apes unit two (the living world: biodiversity)

gross primary productivity

(GPP) total amount of energy capture by producers

net primary productivity

(NPP) amount of energy available to the next trophic level

terrestrial biomes ranked from highest to lowest NPP

tropical rainforest

deciduous

temperate rainforest

down to tundra

aquatic biomes ranked from highest to lowest NPP

coral

estuarie

marsh/swamp

intertidal

down to open ocean

species richness

the amount of species

genetic diversity

a measure of the genetic variation among individuals in a population

population bottlneck

if a large population declines in number, the amount of genetic diversity carried by the surviving individuals is greatly reduced

habitat diversity

the variety of habitats that exist in a given ecosystem

specialists

species that only live under a narrow range of biotic or abbiotic conditions

generalists

species that can live under a wide range of biotic or abiotic conditions

ecosystem diversity

the variety of ecosystems that exist in a given region

high genetic diversity is a benefits because…

is strengthens the long term persistence of populations because they are better able to respond to environmental change compared to populations with lower genetic diversity

species evenness

the relative proportion of individuals of a given species in a given area

ecosystem services

the processes by which life-supporting resources such as clean water, timber, fisheries and agricultural crops are produced

provisions

a good produced by an ecosystem that humans can use directly such as regulating services, support systems, and cultural services

island biogeography

islands that are larger and closer to the mainland tend to have a higher species richness due to increased immigration and lower extinction rates

ecological tolerance

the suite of abiotic conditions under which a species can survive, grow and reproduce (also known as the “fundamental niche”)

realized niche

the range of abiotic and biotic conditions under which a species actually lives

mass extinction

a large amount of species that went extinct over a relatively short amount of time

gene flow

individuals move from one population to another bringing different genetic compositions into those populations

genetic drift

a change in genetic composition diue to random mating

founder effect

a part of the population randomly ends up in a new place

natural selection

primarily influenced by the survival and reproductive success of individuals with advantageous traits

inbreeding depression

the reduced survival and fertility of offspring of related individuals

ecosystem resilience

the ability of an ecosystem to absorb a disturbance

ecosystem resistance

the ability of an ecosystem to come back from a disturbance