APES test

  • Biosphere  The region of our planet where life resides; the combination of all ecosystems on Earth.

  • Producer  An organism that uses the energy of the Sun to produce usable forms of energy. Also known as Autotroph.

  • Photosynthesis  The process by which producers use solar energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose.

  • Cellular respiration  The process by which cells unlock the energy of chemical compounds.

  • Aerobic respiration – requires oxygen (more energy).

  • Anaerobic respiration – does not require oxygen.

  • Consumer  An organism that is incapable of photosynthesis and must obtain its energy by consuming other organisms. Also known as Heterotroph.

  • Herbivore A consumer that eats producers. Also known as Primary consumer.

  • Carnivore  A consumer that eats other consumers.

  • Secondary consumer  A carnivore that eats primary consumers.

  • Tertiary consumer  A carnivore that eats secondary consumers.

  • Trophic levels  The successive levels of organisms consuming one another.

  • Food chain  The sequence of consumption from producers through tertiary consumers.

  • Food web  A complex model of how energy and matter move between trophic levels.

  • Scavenger  An organism that consumes dead animals.

  • Detritivore  An organism that specializes in breaking down dead tissues and waste products into smaller particles.

  • Decomposers  Fungi and bacteria that convert organic matter into small elements and molecules that can be recycled back into the ecosystem.

  • Gross primary productivity (GPP)
    total amount of solar energy that producers in an ecosystem capture via photosynthesis over a given amount of time
    (total carbon fixed by producers / biomass)

  • Net primary productivity (NPP) 
    The energy captured by producers in an ecosystem minus the energy producers respire.

  • Biomass  The total mass of all living matter in a specific area.

  • Ecological efficiency  The proportion of consumed energy that can be passed from one trophic level to another. (rule of 10%)

  • Trophic pyramid  A representation of the distribution of biomass, numbers, or energy among trophic levels.

  • Transpiration  The release of water from leaves during photosynthesis.

  • Evapotranspiration  The combined amount of evaporation and transpiration.

  • Runoff  Water that moves across the land surface and into streams and rivers.

  • Human Impacts
    Withdrawal & overuse 

  • Dam construction & irrigation

  • Deforestation & urbanization

  • Increase of impervious surfaces
    (roofs, roads, parking lots etc)

  • Runoff & less recharge for groundwater

  • Pollution

  • Carbon cycle  The movement of carbon around the biosphere.

  • Building block of all cellular components (macromolecules: DNA, protein, lipids & carbs)

  • Has fast and slow components

  • Modern vs ancient (fossil) carbon

  • Sources vs sinks

  • Sinks (reservoirs) are places where carbon is stored

    • Oceans, rocks & living organism / biomass like trees

Sources where carbon is released from

  • Emissions from combustion, deforestation, agriculture, respiration & decomposition

  • Fast Cycling of Carbon


  • Photosynthesis

  • Cellular respiration

  • Decomposition 

  • Slow Cycling of Carbon

  • Sedimentation (rock formation)

  • Volcanic activity

  • Fossil fuel formation

Human impacts on Carbon Cycle

  • Combustion of fossil fuels

  • Deforestation

  • Agriculture

  • Industrial process (cement production)

  • Limiting nutrient  A nutrient required for the growth of an organism but available in a lower quantity than other nutrients.

  • Nitrogen cycle  The movement of nitrogen around the biosphere. 

  • Nitrogen is a component of DNA and Proteins (amino acids)

Nitrogen Sources and Sinks

Sinks

  • Largest reservoir = Atmosphere (N2 is 78% of air)

Sources:

  • Nitrogen fixation (bacteria in soil convert N2 into usable ammonia)

Human Impacts on Nitrogen Cycle

  • Synthetic fertilizer 

  • Combustion of fossil fuels

  • Deforestation

  • Eutrophication

  • Nitrogen fixation  A process by which some organisms can convert nitrogen gas molecules directly into ammonia.

  • Nitrification  The conversion of ammonia (NH4+) into nitrite (NO2– ) and then into nitrate (NO3– ).

  • Assimilation  The process by which producers incorporate elements into their tissues.

  • Mineralization The process by which fungal and bacterial decomposers break down the organic matter found in dead bodies and waste products and convert it into inorganic compounds.

  • Ammonification  The process by which fungal and bacterial decomposers break down the organic nitrogen found in dead bodies and waste products and convert it into inorganic ammonium (NH4+).

  • Denitrification  The conversion of nitrate (NO3– ) in a series of steps into the gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and, eventually, nitrogen gas (N2), which is emitted into the atmosphere.

  • Leaching  The transportation of dissolved molecules through the soil via groundwater.

  • Phosphorus cycle  The movement of phosphorus around  the biosphere. 

  • Algal bloom  A rapid increase in the algal population of a waterway.

  • Hypoxic  Low in oxygen.

  • Sulfur cycle  The movement of sulfur around the biosphere. 

  • Disturbance  An event, caused by physical, chemical, or biological agents, resulting in changes in population size or community composition.

  • Resistance  A measure of how much a disturbance can affect flows of energy and matter in an ecosystem.

  • Resilience  The rate at which an ecosystem returns to its original state after a disturbance.

  • Restoration ecology  The study and implementation of restoring damaged ecosystems.

  • Watershed  All land in a given landscape that drains into a particular stream, river, lake, or wetland.

  • Intermediate disturbance hypothesis  The hypothesis that ecosystems experiencing intermediate levels of disturbance are more diverse than those with high or low disturbance levels.