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Exam Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the levels of organisation

A 
Organism
Population
Ecosystem
Biosphere
Community
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2
Q

An example of an Abiotic component

A

Soil, sunlight, pH, temperature, rain, wind, altitude.

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3
Q

An example of a Biotic component

A

Animals, plants and fungi.

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4
Q

What is an autotroph

A

Primary producer, ie. plants, algae, and some bacteria.

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5
Q

What is a heterotroph

A

Consumes other organisms, ie. animals, fungi and most bacteria and protozoa

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6
Q

What is photosynthesis

A

Conversion of light energy into chemical by plants.

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7
Q

What is ecology?

A

The scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment

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8
Q

What is a trophic level

A

One of several levels that indicate an organisms place on the food chain/web as a producer or consumer

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9
Q

What are the trophic levels

A

Primary producer
Primary consumer
Secondary consumer
Tertiary consumer

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10
Q

what are degraders

A

Scavengers - Both a carnivorous and herbivorous habit that consists of eating decaying plant or animal material present within a habitat

Detritivores - Heterotrophs that obtain nutrients by consuming detritus (decaying animal matter and faeces) ie. millipede, dung beetle, worms, ect.

Decomposes - an organism that decomposes organic material typically soil bacterium, fungus or invertebrates.

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11
Q

Which are some of the most productive ecosystems on earth?

A

Estuary, Swamp, Marsh, temperate rain forests and tropical rain forests because they have large amounts of biomass and it is calculated based on how much photosynthesis is occurring

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12
Q

How much energy flows between trophic levels?

A

About 10%

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13
Q

What are the two broad types of food chain?

A

Grazing food chain - living plants to herbivores to carnivores

Detritus - dead organic matter to microorganisms to detrivores and their predators

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14
Q

What is a global biogeochemical cycle

A

One that concerns gases in the atmosphere, ie. CO2, SO2, N

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15
Q

What is a local biogeochemical cycle

A

Concerns elements that arent as mobile as gases, ie. P, K, Ca, Mg, S

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16
Q

How does tree clearing effect the water cycle

A

Trees help the transfer of water deep in the soil and transferring it to leaves

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17
Q

Where is most of the worlds carbon stored?

A

In relatively inaccessible storage pools

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18
Q

What is nitrogen fixation and why is it important?

A

The conversion of atmospheric nitrogen to nitrates available for plant uptake which means the animals that eat plants are able to absorb the nitrogen

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19
Q

Why is a superphosphate often used in Australian agriculture?

A

Because Australian soil has a naturally low phosphate level.

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20
Q

Define species richness

A

The number of different species present within a selected area not considering their abundance.

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21
Q

Define species diversity

A

Incorporates the species richness and relative abundance in an index

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22
Q

Define symbotic relationships

A

Two organisms live together in a close relationship, beneficial to at least one of them.

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23
Q

Define mutualism

A

Both species benefit

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24
Q

Define commensalism

A

one species benefits and the other is unaffected

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25
Define parasitism
One species benefits and the other is harmed
26
Ectoparasite example
Live on outside, flea.
27
Endoparasite example
Lives on the inside, tapeworm.
28
Herbivore that feeds on nectar
Nectarivores
29
Herbvivore that feeds on seeds
Granivores
30
Herbivore that feeds on fruit
Frugivores
31
Herbivore that feeds on fungi
Mycophagy
32
Herbivore that feeds on foliage
Folivores
33
Herbivore that feeds on grasses and shrubs
Grazers or browsers
34
What is a plants secondary compound?
Chemicals made for defence, ie. morphine, nicotine and strychnine.
35
What is a key stone predator?
Influences the overall structure of a community by its predatation, ie. Dingo
36
The biological control of a pest species is
The use of one species to control population growth in another
37
Define intraspecific competition
Between members of the same species
38
Define interspecific competition
Between members of different species
39
What are the potential outcomes of competition
Competitive exclusion Resource Partitioning Character displacement
40
Competitive Exclusion
Much mathematical theory (Lotka-Volterraequations) has addressed this issue, and determined the conditions under which: –one species will go extinct –the species can co-exist However, competitive exclusion is difficult to observe in the ‘real’ world because: –all species are somewhat different anyway –natural selection acts to reduce niche overlap
41
Resource Partitioning
potential for competition can be reduced by reducing niche overlap. In this way species may ‘partition’ a resource among two or more species •Numerous studies of how different species use similar resources and the extent to which they partition the resource
42
Character displacement
An evolutionary consequence of competition between two species has been the divergence of the two species where they occur together, compared with where each occurs alone * Outcome is morphological change * Character displacement due to competition is difficult to clearly demonstrate
43
The two types of niche
Fundamental niche - The total range within which a species could potentially occur. Realised niche - Refers to the actual range within which a species occurs
44
Define succession
Theory about how communities change
45
Define primary succession
Occurs in a habitat that was previously uninhabited (e.g. sand dunes, new bare earth)
46
Define secondary succession
Takes place where a disturbance has destroyed a previous community (e.g. after wildfire)
47
r Strategists
Opportunists (‘weedy’ species) –disperse rapidly –many offspring (hence high population growth rate than k) –short life cycles
48
k Strategists
Better long-term competitors –slower growing –slower rate of population growth –longer lived
49
Climax communities
Longer lived, slow growing –not well adapted to dispersal or rapid population growth –relatively larger size –able to tolerate limited resources e.g. Eucalypts -eventually dominate most Australian landscapes after disturbance
50
Pioneer communities
Good colonisers, –disperse quickly, large numbers, long distances –often small, many offspring, short lifespans–‘disturbance opportunists’ –community has low species diversity e.g. Asteracea (daisies and everlastings)
51
Define disturbance
An event that disrupts an ecosystem
52
Define ecological niche
The role and position a species has within its environment; how it meets its needs for food and shelter how it survives, and how it reproduces
53
Define population size
A group of individuals of the same species that occur in a particular place at a particular time
54
Define population density
The number of individuals per unit area factors are immigration, emigration, birthrates and death rates
55
Define open population
Emigration and immigration can occur
56
Define close population
Emigration and immigration can not occur
57
Define potential distribution
the geographic range over which individuals of a species could theoretically survive and reproduce
58
Define realised distribution
the range over which the species actually does live and reproduce
59
If a population follows a logistic growth model, it will initially increase rapidly, then slow down until it reaches the ___________ ________? At this point, the growth rate will be _______?
Carrying Capacity At equilibrium with an equal number of births to deaths
60
Define density-dependant population regulation
A population limiting factor whose effects intensify as the population increases in density. e.g. Food supply, space, breeding sites, poisonous waste products, are examples of density-dependent factors
61
Define density-independant population regulation
A population-limiting factor whose action is not related to population density is a density-independent factor e.g. weather conditions (freeze, heat wave)Their effect may occur whether there is a large or small population
62
What are the three types of survivorship curves?
Type I curves - depict individuals that have a high probability of surviving to adulthood Type II curves - depict individuals whose chance of survival is independent of age Type III curves - depict individuals that mostly die in the early stages of their life.
63
Define bioeconomics
Managing exploited populations
64
Define conservation
Maintaining viable populations
65
Define maximum sustainable yield
The largest harvesting rate that can be maintained indefinitely, ie. we harvest plants or animals from the population, but because the population keeps growing it will replace those that are taken away
66
Problems with maximum sustainable yield
Ecological - biological parameters often not well known(e.g. data needed to calculate population growth) –environment fluctuates, and so the carrying capacity is not constant SO it is prudent to harvest at rates below MSY Economic - Effect of fluctuations in K (carrying capacity) on quotas and incomes –greater short-term gain by over harvesting –‘tragedy of the commons’ (over exploitation of common property resources)(if I don’t take it, someone else will, so I might as well get all I can now!)
67
Challenge of maintaining viable populations
What is the population size above which a species must be maintained to ensure its long term survival?
68
Difficulties in estimating how to maintain viable population size
What is an acceptable probability of extinction? No population size can guarantee persistence of a species indefinitely! Must define an acceptable probability of extinction over a fixed time interval e.g. 2% over 1000 years 1% over 100 years
69
Estimating viable populations
There is no single minimum viable population size that applies to all species under all circumstances
70
Factors that influence extinction
Deterministic factors - processes that are ongoing with relatively predictable consequences e.g. logging forests removes the largest and older trees Stochastic or chance factors - genetic loss of genetic variability(inbreeding, genetic drift)The loss of genetic variability means a small population may have less capacity to adapt and change. - demographic sex ratio and birth rates. When populations are very small, chance variations in these parameters can affect the population structure and the capacity for population growth - environment climate, food, predators - catastrophes fire, flood, drought
71
What are the materials involved in both the biotic and abiotic components called?
Biogeochemicals
72
Key processes of the global water cycle?
Precipitation Evaporation Transpiration
73
Where is most of the global water cycles water kept?
Icecaps and glaciers
74
What is the premature usually rapid decline and death of native trees in rural Australia called?
Rural dieback

Ecology (1 decks)

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