Ecology and Protection of the Environment (T1 pt.1) Flashcards
(32 cards)
What is ecology?
The study of the relationships between organisms and their environment.
What does an organisms “environment” consist of?
- physical and chemical conditions
- biological and living components
What do “relationships” consist of in ecology?
interations with:
- the physical world
- members of the same and other species
When was ecology introduced? By who?
1866
Ernst Haeckel
What two basic interacting component does the ecosystem consist of?
biotic (living) and abiotic (nonliving: chemical and physical)
What do ecological systems form?
a hierarchy
What is a species?
A group of similar organisms whose members freely interbreed with one another in the wild to produce fertile offspring.
members of one species generally do not interbreed with other species.
What is a population?
A group of individuals of the same species that occupy a given area.
What is a community?
All populations of different species living and interacting within an ecosystem.
What is an ecosystem?
A natural system consisting of a community of organisms and their physical environment.
What is a landscape?
A region that includes several interacting ecosystems.
What is a biome?
Broad-scale regions dominated by similar types of ecosystems, such as tropical rainforests, grasslandsm and deserts.
What is a biosphere?
The parts of Earth’s atmosphere, ocean, land surphace, and soil that contain all living organisms.
The highest level of organization of ecological systems (the thin layer surrounding the Earth that supports all life).
State the hierarchy of ecological systems.
individual,
population,
community,
ecosystem,
landscape,
biome,
biosphere.
What type of science is ecology?
an interdisciplinary science (because the interactions of organisms with their environment and with each other involve physiological, behavioral and physical responses.
What is an environmental factor?
Any factor that influences living organisms.
What are abiotic factors?
physical and chemical factors
ambient temperature, sunlight, pH of water, soil
What are biotic factors?
individuals affecting each other
availability of food organisms, competitors, predators, parasites,
What is an ecological optimum?
A certain combination of ambient factors which is optimal for growth, existance and reproduction of an organism.
What is a minimum and maximum?
thresholds when an organism cant exist anymore and supression is happening (ecological pessimum)
When does an ecological pessimum occur?
at a minimum, maximum
What is a tolerance range?
The range of conditions that an organism can withstand or tolerate.
eg. temperature
What is ecological amplitude? Synonym?
The variety of environmental conditions within which an organnism can survive and replace itself or process can function.
- Ecological Valence
What are the two ways of describing ecological amplitude?
stenbionts and euribionts
