Chapter 55 - Ecosystems and Restoration Ecology Flashcards
ecosystem
All the organism in a given area as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact; one or more communities and the physical environment around them.
law of conservation of mass
A physical law stating that matter can change form but cannot be created or destroyed. In a closed system, the mass of the system is constant.
primary producers
An autotroph, typ a psynth org.
- Collectively, autotrophs make up the trophic level of an ecosystem that ultimately supports all other levels.
- Incl proks, algae, and plants.
primary consumer
An herbivore; an organism that eats plants or other autotrophs.
secondary consumer
A carnivore that eats herbivores.
tertiary consumer
A carnivore that eats other carnivores.
detritivore
A consumer that derives its energy and nutrients from nonliving organic material such as corpses, fallen plant material, and the wastes of living organisms; a decomposer.
- proks/fungi
detritus
Dead organic matter (incl waste)
primary production
Amount of light energy converted to chem energy (organic compounds) by autotrophs in an ecosystem during a given time period.
- Sets energy budget for entire ecosystem; only source of energy to consumers
gross primary production (GPP)
The total primary production of an ecosystem.
- Amount of light energy converted to chem energy by psynth orgs (per unit time)
- Plants use SOME chem energy in respiration, then lost as heat
net primary production (NPP)
The gross primary production of an ecosystem minus the energy used by the producers for respiration.
- amount of NEW biomass added in given time; energy avail to consumers.
- GPP minus energy used by producers for respiration.
net ecosystem production (NEP)
The gross primary production of an ecosystem minus the energy used by all autotrophs and heterotrophs
limiting nutrient
An element that must be added for production to increase in a particular area.
- Typ N or P
eutrophication
A process by wh nutrients (partic N and P) become highly concentrated in body of water → ↑ growth of orgs, e.g. algae or cyanobacteria.
- E.g. fr sewage runoff; loss of fish species
secondary production
Amount of chem energy in consumers’ food that is converted to their own new biomass during a given time period.
- Either as new growth or reprod
production efficiency
Fraction/% of energy stored in assimilated food that is NOT used for respiration or eliminated as waste.
PE = NSP *100% / Assimilation of primary production
trophic efficiency
% of production transferred from one trophic level to the next.
- Typ 5-20%; rule of thumb: 10%.
turnover time
The time required to replace the standing crop of a population or group of populations (for example, of phytoplankton), calculated as the ratio of standing crop to production.
*NOT covered
biogeochemical cycle
Any of the various chemical cycles, which involve both biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems.
*NOT covered
bioremediation
The use of organisms to detoxify and restore polluted and degraded ecosystems.
*NOT covered
biological augmentation
An approach to restoration ecology that uses organisms to add essential materials to a degraded ecosystem.
*NOT covered
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Taxonomic Hierarchy:
- Domain
- Kingdom
- Phylum
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species
How does energy enter and leave an ecosystem?
Enters as solar radiation, leaves as heat
Water Cycle:
Importance, forms, and reservoirs
Water
- Importance - essential to all orgs
- Forms - primarily liquid
- Reservoirs - oceans (97%), glaciers/ice caps (2%)
