Glossary Flashcards
(43 cards)
‘Tropical’
is a widely-used term referring to particular conditions
conditions may have changed over time
‘Tropics’
bounded by 23o27’ North and 23o25’ South
Gigantothermy =
= bulkyectothermicanimals are more easily able to maintain a constant, relatively highbody temperaturethan smaller animals by virtue of their smallersurface area to volume ratio.A bigger animal has proportionately less of its body close to the outside environment than a smaller animal of otherwise similar shape, and so it gains heat from, or loses heat to, the environment much more slowly
Allopatry =
is a term used to describe populations or species that occupy mutually exclusive (nonoverlapping) geographic areas
biogeography =
= is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time
Vicariance =
the geographical separation of a population, typically by a physical barrier such as a mountain range or river, resulting in a pair of closely related species.
Endemism =
is the ecological state of a species being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation, country or other defined zone, or habitat type
Sympatric speciation =
= is the process through which new species evolve from a single ancestral species while inhabiting the same geographic region
Natural selection =
those variations in the genotype that increase an organism’s chances of survival and procreation are preserved and multiplied from generation to generation at the expense of less advantageous ones.
Physiological =
its focus is in howorganisms,organ systems,organs,cells, andbiomoleculescarry out thechemicalandphysicalfunctions that exist in a living system
Morphological =
= a branch of biology dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features
Refugia =
is a location which supports an isolated or relict population of a once more widespread species.
Species richness =
is the number of differentspecies represented in an ecological community, landscape or region
is simply a count ofspecies, and it does not take into account the abundances of thespeciesor their relative abundance distributions.
Species Diversity =
is defined as the number of species and abundance of each species that live in a particular location
alpha richness =
number of species present
beta richness/diversity =
rate at which species change between habitats
gamma diversity =
= biogeographical diversity, total species diversity in a broad region
Relative humidity =
warm air can hold a lot more water then cold air
Fecundity =
= the ability to produce an abundance of offspring
Stability time hypothesis =
due to rainforests being relatively stable and are ancient, that it has resulted in speciation to occur at high rates allowing a high species richness
Productivity – resources hypothesis =
high diversity in tropics is a direct result in of high plant productivity, supporting more species
Interspecific competition hypothesis =
high species diversity has occurred due to high competition among species resulting in over time, niche partitioning, which is when species subdivide the resource, each specialising in a part of the desired resource, thus they a not in competition
Predation hypothesis =
= predators exert a major influence on species at lower trophic levels (herbivores)
Grasslands =
grass and herbaceous plants
