A1

A1 - Intro to Forest Biology

FAO Forest Definition: Land with a tree canopy, cover > 10% of area of > 0.5 hectors, trees minimum height of 5 meters.

Forest Ecosystems: Ecosystem is the assemblage as well as the physical environment, inputs, and outputs.

1) Use biological hierarchies to show how an emergent property from one level helps us understand the biology at another level.

Biology has hierarchies. Each hierarchical level has different structures properties, behaviors.

2) Define and use properly: emergent property

Emergent Properties: Visible only at next level. Emergent properties are entirely new traits that develop from smaller component traits.

3) Define and use properly: forest biology

Forest Biology: The study attributes and themes of living things of all sorts that are in the forest. (soil organisms, fungi, fish and wildlife)

4) Recall at least three reasons to justify studying forests.

• Occupy a large portion of the Earths surface.

• Forests are very productive

• Large effect on life on Earth.

gymnosperm: seed plants with no flowers. (produce cones) softwood

angiosperm: seed plants that produce flowers. hardwood

fundamental niche: The full range of environmental conditions for an organisms to survive, grow, and reproduce.

fundamental niche: the actual environmental conditions under which an organism is found.

habitat niche: the resources and environmental conditions present in an area that allows species to survive.