Studied by 3 people
abiotic
Non-living, environmental aspects
abscisic acid
inhibits bud growth and promotes abscission zone formation
abscission
the act of cutting; the natural separation of a leaf or other part of a plant. Due to breakdown of cell layers at their base.
Adaption
inheritable structural, behavioral, or physiological features that increases survival/reproduction
Aestivation
Dormant state that helps an animal withstand extreme temp periods
aggression
belligerent behavior intended to hurt or destroy
Allelopathy
The production of chemicals by plants that inhibit the growth of neighbouring plants
alpha animal
Most dominant individual
Annuals
A flowering plant that completes its entire life cycle in a single year or growing season.
Antibiosis
association between organisms which is injurious to one of them
apical dominance
Tendency for growth to be concentrated at the tip of a plant shoot, because the apical bud partially inhibits axillary bud growth.
apical meristem
area at tip of plant root/stem that produces auxin and is origin of growth/site of mitosis
Auxin
a plant hormone that promotes root formation and bud growth
Batesian mimicry
A type of mimicry in which a harmless species looks like a species that is poisonous or otherwise harmful to predators.
behaviour
responses, actions, or movement made by an animal
biennial
happening every two years
biological clock
An innate mechanism in living organisms that controls the periodicity of many physiological functions.
ecological niche
the role of a species in its habitat, its biotic and abiotic resource requirements
Elongation
lengthening of a cell prior to division, allows growth to be directional
Endogenous
behaviors caused by internal factors which are independent of external stimuli
Entrainment
the process of resetting the internal clock by synchronizing it with an external environmental cue
environment
all of the external factors affecting organisms, both internal and external
ephemerals
plants with a very short lifespan that take advantage of brief favourable conditions, e.g. flowering plants in a desert
epiphytes
a plant growing on another plant, no obtaining nutrients from it, non-parasitic
ethology
the study of animal behaviour
ethylene gas
a plant hormone regulating fruit ripening, abscission, growth and ageing
etiolation
plant condition of excessively long, weak stems (internodes) and small leaves due to lack of light, yellow colouration
exogenous
caused by external stimuli
exploitation
any relationship between species which enhances the fitness of one specices while decreasing the fitness of the other
facultative relationship
type of relationship where the survival of the organisms involved is not reliant upon the relationship
florigen
the plant hormone which is produced in leaves and travels to a shoot axis to trigger flowering
free running
biological rhythm which persists in consistent environmental conditions
gause's principle
two species in the same habitat cannot permanently occupy the same niche/utilize the same limiting resource
gibberenllins
group of plant hormones which promote stem elongation, leaf growth, and other processes
herbivore
animal which consumes only plant material as its source of nutrition
Biotic
aspects of an environment due to the presence of living organisms
chemotropism
growth response of a plant in response to a chemical concentration gradient
circadian
rhythm of behaviour or intensity which cycles over an approx. 24 hour period in normal environmental conditions
circalunar
rhythm of behaviour or intensity which cycles over approx. 29 days in normal environmental conditions
circaannual
rhythm of behaviour or intensity which cycles over an approx. a year under normal environmental conditions
circatidal
rhythm of behvaiour or intensity which cycles over an approx. 12.4 hours under normal environmental
coleoptile
protective sheath covering the shoot of grass seedlings
commensalism
relationship between two species where one benefits and the other is neither harmed or benefitted
competition
occurs when demand for a resource from organisms in an area exceeds supply, both organisms are negatively affected
co-operation
members of a species co-ordinate activities for their mutual benefit
crepuscular
active at dawn and dusk
cytokinins
any of a group of plant hormones which retard ageing, promote budding and cell division and breaking dormancy
day neutral plants
plants which begin flowering at a certain age rather than in response to day length
diapause
a delay in some stage of an arthropods' development
Diunrnal
active during the day
divarication
forking growth pattern in plant branches as a defense against herbivores
dominant
animal at the highest level of dominance in hierarchy, usually maintained by agonistic behaviour
dormancy
state of temporarily reduced metabolism and a subsequent lack of growth and activity
hibernation
period of dormancy during seasonal cold conditions
hierarchy
social order in an animal group where one animal is dominant over another (others)
home range
area where an animal or group of animals seek food but do not generally defend
homing
innate ability of an animal to navigate through unfamiliar areas to an original location
hydrotropism
growth response of plant roots in a particular direction in response to the presence of water
IAA
indol acetic acid - auxin, plant growth hormone, causes cell elongation, promotes cell growth and differentiation
innate
behaviour which is coded in DNA rather than learned, usually exhibited by all members of a species
interspecific
relationship between members of two or more species
intraspecific
relationship between members of the same species
kinesis
non-directional response of an animal to a stimuli, usually relates to rate of movement or frequency of turning
lateral buds
an embryonic shoot which is situated at the junction between a stem and a leaf
legumes
pod-bearing plants that have root nodules containing symbiotic nitrogen fixing bacteria
lianas
a climbing plant
long day plants
plants that begin forming flower buds when sunlight hours exceed their critical period
migration
a regular mass movement of individuals over long distances, usually on a seasonal basis
mimicry
a method of avoiding predation by camouflaging, resembling other species that are harmful, either batesian or mullerian
mullerian mimicry
several unpalatable species resemble eachother
mutualism
close relationship between two species from which both benefit, a form of symbiosis
nastic
non-directional movement response of a plant organ to the intensity of an environmental stimulus
neutrality
organisms in the same place and time whose presence has little/no effect on each other
obligate
an organism or relationship that is required to function in that way for survival, e.g. obligate parasite can only live parasitically
over-wintering
range of processes including hibernation, migration and dormancy by which organisms pass through winter conditions.
pair bonding
development of a social bond between the male and female of a monogamous pair
perennials
plants which continue to flower for several years
phase shift
shifting the start time of a rhythm due to a change in environmental conditions
pheromones
chemical released by an animal which influences the behaviour of other members of its species.
photoperiod
the number of daylight hours - changes throughout the year in seasonal environments
phototropism
directional growth response of plants in response to the direction of light
physiological tolerance
the range of values of an abiotic factor that an organism can survive in
phytochrome
the blue-green protein pigment found in most plants which acts as the light receptor for several processes
plant hormone
chemical in a plant which results in a response by other cells in the plant
predation
members of one species kill/eat members of another species
scarification
damage to seed coat required for germination
seed masting
synchronized production of large volumes of seeds within a population of plants
short day plants
plants that begin forming flower buds when sunlight hours are shorter than their critical period.
stimuli
an aspect of the environment which causes some responses, detected by a receptor or sensor
stratification
the vertical pattern of species distribution seen in a community
submissive behaviour
behaviour which reduces aggression from a dominant individual and reinforces the lower status of another
subordinate
animal at a lower level of hierarchy
symbiosis
organisms from different species living in long-lasting and dependent relationships in which at least one participant benefits
taxes
movement of an animal in response to a directional stimulus either towards or away from it
territory
area defended by an animal, usually from animals of the same species
thigmotropism
growth response of plants in response to an object or contact with it
tropism
plant growth in response to the direction of an environmental stimulus, either towards or away from
vernalisation
exposure to cold temperatures that enables or accelerates flowering in some plants, or is needed for seeds to germinate
waggle dance
communication behaviour in bees to direct other forages to a food source
zietgeber
an external environmental cue used to synchronise rhythmic behaviours with external environmental conditions/rhythms
Note 
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