Exam 1 Vocab

Question 1

Preservationists vs conservationists vs environmentalist vs ecologist

Answer 1

Preservationists advocate for some places to exist without human interference

Conservationists want to use natural resources carefully

Environmentalists are concerned about environmental quality

Ecologists are intrested in the relationship between organisms and their environment

Question 2

Biogeography

Answer 2

Where things are located in the world and why

Question 3

Spacial and temporal homogeneity

Answer 3

How places and temp affect genes over time

Question 4

Concepts used when determining species(3)

Answer 4

Morphological-smallest groups that are consistently distinct and distinguishable by ordinary means

Biological-group of interbreeding natural populations that cant mate with other groups

Phylogenetic-based on genetics, smallest diagnosable cluster on phylogenetic tree

Question 5

Cryptic species

Answer 5

One that was misidentified as a specific species and ended up being it own

Question 6

4 dimensions of biodiversity

Answer 6

Genetic, spatial, functional, temporal

Question 7

Functional redundancy

Answer 7

Many species having similar functions /niches

-loss of one could be taken over by other

Question 8

Genetic diversity

Answer 8

Variation of genes of organisms within a species

Question 9

Genome size

Answer 9

Amount of DNA within a nucleus (monoploidy, polyploidy)

Question 10

Population diversity

Answer 10

Based on quantitative and spacial characteristics

Genetic and phenotypic variation

Question 11

Biogeographic barrier

Answer 11

Natural or man made obstacles that prevent movement and mixing of populations

Question 12

Heterosis

Answer 12

Hybrid vigor

When offspring are more fit than parents

Question 13

Community diversity

Answer 13

Variation in groups of populations and species that share an environment

Question 14

Ecosystem diversity

Answer 14

A community and the physical environment it occupies at a given time

Question 15

Spectral signatures

Answer 15

Imaging taken from satellite shows light waves coming from Earth

Question 16

Landscape diversity

Answer 16

Referring to a particular area on the spatial scale and and the interactions of biotic and abiotic systems within it

Question 17

Ecoregions

Answer 17

Large unit of land or water consisting of a geographically distinct assemblage of species communities and natural conditions

Question 18

Biogeography

Answer 18

Distribution of biodiversity over space and time

• where do species live?
• why?

Question 19

Biogeographic realms

Answer 19

Divisions of earth

Question 20

Endemic species vs local endemic

Answer 20

Species unique to a particular area vs species unique to a very small area

• koala to Australia
• tortoises to Galapagos

Question 21

Historical biogeography

Answer 21

Includes geological history like plate tectonics

Question 22

Ecological biogeography

Answer 22

Examines dispersal of organisms

-species are not distributed evenly across the globe

Question 23

High productivity

Answer 23

Large creation of biomass

Question 24

Adaptive radiation

Answer 24

Evolution of many diverse species from one common ancestor

-Galapagos finches

Question 25

Species pool

Answer 25

All species within a region

Question 26

Fundamental niche

Answer 26

Habitats where species can survive and reproduce

Question 27

Realized niche

Answer 27

Habitat in which the species actually lives and reproduces

Question 28

Alpha diversity

Answer 28

Species richness in a local area

Question 29

Beta diversity

Answer 29

Number of species that exist but are not shared between two habitats

Question 30

Gamma diversity

Answer 30

All species that exist in all habitats

Question 31

Biotic integrity

Answer 31

Refers to completeness of a biological system and including all elements at appropriate densities -emphasizes balance

Question 32

Evolutionary significant units

Answer 32

Taxa- refers to both species and subgroups (races, varieties, populations)

Question 33

Instrumental value

Answer 33

Materialistic usage | -food, clothing, shelter, medicine, fuel

Question 34

Ecosystem services

Answer 34

Other than tangible goods, nature provides pollination, composition, removal of pollutants from air, among other things

Question 35

Ecotone

Answer 35

Transitional area between biomes

Question 36

Keystone ecosystem

Answer 36

Has significantly greater importance to nearby ecosystems | -salt marshes provide critical nutrients and organic matter to adjacent estuary

Question 37

Three mechanisms of higher diversity

Answer 37

- more species = more complex food web and more redundancy - highly diverse ecosystem is less likely to be invaded by a new species - disease spreads more slowly in area with greater diversity

Question 38

Why are some ecosystems more diverse than others?

Answer 38

Wet warm places foster more diverse life Moderate levels of disturbance clears new area for growth Heathy amount of predation prevents one species from becoming too abundant Size of ecosystem