Chapter 21 Flashcards
1
Q
_______ is the scientific study of how organisms interact with their environment
A
Ecology
2
Q
Environmental characteristics are classified into two major components.
A
Abiotic and biotic Characteristics
3
Q
___________: Physical and nonliving chemical characteristics, such as temperature, soil moisture, or CO2 availability
A
Abiotic characteristic
4
Q
__________: Relation of living organisms with the environment, ex: population density or bacterial load
A
Biotic characteristic
5
Q
Four levels of ecology
A
1) organismal ecology
2) population ecology
3) community ecology
4) ecosystem ecology
6
Q
Organismal Ecology
A
- This is the simplest level of ecology
- It exposes how well individuals organisms cope with the challenges of their abiotic charateristic
7
Q
Population Ecology
A
- At this level, ecologists study populations: groups of individuals of the same species living in the same area
- This focuses primarily on population-level factors such as population density and growth
8
Q
Community Ecology
A
- This is the study of species assemblages and their environmental interaction
- At this level, ecologists study the structure and organization of how all the species in an area interact together
9
Q
Ecosystem Ecology
A
- This is the most dynamic and complex type of ecology
- focus on energy flow and the cycling of chemical among
10
Q
__________ are what largely determine which type of organism can live where.
A
Abiotic
11
Q
Specific organisms are specialized to live in _________.
A
specific environments
12
Q
In the desert, organims deal with ______________.
A
heat and water loss.
13
Q
In temperate climates, organisms deal with ____________.
A
seasonal changes
14
Q
Energy in all ecosystems in ultimately traced back to __________, which plants transfer into chemical energy.
A
Solar energy
15
Q
The more plants, the greater potential for diversity of ______.
A
life
16
Q
Availability of sunlight affects
A
aquatic and terrestrial environments
17
Q
A challenge in the water is____________.
A
light fading with depth
18
Q
On land shading by other organisms is a _______.
A
problem
19
Q
Plants and animals have different strategies to cope with ____________ sunlight
A
little or intense
20
Q
Environmental temperature has a critical effect on an organisms _______.
A
metabolism
21
Q
Few organisms can maintain a sufficiently active metabolism at temperatures close to ____.
A
0 c
22
Q
Temperatures above________________ of most organisms.
A
45’c destroy the enzymes
23
Q
Some bacteria and archaea are unique because they can live in extreme temperatures _________ _________ __________ __________.
A
have enzymes that function optimally at extremely high tempertures
24
Q
Marine organisms have to balance their cells against the ___________ found in sea-water
A
high salt concentration
25
Freshwater organisms must regulate water intake because they live in a ___________________.
Hypotonic environment
26
Terrestrial organisms must conserve ______ and avoid _______.
water
| water loss
27
because water exists as three forms on earth, organisms need to be able to utilize these forms depending on their ___________.
environment
28
Aquatic but not terrestrial ecosystems are more limited by (3)
- The levels of dissolved oxygen and salinity
- currents
- tides
29
______, ______, and ______ can also effect an organisms' use of their environment of growth patterns
Wind patterns
storms
and fire
30
Many plants depend on wind to _____________.
disperse pollen and seeds
31
other organisms require wind to blow in _________.
nutrients
32
The distribution and abundance of plants is often determined by the (2)
- Availability of nitrogen and phosphorus
| - the structure, pH, and nutrient content of the soil
33
In many aquatic ecosystems the growth of algae and photosynthetic bacteria is often limited by levels of (2)
- Nitrogen
| - Phosphorus
34
Catastrophic disturbances can have huge impact on biological communites (2)
-Some of these disturbances are irregular and random
(earthquakes, volcanism, fire)
-Other disturbances have a certain degree of periodicity
(hurricanes, tornadoes, floods)
35
On occasion, these can actually drive variation, because this selects for organisms favored under ______.
stress
36
After disturbance, ______________ (re-growth of habitat) take place
ecological successions
37
Because organisms continually interact with their environment, ____________ will select for certain phenotypes and against others
Natural selection
38
The three areas of adaptation in which natural selection acts on a phenotype are _________________. (3)
Physiology, anatomy, and behavior
39
___________ is a physiological adjustment to an environmental change
Acclimation
40
Among vertebrates, birds and mammals can tolerate the greatest temperature extremes because they are _________.
Endotherms
41
While the metabolism of ectotherms, like reptiles (cold blooded animals) fluctuates with their environment, and __________ can tolerate only limited climates.
Ectotherms
42
There are many anatomical features that allow organisms to cope with environmental challenges (1)
- There include changes in body shape or having specific anatomical features
43
Reversible change, _________________ is an example of acclimation.
Such as a heavier fur coat in response to cold
44
Most behavioral adaptations are limited to animals since plants lack the ability to _____________.
move around
45
Behavioral Responses include (3)
- Specialized mating
- Ectotherms may shuttle between sun and shade
- Migratory birds travel great distances in response to changing season
46
A Biome is a major ______________ life zone,
terrestrial or aquatic
47
A Biome is characterized by (2)
- Vegetation type in terrestrial biomes
| - The physical environment in aquatic biomes
48
Aquatic biomes (2)
- Occupy roughly 75% of earth surface
| - Are determined by their salinity and other physical factors
49
Freshwater biomes typically have a salt concentration of ___________.
less then 1%
50
Standing water:
Lakes and ponds
51
Flowing water:
Streams and rivers
52
The _________, named because light is available for photosynthesis, includes algae and plant growth
Photic Zones
53
The ________ is deeper, and the light levels are too low to support photosynthesis
Aphotic zones
54
The _______ is at the bottom of all aquatic biomes
Benthic realm
55
The Benthic realm is made up of __________.
sand and organic and inorganic sediments
56
Occupied by communities of organisms that are collectively called___________.
benthos
57
In lakes and large ponds, the communities of plants, algae, and animals are distributed according to the (2)
- depth of water
| - distance from shore
58
Rivers and streams
- are bodies of water flowing in one direction
| - generally support quite different communities of organisms than lakes and ponds
59
Often build dams to control floods, to provide reservoirs for drinking water, or to _______________.
generate hydroelectric power
60
A _______ is a transitional biome between an aquatic ecosystem and a terrestrial one
Wetlands
61
Wetlands,support the growth of aquatic plants and are ________ (different kinds of species living in a given area)
Rich in species diversity
62
Marine biomes Typically have a salt concentration around ____
3%
63
Marine biomes include ____________________.
Oceans, intertidal zones, coral reef, and esturaies
64
________ are diverse, ranging from vivd coral reefs to perpetually dark realms in the deepest regions
Marine biomes
65
As in freshwater biomes, the seafloor is known as the ______________.
Benthic realm
66
In these sunlight areas photosynthesis by __________(photosynthetic algae and bacteria) and multicellular algae provides energy for a diverse community of animals.
Phytoplankton
67
The pelagic zone includes (2)
- Zooplankton (free-floating animals, including many microscopic ones)
- Fish and marine mammals
68
The _______ biome occurs in the photic zone of warm tropical waters, in scattered locations around the globe.
Coral reef
69
In shallow areas such as the submerged parts of continents are call ____________.
continental shelf
70
The photic zone (200m) includes _______________.
Pelagic and benthic region
71
Estuaries (2)
- are transition area between a river and the ocean
| - have a saltiness ranging from nearly that of fresh water to that of the ocean
72
Terrestrial biomes are primarily determined by __________________________.
-temperature and rainfall
73
Earths global climate pattern are largely that result of (2)
- the input of radiant energy from the sun
| - the plants movement in space
74
Mountains effect climate in two major ways.
1. air temperature drops as elevation increases
| 2. mountains can block the flow of cool, moist air from a coast
75
Terrestrial ecosystems are grouped into biomes primarily on the _________________.
basis of their vegetation type
76
Tropical forests occur in equatorial ares, where the temperature is warm, and where days are __________________________.
11-12 hours long year-round
77
Savannas are dominated by ______________.
grasses and scattered trees
78
Savannas are _______
warm year-round
79
Savannas experience rainfall (_____________) with dramatic seasonal variation
roughly 12 to 20 inches per year
80
Deserts ___________________.
are the driest of all biomes
81
___________ has a climate that results from cool ocean currents circulating offshore and producing mild, rainy winter and hot, dry summer
Chaparral
82
Temperature grasslands: _____________.
are mostly treeless
83
Temperature grasslands (2)
- have 10-30 inches of rain per year
| - experience frequent drought and fires
84
Coniferous forests are dominated by ___________.
cone-bearing evergreen trees
85
Coniferous include the northern coniferous forest, or ______ the largest terrestrial biome on earth
Taiga
86
_______________:covers expansive areas of the Arctic between the taiga and polar ice
Tundra
87
Tundra can be characterized by (3)
- permafrost (permanently frozen subsoil)
- bitterly cold temperatures
- highwinds
88
________covers the land at high latitudes north of the arctic tundra in the northern hemisphere and Antarctice in the southern hemisphere, only a small portion of these land masses is free of ice or snow, even during the summer
Polar ice
89
All parts of the biosphere are linked by the__________.
global water cycle
90
The destruction of tropical rain forests reduces the amount of water vapor in the air, which can affect _________.
rainfall
91
Pumping large amounts of groundwater to the surface for irrigation _____________________________.
increases the rate of evaporation over land
92
This can lead to an imbalance of water distribution over biomes,________________.
affecting all life in them
