Ecologists Study Relationships & Biotic and Abiotic Factors

Question 1

What is
ecology?

Answer 1

The study of relationships and interactions among living things and between non-living things and their environment.

Question 2

What are abiotic factors?

Answer 2

Nonliving things such as moisture, temperature, wind, sunlight, and soil.

Remember- think of the opposite. (A)biotic, (A)live, which is UNalive.

Question 3

What are biotic factors?

Answer 3

Living things such as plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria.

Question 4

Define an organism.

Answer 4

An individual living thing, such as an alligator.

Question 5

What is a population?

Answer 5

A group of the same species that lives in one area.

Question 6

Define a community.

Answer 6

A group of different species that live together in one area.

Remember- Moorpark is a community, but not everyone looks the same, we are a diverse community! DIFFERENT.

Question 7

What is an ecosystem?

Answer 7

Includes all of the organisms as well as the climate, soil, water, rocks, and other nonliving things in a given area.

Remember- ecoSYSTEM, we are working as a system, like gears. We need EVERYTHING for it to work out.

Question 8

What characterizes a biome?

Answer 8

A major regional or global community of organisms characterized by climate conditions and plant communities.

Question 9

What is biodiversity?

Answer 9

The assortment, or variety, of living things in an ecosystem.

Question 10

True or False: Rain forests have less biodiversity than other locations in the world.

Answer 10

False.

Question 11

What is a keystone species?

Answer 11

A species that has an unusually large effect on its ecosystem.

Question 12

What role do producers play in an ecosystem?

Answer 12

They provide energy for other organisms and make their own food.

Remember- they just PRODUCE stuff.

Question 13

Fill in the blank: Producers are also called _______.

Answer 13

autotrophs.

Means self nourishing. Produces are (A)lone, (A)utotrophs

Question 14

What is photosynthesis?

Answer 14

A process in most producers that uses sunlight as an energy source.

Question 15

What is chemosynthesis?

Answer 15

A process in prokaryote producers that uses chemicals as an energy source.

Question 16

Define consumers and what else are they called?

Answer 16

Organisms that get their energy by eating other living or once-living resources. They are also called heterotrophs.

Remember- hetero means other, they get energy from OTHERS

Question 17

What are herbivores?

Answer 17

Consumers that eat only plants.

Remember- HERBivores, herbs are plants!

Question 18

What are carnivores?

Answer 18

Consumers that eat only animals.

Remember- CARNivores, (CARN)e. Carne is spanish for meat!

Question 19

What are omnivores?

Answer 19

Consumers that eat both plants and animals.

Fun fact, omni means all/anything!

Question 20

What are detritivores?

Answer 20

Consumers that eat dead organic matter.

Remember- DE(tritivores), (DE)ad. They eat DEAD stuff

Question 21

What are decomposers?

Answer 21

Detritivores that break down organic matter into simpler compounds.

Question 22

Define specialists.

Answer 22

Consumers that primarily eat one specific organism or a very small number of organisms.

Remember- (SPECI)alists, (SPECI)fic. They eat only a specific type.

Question 23

Define generalists.

Answer 23

Consumers that have a varying diet.

Remember- general= they could care less as long as they’re fed

Question 24

What is a food chain?

Answer 24

A model that shows a sequence of feeding relationships linking species by their feeding relationships.

Question 25

What are **trophic** levels?

Answer 25

The **nourishment** levels in a **food** **chain**.

Question 26

What are **primary** consumers?

Answer 26

**Herbivores** that **eat** **producers**.

Question 27

What are **secondary consumers**?

Answer 27

**Carnivores** that **eat herbivores**.

Question 28

What are **tertiary consumers**?

Answer 28

**Carnivores** that **eat secondary consumers**.

Question 29

What does a **food** **web** emphasize?

Answer 29

Complicated **feeding** **relationships** and **energy** flow in an **ecosystem**.

Question 30

What do **ecological** **pyramids** model?

Answer 30

The distribution of **energy** and **matter** in an ecosystem. ## Footnote Remember- this one is like describing ALL pyramids. It's not a type of pyramid.

Question 31

What is an **energy** **pyramid**?

Answer 31

Shows the **distribution** of **energy** among **trophic** levels. EX: **100%->10%->1%->.1%**

Question 32

What is a **biomass pyramid**?

Answer 32

Amount of **biomass** **consumed** **EX: 585 (g/m^2)-> 77 (g/m^2)-> 12 (g/m^2)-> 1.1 (g/m^2).** ## Footnote DON'T FORGET THE UNIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Question 33

What does a **pyramid of numbers** show?

Answer 33

The numbers of **individual** **organisms** at each **trophic** level in an ecosystem. EX: **72,000,000->15,000->100->5** ## Footnote Remember- numbers= population size

Question 34

What **percentage** of **energy** is **lost** into the **atmosphere** as **heat** between each tier of an **energy** **pyramid**?

Answer 34

Up to **90** percent.

Question 35

What is **biomass**?

Answer 35

A **measure** of the total **dry** **mass** of **organisms** in a given area.

Question 36

*True* or *False*: A vast number of **producers** are required to **support** even a few **top level** consumers.

Answer 36

**True**.