bio ecology study guide

Vocabulary Terms

  • abiotic: Non-living factors affecting the ecosystem

  • endangered: Species at risk of extinction

  • omnivore: Organism that eats both plants and animals

  • acid rain: Rainfall made acidic by atmospheric pollution

  • environment: Surroundings where organisms live

  • parasitism: Relationship where one organism benefits at the expense of another

  • apex predator: Top predator with no natural enemies

  • eutrophication: Excess nutrients in water bodies causing algal blooms

  • parasite/host: Organism that lives on/in another (host) and benefits from it

  • autotroph: Organism that produces its own food

  • exotic: Non-native species introduced to an ecosystem

  • poaching: Illegal hunting of wildlife

  • biodiversity: Variety of life in an ecosystem

  • exponential growth: Rapid increase in population size

  • population: Group of individuals of the same species

  • biomagnification: Increase in concentration of toxins in organisms higher in the food chain

  • extant: Still in existence

  • positive feedback loop: Process where a change leads to further changes in the same direction

  • biomass: Total mass of living matter in a given area

  • extinct: No longer existing

  • predator: Organism that hunts and eats other organisms

  • biome: Large area characterized by its vegetation, soil, and climate

  • food chain: Linear flow of energy between organisms

  • prey: Organism that is hunted and eaten

  • biotic: Living factors affecting the ecosystem

  • food web: Complex interconnections of food chains in an ecosystem

  • primary consumer: Organism that feeds on producers (herbivores)

  • carnivore: Organism that eats other animals

  • global climate change: Long-term changes in temperature and weather patterns

  • producer: Organism that produces energy from sunlight or chemicals

  • carrying capacity: Maximum population size that an environment can sustain

  • greenhouse gas: Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere

  • resilience: Ability to recover from disturbances

  • CFC: Chlorofluorocarbons, ozone-depleting chemicals

  • habitat: Place where an organism lives

  • resource: Naturally occurring materials used by organisms

  • climate: Long-term weather patterns of an area

  • herbivore: Organism that eats plants

  • resource partitioning: Division of resources to avoid competition

  • climax community: Stable community that undergoes little change

  • heterotroph: Organism that consumes other organisms for energy

  • secondary consumer: Organism that feeds on primary consumers

  • climograph: Graph of climate data

  • interspecific competition: Competition between different species

  • species: Group of organisms capable of interbreeding

  • commensalism: One organism benefits while the other is unaffected

  • intraspecific competition: Competition among the same species

  • succession: Process of change in an ecological community

  • community: All the different populations in an area

  • invasive: Non-native species that disrupt ecosystems

  • symbiosis: Close relationship between different species

  • competition: Struggle between organisms for the same resources

  • keystone species: Species that has a disproportionately large impact on its ecosystem

  • tertiary consumer: Organism that feeds on secondary consumers

  • competitive exclusion: Principle that two species competing for the same resources cannot coexist

  • limiting factor: Condition that limits growth of a population

  • threatened: Species likely to become endangered

  • consumer: Organism that consumes other organisms for energy

  • logistic growth: Population growth that levels off as resources become limited

  • tipping point: Threshold beyond which significant changes occur

  • DDT: Pesticide that causes ecological harm

  • mutualism: Relationship where both species benefit

  • trophic level: Position in food chain/web

  • decomposer: Organism that breaks down waste

  • negative feedback loop: Process where a change leads to counteracting effects

  • trophic pyramid: Representation of energy distribution among trophic levels

  • detritivore: Organism that feeds on dead organic matter

  • niche: Role of an organism in its habitat

  • weather: Short-term atmospheric conditions

  • ecosystem: Community of living organisms and their environment

  • ocean acidification: Decrease in pH of ocean due to absorbing CO2

Key Questions and Topics

  1. Food Chains: Short due to energy loss and limited resources.

  2. Autotrophs vs. Heterotrophs: Autotrophs produce food; heterotrophs consume it; decomposers recycle nutrients.

  3. Consumer Categories: - Herbivore: Plant eater

    • Carnivore: Meat eater

    • Detritivore: Feeds on dead matter

    • Omnivore: Eats both plants and animals.

  4. Food Web Example: Grass (producer), grain (producer), rabbit (primary consumer), mouse (primary consumer), snake (secondary consumer), fox (tertiary consumer), hawk (tertiary consumer). Arrows indicate energy flow.

  5. Energy Flow: Enters ecosystem via sunlight; leaves as heat or through consumers.

  6. Significance of Autotrophs: Essential for energy conversion and ecosystem function.

  7. Nutrient Cycling vs. Energy Flow: Nutrients are recycled; energy flows through and is lost.

  8. Feedback Loops: - Positive: Accelerates change (e.g., climate warming).

    • Negative: Stabilizes system (e.g., population control).

  9. Mate Selection: Important for species continuity; done through signals and displays.

  10. Sequential Hermaphroditism: Organism changes sex to maximize reproduction success.

  11. Population Growth: Unlimited resources lead to exponential growth; limited by predators, disease, and resources, resulting in logistic growth.

  12. Disturbances: Permanent (habitat destruction) vs. temporary (natural disasters).

  13. Increasing Carrying Capacity: Sustainable practices and resource management.

  14. Limiting Factors: Density-dependent (e.g., food scarcity) vs. density-independent (e.g., natural disasters).

  15. Succession Dynamics: Species replace others as they adapt to new conditions.

  16. Succession Types: Primary (developing on lifeless surfaces) vs. secondary (after disturbances).

  17. Ecosystem Recovery: Stable ecosystems recover via species turnover; stressed ecosystems may struggle.

  18. Energy Transfer: ~10% of energy moves to the next trophic level; the rest is lost as heat.

  19. Predator/Prey Dynamics: Predator increase reduces prey, and prey increase can support more predators.

  20. Symbiosis Examples: - Mutualism: Bees and flowers

  • Commensalism: Barnacles on whales

  • Parasitism: Ticks on animals.

  1. Avoiding Competition: Animals may use different resources or habitats.

  2. Exotic Species Impact: Can outcompete natives, disrupt food webs, and alter habitats.

  3. Human Impacts: Pollution, overexploitation, habitat destruction.

  4. Endangerment Causes: Habitat loss, climate change, pollution.

  5. Species Extinction Rate: Current rates exceed natural background rates, signaling a biodiversity crisis.

  6. Biodiversity Importance: Maintains ecosystem stability, resilience, and resource availability.

  7. Atmospheric CO2 Issues: Global warming and ocean acidification.

  8. Acid Rain Causes: Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides in atmosphere; harms ecosystems.

  9. Ozone Depletion Causes: CFCs harm stratospheric ozone, protecting life from UV radiation.

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