorphism

Can result from sexual selection

\#cooperative

Behaviors tend to increase fitness

\#altruism

Selfless behavior

\#alturistic behavior

Reduces the individual fitness but increases the fitness of the rest of population

\#Phototropism

A directional response that allows plants to grow towards (and in some cases away from) a source of light

\#Photoperiodism

Allows plants to develop in response to day length; plants flower only at certain times of the year

\#physical defenses

Thorns, trichomes (small plant like hairs)

\#chemical defenses

Production of toxic or distasteful compounds

\#soil composition

Can affect plants

\#The pH of soil can affect

flower coloring in some plants

\#Ecosystem

The sum of all the organisms living in a given area and the abiotic factors they interact with

\#biotic factors

Living, or once living, components of an environment

\#abiotic factors

Non living (physical and chemical properties of the environment)

\#metabolic rate

The total amount of energy an animal uses in a unit of time

\#Metabolic rate can be measured in

Calories, heat loss,or by the amount of oxygen consumed (or CO2 produced)

\#An animal's metabolic rate is related to its

Body mass

\#smaller organisms\=

higher metabolic rate

\#larger organisms\=

lower metabolic rate

\#SA to V ratio defines

Metabolism rate in organisms

\#Endotherm

Use thermal energy from metabolism to maintain body temp

\#Ectotherm

Use external sources (ie sun/shade or other organisms) to regulate their body temp

\#Unlike mass

Nutrition and energy cannot be recycled

\#The sun

Constantly supplies energy to ecosystems

\#primary producers (autotrophs) use

Light energy to synthesize organic compounds

\#Heterotroph

Rely on autotrophs because they cannot make their own food

\#Comsumers

Primary consumer: Herbivores
Secondary consumer: Carnivores that eat Herbivores
Tertiary consumer: Carnivores that eat other carnivores
Decomposers :Get energy from non living organic material

\#The trophic structures of a community are determined by the

feeding relationships between organisms

\#food chain

The transfer of food energy up the trophic levels

\#food web

Linked food chains.

\#Any changes to the availability of energy

Can disrupt ecosystems

\#primary production

The amount of light energy that is converted to chemical energy

\#gross primary production

The total primary production of an ecosystem.

\#net primary production

The GPP minus energy used by the primary producers for respiration

\#secondary production

The amount of chemical energy in a consumer's food that is converted to new biomass

\#The transfer of energy between trophic levels

Is around 10% efficiency

\#Unlike energy

Matter cycles through ecosystems

\#biogeochemical cycle

Nutrient cycles that contain both biotic and abiotic factor

\#water cycle

Importance:Water is essential for all life and influences the rate of ecosystem processes

\#Carbon cycle

Importance:Carbon is essential for life and requires in the formation of
organic compounds

\#nitrogen cycle

Importance:Nitrogen is important for the formation of amino acids, proteins, and nucleic acids

\#Phosphorus cycle

Importance:Phosphorus is important for the formation of nucleic acids, phospholipids,
and ATP (energy)

\#Population

A group of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area

\#population ecology

Analyzes the factors that affect population size and how and
why it changes over time

\#Density

The number of individuals per unit area

\#Density can be determined by

Counting the number of individuals in the population, Sampling techniques

\#Dispersion

Pattern of spacing among individuals.

\#clumped dispersion

individuals aggregate in patches

\#uniform dispersion

individuals are evenly distributed

\#random dispersion

Random spacing of individuals of the same species within an area.

\#Size of population isn't

Static and is affected by Births/Deaths, Immigration/Emigration

\#Demography

The study of the vital statistics of populations and how they change over time

\#Life table

An age-specific summary of the survival pattern of a population

\#Life table is

Represented by a survivorship curve

\#type 1 curve of survivorship

Low death rate during early/middle life and high death rate later in life

\#type 2 survivorship curve

a constant death rate over the organism's life span

\#type 3 survivorship curve

high death rates for the young, then a slower death rate for survivors

\#exponential growth model

A population living under ideal conditions ( ie access to food,
abundant food, free to reproduce, etc)

\#logistic growth model

The per capita rate of increase approaches zero as the population
size nears its carrying capacity

\#population is influenced by

Natural selection and environmental factors

\#life history

The traits that affect an organism's schedule of reproduction and survival

\#affect life history

1. When reproduction begins
2. How often the organism can reproduce
3. The number of offspring produced per reproductive episode

\#K-selection (High population close to carrying capacity)

Selection for life history traits that are sensitive to population density; also called density-dependent selection.

\#r-selected species (Low population little competition)

Selection for life history traits that maximize reproductive success

\#density dependent regulation

As a population increases, factor can slow or stop growth by decreasing
birth rate and increasing death rate (Competition, predator, Disease)

\#density-independent regulation

Factors that exert their influence on population size, but the birth/death rate
of a population does not change (Weather, Climate, Natural disasters)

\#Community

A group of populations of different species living closely and capable of interacting

\#habitat

A place or part of an ecosystem occupied by an organism