Ch. 52 - An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere Flashcards
1
Q
The scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment
A
Ecology
2
Q
The study of how an organism’s structure, physiology, and behavior meet the challenges posed by its environment
A
Organismal Ecology
3
Q
A group of individuals of the same species living in an area
A
Population
4
Q
Study of the factors that affect population size and how and why it changes through time
A
Population Ecology
5
Q
A group of populations of diffeent species in an area
A
Community
6
Q
The study of how interactions between species, such as predation and competition, affect community structure and organization
A
Community Ecology
7
Q
The community of organisms in an area and the physical factors with which those organisms interact
A
Ecosystem
8
Q
The study of energy flow and chemical cycling between organisms and the environment
A
Ecosystem Ecology
9
Q
A mosaic of connected ecosystems
A
Landscape or Seascape
10
Q
The study of the factors controlling exchanges of energy, materials, and organisms across multiple ecosystems
A
Landscape Ecology
11
Q
The global ecosystem - the sum of all the planet’s ecosystems and landscapes
A
Biosphere
12
Q
The study of how the regional exchange of energy and materials influences the functioning and distribution of organisms across the biosphere
A
Global Ecology
13
Q
The regions that lie between 23.5º north latitude and 23.5º south latitude
A
Tropics
14
Q
The long-term prevailing weather conditions in a given area
A
Climate or Macroclimate
15
Q
Very fine, localized patterns in climatic conditions
A
Microclimate
16
Q
Nonliving
A
Abiotic
17
Q
Living
A
Biotic
18
Q
A directional change to the global climate that lasts three decades or more
A
Climate Change
19
Q
A plot of the annual mean temperature and precipitation in a particular region
A
Climograph
20
Q
A major life zone characterized by vegetation type (or aquatically by physical environment)
A
Biome
21
Q
The area of integration where neighboring biomes grade into one another
A
Ecotone
22
Q
The uppermost trees or branches of the trees in a forest, forming a more or less continuous layer of foliage
A
Canopy
23
Q
An event such as a storm, fire, or human activity that changes a community, removing organisms from it and altering resource availability
A
Disturbance
24
Q
A forest with high rate of precipitation and high humidity, usually located near the equator
A
Tropical Rain Forest
25
A forest characterized by a pronounced dry season during part of the year
Tropical Dry Forest
26
A dry, barren area of land, especially one covered with sand, that is characteristically desolate, waterless, and without vegetation
Desert
27
A grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees
Savanna
28
An ecological biome composed of shrubby plants adapted to dry summers and moist winters
Chaparral
29
Areas of open grassland with very few trees, like savannas, but located in colder climate regions which receive less precipitation on average than savannas
Temperate Grasslands
30
A biome that occupies a vast area below the tundra, characterized by a longer and warmer growing season
Northern Coniferous Forest
31
A biome known for known for the turning of the colors of its deciduous leaves to brilliant reds, oranges, and golds in autumn
Temperate Broadleaf Forest
32
A vast, flat, treeless Arctic region of Europe, Asia, and North America in which the subsoil is permanently frozen
Tundra
33
The region of an aquatic biome where there is sufficient light for photosynthesis
Photic Zone
34
The region of an aquatic biome where little light penetrates
Aphotic Zone
35
The photic and aphotic zones of an aquatic biome
Pelagic Zone
36
The part of the ocean 2,000 m to 6,000 m below the surface
Abyssal Zone
37
The zone of an aquatic biome made up of sand and organic and inorganic sediments
Benthic Zone
38
The communities of organisms occupying the benthic zone
Benthos
39
Dead organic matter sinking down toward the benthic zone from the photic zone
Dentritus
40
In the ocean and in most lakes, a narrow layer of abrupt temperature change separating more uniformly warm upper layers from more uniformly cold deeper waters
Thermocline
41
A semiannual mixing of lakewaters as a result of changing temperature profiles, in which oxygenated water from the surface is sent down to the bottom of the lake bringing nutrient rich water from the bottom to the surface in the spring and autumn
Turnover
42
Standing bodies of water
Lakes (or, if smaller, ponds)
43
Nutrient-poor, but oxygen-rich standing bodies of water
Oligotrophic Lakes
44
Nutrient-rich, oxygen-depleted standing bodies of water
Eutrophic Lakes
45
The shallow, well-lit waters close to a lake's shore
Littoral Zone
46
The area of a lake too deep for rooted aquatic plants
Limnetic Zone
47
A habitat that is inundated by water at least some of the time and that supports plants adapted to water-saturated soil
Wetland
48
A large natural stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea, a lake, or another such stream
River
49
A small, narrow river
Stream
50
A transition area between river and sea
Estuary
51
An aquatic biome which is periodically submerged and exposed twice daily on most marine shores
Intertidal Zone
52
A vast realm of open blue water, constantly mixed by wind driven oceanic currents
Oceanic Pelagic Zone
53
Aquatic biome formed largely from the calcium carbonate skeletons of corals
Coral Reef
54
The seafloor below the surface waters of the coastal and oceanic pelagic zones
Marine Benthic Zone
55
Surface waters of the ocean coast
Neritic Zone
56
An opening in the sea floor out of which heated mineral-rich water flows
Hydrothermal Vent
57
The movement of individuals or gametes away from their area of origin or from centers of high population density
Dispersal
58
When organisms reach an area where they did not exist previously
Range Expansion
59
# Define the following term:
Ecology
The scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment
60
# Define the following term:
Organismal Ecology
The study of how an organism's structure, physiology, and behavior meet the challenges posed by its environment
61
# Define the following term:
Population
A group of individuals of the same species living in an area
62
# Define the following term:
Population Ecology
Study of the factors that affect population size and how and why it changes through time
63
# Define the following term:
Community
A group of populations of diffeent species in an area
64
# Define the following term:
Community Ecology
The study of how interactions between species, such as predation and competition, affect community atructure and organization
65
# Define the following term:
Ecosystem
The community of organisms in an area and the physical factors with which those organisms interact
66
# Define the following term:
Ecosystem Ecology
The study of energy flow and chemical cycling between organisms and the environment
67
# Define the following term:
Landscape or Seascape
A mosaic of connected ecosystems
68
# Define the following term:
Landscape Ecology
The study of the factors controlling exchanges of energy, materials, and organisms across multiple ecosystems
69
# Define the following term:
Biosphere
The global ecosystem - the sum of all the planet's ecosystems and landscapes
70
# Define the following term:
Global Ecology
The study of how the regional exchange of energy and materials influences the functioning and distribution of organisms across the biosphere
71
# Define the following term:
Tropics
The regions that lie between 23.5º north latitude and 23.5º south latitude
72
# Define the following term:
Climate or Macroclimate
The long-term prevailing weather conditions in a given area
73
# Define the following term:
Microclimate
Very fine, localized patterns in climatic conditions
74
# Define the following term:
Abiotic
Nonliving
75
# Define the following term:
Biotic
Living
76
# Define the following term:
Climate Change
A directional change to the global climate that lasts three decades or more
77
# Define the following term:
Climograph
A plot of the annual mean temperature and precipitation in a particular region
78
# Define the following term:
Biome
A major life zone characterized by vegetation type (or aquatically by physical environment)
79
# Define the following term:
Ecotone
The area of integration where neighboring biomes grade into one another
80
# Define the following term:
Canopy
The uppermost trees or branches of the trees in a forest, forming a more or less continuous layer of foliage
81
# Define the following term:
Disturbance
An event such as a storm, fire, or human activity that changes a community, removing organisms from it and altering resource availability
82
# Define the following term:
Tropical Rain Forest
A forest with high rate of precipitation and high humidity, usually located near the equator
83
# Define the following term:
Tropical Dry Forest
A forest characterized by a pronounced dry season during part of the year
84
# Define the following term:
Desert
A dry, barren area of land, especially one covered with sand, that is characteristically desolate, waterless, and without vegetation
85
# Define the following term:
Savanna
A grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees
86
# Define the following term:
Chaparral
An ecological biome composed of shrubby plants adapted to dry summers and moist winters
87
# Define the following term:
Temperate Grasslands
Areas of open grassland with very few trees, like savannas, but located in colder climate regions which receive less precipitation on average than savannas
88
# Define the following term:
Northern Coniferous Forest
A biome that occupies a vast area below the tundra, characterized by a longer and warmer growing season
89
# Define the following term:
Temperate Broadleaf Forest
A biome known for known for the turning of the colors of its deciduous leaves to brilliant reds, oranges, and golds in autumn
90
# Define the following term:
Tundra
A vast, flat, treeless Arctic region of Europe, Asia, and North America in which the subsoil is permanently frozen
91
# Define the following term:
Photic Zone
The region of an aquatic biome where there is sufficient light for photosynthesis
92
# Define the following term:
Aphotic Zone
The region of an aquatic biome where little light penetrates
93
# Define the following term:
Pelagic Zone
The photic and aphotic zones of an aquatic biome
94
# Define the following term:
Abyssal Zone
The part of the ocean 2,000 m to 6,000 m below the surface
95
# Define the following term:
Benthic Zone
The zone of an aquatic biome made up of sand and organic and inorganic sediments
96
# Define the following term:
Benthos
The communities of organisms occupying the benthic zone
97
# Define the following term:
Dentritus
Dead organic matter sinking down toward the benthic zone from the photic zone
98
# Define the following term:
Thermocline
In the ocean and in most lakes, a narrow layer of abrupt temperature change separating more uniformly warm upper layers from more uniformly cold deeper waters
99
# Define the following term:
Turnover
A semiannual mixing of lakewaters as a result of changing temperature profiles, in which oxygenated water from the surface is sent down to the bottom of the lake bringing nutrient rich water from the bottom to the surface in the spring and autumn
100
# Define the following term:
Lakes (or, if smaller, ponds)
Standing bodies of water
101
# Define the following term:
Oligotrophic Lakes
Nutrient-poor, but oxygen-rich standing bodies of water
102
# Define the following term:
Eutrophic Lakes
Nutrient-rich, oxygen-depleted standing bodies of water
103
# Define the following term:
Littoral Zone
The shallow, well-lit waters close to a lake's shore
104
# Define the following term:
Limnetic Zone
The area of a lake too deep for rooted aquatic plants
105
# Define the following term:
Wetland
A habitat that is inundated by water at least some of the time and that supports plants adapted to water-saturated soil
106
# Define the following term:
River
A large natural stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea, a lake, or another such stream
107
# Define the following term:
Stream
A small, narrow river
108
# Define the following term:
Estuary
A transition area between river and sea
109
# Define the following term:
Intertidal Zone
An aquatic biome which is periodically submerged and exposed twice daily on most marine shores
110
# Define the following term:
Oceanic Pelagic Zone
A vast realm of open blue water, constantly mixed by wind driven oceanic currents
111
# Define the following term:
Coral Reef
Aquatic biome formed largely from the calcium carbonate skeletons of corals
112
# Define the following term:
Marine Benthic Zone
The seafloor below the surface waters of the coastal and oceanic pelagic zones
113
# Define the following term:
Neritic Zone
Surface waters of the ocean coast
114
# Define the following term:
Hydrothermal Vent
An opening in the sea floor out of which heated mineral-rich water flows
115
# Define the following term:
Dispersal
The movement of individuals or gametes away from their area of origin or from centers of high population density
116
# Define the following term:
Range Expansion
When organisms reach an area where they did not exist previously
