Bio Semester 1 Vocab

Tropical Rain Forest

Location- Belem, BrazilAbotic- Hot weather year round 250 mm monthly. Nutrent poor soil
Biotic-HIGH

Northwestern coniferous forest

Temperature -40c to 20c average summer temperature is 10c
Precipitation: 300 to 900 mm of rain per year
Vegetation- Coniferous evergreen trees (trees with needles remain on the trees all year long
Location- Canada, Europe, Asia, and the US
Other- Coniferous forest regions have cold, long, snowy winers, and warm, humid summers. they have well-defined seasons and at least 4 to 6 frost-free months.
Location- Alberta, Canada.medium

Desert

Temperature: adverage of 38c (day), average of -3.9C (night)
Percipitation- about 250mm of rain per yearVegitation- Cacti, small bushes, short grassesLocation- 15-35 degrees latitude (north and south of the equator:) Great basin (north america)low

Grassland

Temperature: dependent on latitude: yearMedium highPrecipitation: 300-200 monthlyVegetation- mostly grassLocation- texas
summers. they have well-defined seasons and at least 4 to 6 frost-free months.

Tropical grassland

meduim lowTemperature- 0 CPerception- 150 a monthVegetation- fire resistantLocation- Africa

Weather

The day to day condition, and condition of the Earth's Atmosphere. Ex. Think about it

Climate

average conditions over long periods Ex. Key question

Microclimates

environmental conditions that vary over small distances. Ex. key question

greenhouse effect

when greenhouse gases, function like glass in a greenhouse, allowing visible light to enter but trapping heat. Ex figure 4-1

Tolerance

The ability to Survive Ex. Figure 4-4

Habitat

The general place where an organism lives Ex. 4-7

niche

what a organism does and how it interacts with biotic and abiotic factors in the environment. Ex. 4-5

resource

refers to any necessity of life, such as water, nutrients, light, food, or space. Ex. key question

competitive exclusion principle

states that no two species can occupy exactly the same time. Ex. 4-6

Predation

captures and feeds on another animal Ex. keep question Ex. Key question

Herbivory

An interaction in which animals feeds on producers Ex. 4-8

keystone species

Species that when population of them changes it causes dramatic changes in the structure of a community.

Symbiosis

any relationship in which two species live closely together Ex. key question.

Mutualism

Both species benefit from each other Ex. 4-9

Parasitism

relationships in which one organism lives inside or on another organism and harms it. 4-10

Commensalism

A relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed 4-11

ecological succession

a series of more or less predictable changes that occur in a community over time 4-12

Primary succession

succession that begins in an area with no remnants of an older community 4-12

Pioneer species

the first species to colonize barren areas 4-12

Secondary succession

where a disturbance affects the community without completely destroying it. 4-13

Canopy

dense covering formed by the leafy tops of tall rain forest trees 4-16

understory

layer in a rain forest formed by shorter trees and vines 4-16

deciduous

Trees and shrubs that shed their leaves at the end of the growing season 4-16

coniferous

of or relating to or part of trees or shrubs bearing cones and evergreen leaves 4-16

humus

a material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter. 4-16

taiga

biome in which the winters are cold but summers are mild enough to allow the ground to thaw 4-16

permafrost

layer of permanently frozen subsoil in the tundra 4- 16

Photic zone

the sunlit region near the surface in which 4-20

aphotic zone

permanently dark layer of the oceans below the photic zone 4-25

benthos

a region including the bottom of the sea and the littoral zones 4-22

plankton

the aggregate of small plant and animal organisms that float or drift in great numbers in fresh or salt water 4-22

wetland

Ecosystem in which water either covers the soil or is present at or near the surface. 4-21

Estuary

a special kind of wetland, formed where a river meets the sea. 4-21

Eukaryote

A cell that contains a nucleus and membrane bound organelles

Prokaryote

A unicellular organism that lacks a nucleus and membrane bound organelles

Heterotroph

An organism that cannot make its own food.

Autotroph

An organism that makes its own food

cellular respiration

Process that releases energy by breaking down glucose and other food molecules in the presence of oxygen

Photosynthesis

Conversion of light energy from the sun into chemical energy.

Atom

Basic unit of matter

Proton

A subatomic particle that has a positive charge and that is found in the nucleus of an atom

Electron

A subatomic particle that has a negative charge

Neutron

A small particle in the nucleus of the atom, with no electrical charge

Molecule

two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds

Cell

Basic unit of life

Tissue

A group of similar cells that perform the same function.

Organ

A collection of tissues that carry out a specialized function of the body

organ system

group of organs that work together to perform a specific function

Organism

A living thing

Macromolecules

A very large organic molecule composed of many smaller molecules

Monomer

A simple compound whose molecules can join together to form polymers

Polymer

A long molecule consisting of many similar or identical monomers linked together.

Lipids

Energy-rich organic compounds, such as fats, oils, and waxes, that are made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.

Nucleic Acid

macromolecule containing hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus

Nucleotide

monomer of nucleic acids made up of a 5-carbon sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base

Monosaccharides

Single sugar molecules

Disaccharide

A double sugar molecule made of two monosaccharides bonded together through dehydration synthesis.

Polysaccharides

Carbohydrates that are made up of more than two monosaccharides

-ose

sugar

Carbohydrates

the starches and sugars present in foods

amino acids

monomers of proteins

Protein

An organic compound that is made of one or more chains of amino acids and that is a principal component of all cells

Enzymes

Proteins that speed up chemical reactions

-ase

forms names of enzymes

microscope

An instrument that makes small objects look larger

stage

Supports the slide being viewed

coarse objective knob

moves the body tube up and down to allow focusing of the image

fine focus knob

Used to focus the image on high power

Diaphragm

Regulates the amount of light on the specimen

water

H2O

hydrogen bonding

Bonds between hydrogen atom and oxygen atom of another water molecule

polar covalent bond

A covalent bond in which electrons are not shared equally

nonpolar covalent bond

a covalent bond in which the electrons are shared equally by the two atoms

Hydrophobic

Water fearing

Hydrophilic

water loving

Adhesion

An attraction between molecules of different substances

Cohesion

Attraction between molecules of the same substance

capillary action

the attraction of the surface of a liquid to the surface of a solid

Monoculture

the practice of clearing large areas of land and planting a single highly productive crop year after year

renewable resource

A natural resource (as wood or solar energy) that can be produced or replaced naturally by a healthy ecosystem

nonrenewable resources

a natural resource that cannot be replaced once it is used

sustainable development

using resources to meet human needs without causing long-term environmental harm

desertification

The process of overusing soil to the point of it turning into a desert.

deforestation

Destruction of forests

pollutant

a harmful material that can enter the biosphere

biological magnification

when a pollutant is picked up by an organism and is not broken down or eliminated from its body allowing concentrations to increase at each trophic level

smog

a haze formed by pollutants in the air

acid rain

when nitrogen and sulfur compounds combine with water vapor in the air and fall to earth as precipitation

biodiversity

the total of all genetically based variation in all organisms in the biosphere

Ecosystem diversity

Variety of habitats, communities, and ecological processes in the biosphere

species diversity

the number of different species in the biosphere or in a particular area

Genetic diversity

the sum total of all different forms of genetic information carried by a particular species, or all organisms on the earth

habitat fragmentation

when development splits ecosystems into pieces

ecological hot spot

a place where significant numbers of species and habitats are in immediate danger of extinction

ecological footprint

The total amount of resources the average person uses.