biodiversity exam Flashcards
(83 cards)
1
Q
environmental bio definition
A
study of the interplay between humans and their surroundings
2
Q
environment
A
factors (chemical, physical & biotic) that act upan an organism or an ecological community and determines its form and survival
3
Q
in environmental science (4 answers)…
A
- the obvious answer is not always the correct one
- carful analysis of all facets of a problem is needed
- decisions are complex
- you need data to solve issues
4
Q
list some of the characteristics of science
A
- evidence based, self-correcting, reliable and repeatable, community based, not dogmatic or demographic, not based on morality/aesthetics, done by humans
5
Q
The scientific process
A
observation, hypothesis, prediction…
6
Q
the interplay between science and policy is
A
- gathering data is funded by policy makers for exploration and discovery
- benefits & outcomes & community analysis is helped w/ policy makers
7
Q
environmental science often cant use experimental methods due to logistical and ethical constraints. instead…
A
we use observational studies & models
8
Q
Anthropocentric
A
human centered
9
Q
biocentric
A
life centered
10
Q
land ethic
A
humans as part of biotic and abiotic community
11
Q
frontier ethic
A
unlimited resources: move to the next spot if resources become scarce
12
Q
sustainable ethic
A
resources are limited: use wisely to sustain resources for later use
13
Q
conservation ethic
A
use resources but conserve them
14
Q
preservation ethic
A
recognize intrinsic value of landscape and biota. preserve in unaltered form
15
Q
sustainability
A
living within the means of the earth without significantly impairing its function
16
Q
carrying capacity
A
potential for unlimited growth yet it is limited by the environment
17
Q
environmental ethics challenge:
A
tragedy of the commons
18
Q
tragedy of the commons
A
overuse of a common resource to benefit the individual, while the cost is shared by all
19
Q
3 waves of the US environmental policy
A
- land management and expansion
- repairing damage
- response to pollution
20
Q
wave 1: land management and expansion
A
- allowed settling of lands previous occupied by native americans
- time of the dust bowl
21
Q
dust bowl
A
unusually wet period during the 20s and high wheat price lead to cultivation of prairie land and drought
22
Q
wave 2: repairing damage
A
- soil preservation and allotment act (response to dust bowl)
- emergency conservation work act (response to great depression)
- conservation and prevention designated to national parks
23
Q
wave 3: response to pollution
A
- clean air act
- safe drinking water act
- formation of environmental protection agency
- london “fog” (leading to clean air act)
24
Q
biological evolution
A
the change in the heritable characteristics of a population over time
25
heritable =
allele =
genetic
gene varient
26
evolution can only occur if there is
genetic variation in the population
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variation comes from
- mutation
- migration
- sexual reproduction
- horizontal gene transfer
28
mutation
permanent change in a DNA sequence
29
mutation cause and effect
cause: mistakes during DNA replication or external factors
effects: neutral, positive or negative
30
mutation notes (2):
- mutations alone do not produce evolutionary change
- only mutations in reproductive cells get passed down to offspring
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sexual reproduction
- two individuals contribute genes to the offspring and they get a new combination of alleles
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what is believed to be the reason for sexual reproduction
genetic variation
33
genetic variation (horizontal gene transfer) how they change:
- selection
- genetic drift
- migration
34
if its selection, then the fitness of the mic must vary by fur color meaning
the fur is heritable
35
natural selection
fitness depends on the environment
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sexual selection
fitness depends on mate choice
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artificial selection
fitness depends on human actions
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genetic drift
random fluctuation in which alleles get passed on
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migration/gene flow occurs when
individuals move from one population to another
40
speciation
the formation of new and distinct species
41
when speciation occurs...
- a population becomes sub-divided
- reproductive isolation between the sup-populations occurs
- lack of gene flow between the sub-populations
- selection and genetic will cause species divergence
42
adaptive radiation
when an organism comes into an environment they have not been to and are able to quickly adapt
43
how populations are classified can be...
difficult, consequential, and controversial
44
ecology
the comprehensive science of the relationship of the organism to the environment (distribution and abundance of organisms
45
estimating population demographics
population "snapshots" follow a cohort over time
46
survival patterns rep different advantages
- energy is limited = tradoffs
- survival vs. reproduction
- growth vs. reproduction
- # of offspring vs, parental care
- # vs. size of offspring
47
population ecology growth
- resources are limited so populations dont grow indefinitely
48
r-related species (good at growing fast) characteristics
- ex. (plants)
- fast reproductive rate
- fast devel rate
- low parental care
- small size
- short length of life
- weak competitive ability
- high population size
- good dispersal ability
49
k-related species (good at persisting)
- ex. (hippos)
- slow reproductive rate
- slow devel rate
- high parental care
- large size
- large length of life
- strong competitive ability
- low population size
- limited dispersal ability
50
community
an association of interacting species inhabiting a defined area
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mutualism
benefit on both ends
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consumption
benefit on one side, harm on the other. aka predation, herbivory, parasitism
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competition
when organisms in the same community seek the same limiting resouce
54
thermodynamics 1st and 2nd law
1. energy can be neither created nor destroyed
2. entropy (disorder of a system increases over time)
55
in ecological communities there are
direct and indirect effects on trophic intereations
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two types of trophic interactions
- bottom up effects are easier to predict (more berries means more bears)
- top-down effects are more complex (more wolves mean fewer elk)
57
succession
the gradual community change in an area following creation of a new substrate or disturbance
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primary succession
change occurring on newly exposed geological substrates
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secondary succession
change following a disturbance that doesnt entirely destroy soil
60
pioneer species vs. climax species
pioneer: species that colonize a vacant or disturbed area
climax: species that occur in latter successional stages
61
biomes are determined by
- annual temperature averages
- annual precipitation total
- variation in temperature
- variation in precipitation
62
solar radiation
varies with latitude and time of year
63
in less variable and more predictable environments we see...
- tropical evergreen trees
- year-round breeding
-territorial defense
64
in more variable and less predicatble environments we see...
- temperate deciduous trees
- migration
- food storage
- hibernation
65
drivers to biodiversity
- energy available
- temp
- time
- space
- geography
- landscape heterogeneity
- disturbance patterns
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levels of diversity
- genetic diversity
- species diversity
- ecosystem diversity
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species diversity
number of species + relative abundance
68
edge effects
due to degraded edge habitat, larger square or circular preserves are better for conserving biodiversity
69
keystone vs. foundation species
keystone: whose presence is crucial in maintaining the organization and diversity of their ecological communities
foundation: provide the base/foundation for ecological community
70
biodiversity conservation geographic strategies
- diverse or key locations
- single large vs. several small
- movement corridors
71
biodiversity conservation single species strategies
- keystone and foundation stratefies
- indicator species (sensitive)
- umbrella species (protecting the habitat of lots of other species)
- flagship species (verge of extinction)
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invasive species
exotic or non-native species that have significant negative effects on the structure of an ecological community
73
we use theory to describe
a well-supported explanation for a group of observations or phenomena
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environmental justice
equitability in protection from environmental hazards and to access to engagement in environmental decision making
74
environmental justice
equitability in protection from environmental hazards and to access to engagement in environmental decision making
75
how do biologists explain the biodiversity on the planet
biodiversity of the planet is the result of billions of years of evolution
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populations lacking any environmental resistance or resource limitation increase by what type of growth
exponential
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genetic drift is...
RANDOM
78
two processes that determine worlds current biodiversity
extinction and speciation rates
79
market based mechanisms of conservation are...
flawed because the answer that is most beneficial economically is not always conservation
80
taxonomy
grouping and classifying organisms based on similarities in genetics/morphology
81
species richness
of species in a given area related to the latitude
82
types of biomes
tropical rainforest, subtropical desert, savannas, chaparral, temperate grass-lands, temperate forests, boreal forests, arctic tundra
