2 - Ecology of Life Flashcards
It is a network of interdependent components and processes, with materials and energy flowing from one of its components to another.
System
It consists of compartments called “state variables” which store resources such as energy or matter, and the flows, or the pathways by which those resources move from one compartment to another.
Simple system
These refer to those systems that receive inputs from their surroundings and produce outputs that leave the system.
Open systems
It refers to a system that exchanges no energy or matter with its surroundings, however, it is rare.
Closed system
It is the study of how living things interact with their surroundings and explores the relationship between organisms and their environment while looking at things like distribution, abundance, energy flow, and adaptations.
Ecology
These interactions shape the dynamics of population and can influence species distribution and abundance.
Species interactions
These study how energy is transferred from produces to consumers and decomposers, and how these interactions shape the ecosystem structure and function.
Trophic interactions
These include understanding how organisms adapt to different environmental conditions, utilize resources, and respond to changes in their habitats.
Habitat interactions
These refer to interactions involving organisms, such as competition for resources or predator-prey relationships.
Biotic interactions
These refer to the influence of physical factors, such as temperature, humidity, and soil composition, on the distribution and behavior of organisms.
Abiotic interactions
It is used to describe the adaptations and processes that take place throughout time in the ecosystem. It entails researching the interactions and connections between living things and their physical surroundings, as well as how nutrients and energy move through an ecosystem.
Dynamics of ecosystem
It involves the exchange and recycling of essential substances such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and others.
Nutrient cycling
This refers to ecosystem relying on the sun’s energy, which is ten converted into chemical energy by green plants and autotrophic organisms through photosynthesis. This energy is then transferred through the food chain as organisms consume each other, with some energy being lost as heat trophic level.
Energy flow
These refer to how the interactions between various trophic levels within the food web impact the dynamics of ecosytems.
Trophic interactions
It refers to the changes through time in species composition and community structure.
Succession
