Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

ecology > Exam 3 > Flashcards

Exam 3 Flashcards

(59 cards)

Start Studying
1
Q

Guild

A

Group of species that use the same resource. (ex: near feeders, birds, bees, bats)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Functional Group

A

Organisms that function in similar ways but may/may not use similar resources. (ex: nitrogen fixing plants)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Species Diversity

A

Measure of community structure that combines number of species and abundance compared with other species

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Species Richness

A

Number of species within a community

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Evenness

A

Rarity of species within a community

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Trophic Cascade

A

Indirect effects of consumers on resources (grey wolves, elk, grasslands) (sharks, fish, coral)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Keystone species

A

Strong interactors that have large effects on communities because of their role (sea otters, urchin, kelp) (grey wolves, elk, grasslands)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Foundation species

A

Organisms that have large effects on communities because of their size and abundance (corals)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Ecosystem engineer

A

Organisms that directly/indirectly modulate availability of resources by causing physical state changes (beavers, earthworms)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Autogenic engineer

A

change the environment via their own structures (corals, trees)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Allogenic engineer

A

Chance the environment by transforming materials (beavers, woodpeckers)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Facilitation cascade

A

positive effects of a secondary facilitator that occur because of habitat amelioration by a primary foundation species (mangroves, oysters) (mussels, barnacles, algae)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Competitive exclusion

A

Two species that use a limiting resource in the same way cannot coexist indefinitely

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Nice partitioning

A

Using a limiting resource differently

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Species packing

A

Less overlap in resource use leads to less competition, which leads to coexistence and greater diversity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Character displacement

A

Evolutionary divergence in resource exploiting traits because of competition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis (IDH)

A

Species diversity in an ecosystem is maximized at intermediate levels of disturbance (stress, predation), not too rare/too frequent

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Extinction biased

A

Towards larger species

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Invasions biased

A

to lower trophic levels

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Trophic skew

A

reorganized trophic level, even if richness is constant (cake looking stacks)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Defaunation

A

loss of species and populations (abundance decline)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Primary production (PP)

A

Generation of chemical energy by autotrophs, fixation of carbon during photosynthesis and/or chemosynthesis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Secondary production

A

Energy derived from the consumption of there organisms

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Autotroph

Study These Flashcards
A

Organism that converts energy from sunlight or chemical compounds

25
Heterotroph
Organism that acquires energy by consuming materials made by organisms
26
Gross Primary Production (GPP)
Total amount of carbon fixed by autotrophs, often the equivalent of all plant photosynthesis
27
Net Primary Production (NPP)
Energy captured by autotrophs that result in increase of living plant matter. NPP=GPP-respiration
28
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)
Satellite based estimate of primary production
29
Net ecosystem exchange (NEE)
Measures exchange of CO2 between atmosphere and ecosystem. NEE=GPP-(autotroph respiration+heterotroph respiration)
30
Autochthones input
energy derived from within the system (Algae or aquatic plants growing in a lake or stream, food source for other organisms in the stream)
31
Allochthonous input
Energy derived from outside the system (Fallen leaves from trees entering a stream from the surrounding forest)
32
Consumption efficiency
Proportion of available biomass ingested
33
Assimilation efficiency
Proportion of ingested biomass that moves across gut walls
34
Production efficiency
Proportion of assimilated biomass used to create new consumer biomass
35
Nutrient
Chemical element required for organismal metabolism and growth
36
Nitrogen fixation
process by which atmospheric nitrogen (N₂) is converted into a biologically usable form—typically ammonia (NH₃) or ammonium (NH₄⁺)
37
Trichodesmium
A tropical cyanobacteria that can fix atmospheric N
38
Mechanical weathering
Disintegration of rocks without change in chemical composition (water, ice, wind)
39
Chemical weathering
Decomposition of rocks from chemical reactions (water, acid, oxygen, living organisms)
40
Weather
Actual state of the atmosphere at a particular time
41
Climate
Statistical description of weather over a period of time
42
Ecological Community
All species living and interacting in an area at a given time. (ex: coral reef: fish, coral, algae, microbes)
43
Mechanisms of coexistence
nice partitioning, species packing, character displacement, IDH
44
Complementarity
species within an ecosystem or community use resources differently or perform different ecological roles, leading to increased ecosystem functioning when more species are present.
45
Redundancy
multiple species in an ecosystem may perform similar ecological functions or roles. the presence of functionally similar species can provide backup for ecological processes, ensuring that if one species declines, others can fill its role.
46
Idiosyncratic
individual species or interactions within an ecosystem may have unique or unpredictable impacts on ecosystem functioning. the contribution of a species to the ecosystem cannot always be generalized or predicted based on the roles of other species.
47
Lottery Hypothesis
coexistence of species in a community is not solely due to competitive superiority or niche differentiation, but instead can occur when resource availability is variable and unpredictable. species can coexist because each species has an equal "chance" or "lottery ticket" to exploit the available resources when the resources become available, such as space or food.
48
Biogeochemistry
the study of the physical, chemical, and biological factors that influence movement and transformation of chemical elements
49
greatest sources of nitrogen
Atmosphere (N2), fertilizers, and nitrogen-fixing bacteria (cyanobacteria)
50
major determinants of NPP on land
Solar radiation, precipitation, temperature, nutrient availability, soil quality, vegetation type
51
major determinants of NPP in aquatic ecosystems
light availability, nutrient availability, water mixing, temperature, grazing pressure
52
Why does Terrestrial NPP decline after a lot of precipitation
water logging and root oxygen stress, increased decomposition and nutrient loss, reduced light availability, changes in plant community composition
53
What is some evidence that is in support of the idea that the climate is changing?
observed change in surface temperature, global average sea level change
54
Why do greenhouse gases trap heat?
Molecules like CO₂ (carbon dioxide), H₂O (water vapor), and CH₄ (methane) are made of three or more atoms. These molecules can vibrate, bend, and rotate in complex ways. These motions can absorb energy in the infrared (IR) spectrum — the kind of energy Earth emits as heat. They absorb and re-emit the heat
55
By burning fossil fuels (plants), what should happen to atmospheric 13C composition over time?
decreases over time, Suess effect
56
Keeling Curve
Long-Term Increase in CO₂. Each year shows a regular up-and-down pattern due to seasonal changes in plant activity. It drops in spring and summer and rises in the winter with the growth of plants (absorbing CO2) and the decomposition of plants (release of CO2)
57
Pump Handle
CO2 levels used to be relatively stable worldwide. Sharp rise in CO2 levels since the Industrial Revolution, happening worldwide
58
How to we prove climate change is manmade
Rise since the Industrial Revolution, lines up with burning of fossil fuels and industrialization
59

ecology (3 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions