Unit 11 Ecology

Question 1

What is the great chain of being?

Answer 1

Subatomic particles
Atoms
Molecules
Macromolecules
Organelles
Cells
Tissues
Organs
Organ systems
Organism
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Biome
Biosphere

Question 2

What are k & r species?

Answer 2

k species- low birth rates, offspring are cared for, example: humans
R species- very high birth rates, offspring don’t survive, ex: fish, thousands of young

Question 3

Why are invasive species a problem?

Answer 3

They move into a region, usually accidentally or because of mankind, and cause natives to die off.

Question 4

Endemic vs ubiquitous

Answer 4

Endemic- species that are “picky” about where they live. They usually reside in specific locations.
Ubiquitous- species with very widespread distribution such as red maples or humans.

Question 5

Density- random vs uniform vs clumped

Answer 5

Random- very random, no uniform or clustering, ex: dandelions
Uniform- consistent throughout all the population ex: suburbs
Clumped- high density in small areas ex: A city packed full of people

Question 6

Neutral Interaction

Answer 6

• 0,0
• neither species is affected, isn’t much of an interaction
• ex. Robins and owls

Question 7

Mutualism interaction

Answer 7

• +,+
• both species are helped
• ex. Baby fish eating parasites off of a larger fish

Question 8

Commensalism interaction

Answer 8

• +, 0
• One creature is helped while the other is not affected
• a tree may provide shelter to a bird, the bird is helped, the tree is not affected

Question 9

Competition interaction

Answer 9

• –,–
  -Creatures compete for similar land or resources
• ex. two species of fish seeking identical resources

Question 10

Amensalism interaction

Answer 10

• 0, -
• One creature is harmed due to another creature’s presence
• the harm is not intended
• ex. A large tree shading out smaller plants

Question 11

Antibiosis

Answer 11

• 0,-
• similar to amensalism, but the harm that one species faces is intended by the other
• black walnut trees poisoning the nearby soil against other plants

Question 12

Synnecrosis interaction

Answer 12

• -,-
• A rare interaction that results in death or harm of both members
• this interaction doesn’t exist for very long
• ex. bees dying from their stinging of an organism

Question 13

Predation

Answer 13

• +,-
• creatures eat other creatures and kill them
• creature is killed rapidly
• ex. lions eating antelope

Question 14

Parasitism

Answer 14

• +,-
• The parasite lives off the host but does not kill the host
• ex. vampire bats drinking blood

Question 15

Parasitoidism interaction

Answer 15

• +,-
• A special type of parasitism where the host is eventually killed by the parasite as it develops.
• ex. fly eggs being laid on another insect for the sake of the offspring burrowing into the host for development

Question 16

Competition exclusion principle

Answer 16

Two competitors that used precisely the same resources cannot coexist as one will always out-compete the other

Question 17

What are the trophic levels?

Answer 17

Tertiary consumers- carnivores that eat other carnivores, eagle
Secondary consumers - eat herbivores are carnivores, lion
Primary consumer- consume producers, herbivores, cow
Producers- produce food, plants

Question 18

How does the energy and biomass of each trophic level relate?

Answer 18

Whenever you go up or down a traffic level you find tenfolds fewer or more biomass and energy. Example: if you eat only plants you need 10 times their Mass. If you eat only animals you still need 10 times of the animal, but 100 times of the plant

Question 19

What is the difference between scavengers and the detritivores and why are they important?

Answer 19

Scavengers- Large-Scale eaters, eat dead things and feces, vultures, crows
Detritivores- small creatures who rot things, decomposers

These creatures are vital for nature because they allow nutrient recycling.

Question 20

Desert

Answer 20

Low precipitation
Can be any temperature
The main feature of a desert is that it is very dry

Question 21

Temperate Forest

Answer 21

Moderate precipitation
Moderate average temperature
Eastern us, Europe

Question 22

Which two biomes are the most diverse?

Answer 22

1. Rainforest
2. Praries

Question 23

Prairies

Answer 23

Less precipitation
Cool average temperature
Midwest, plains states, central Argentina
Very diverse

Question 24

Savannahs

Answer 24

Same precipitation as prairie
Warmer average temperature than prairies
African grassland

Question 25

Rainforest

Answer 25

High precipitation High average temperature Terrible soil since all the nutrients are being used by all the plants

Question 26

Boreal Forest

Answer 26

Varied precipitation Cool average temperature Made mostly of conifers rather than broad leaves

Question 27

Tundra

Answer 27

Low precipitation Cold temperature

Question 28

The water cycle

Answer 28

-Water in the ocean evaporates -The evaporation leads to water in the atmosphere -Once the water is in the atmosphere it falls which is called precipitation - water will enter plants through their roots - transpiration is water leaving plants through the leaves - The water returns to reservoirs

Question 29

The nitrogen cycle

Answer 29

-The main reservoir of nitrogen is the atmosphere - nitrogen is pretty much useless, but it is made useful through nitrogen fixing bacteria - the nitrogen forms ammonia which is used by plants - after entering the main biosphere through plants, it stays in circulation across the cycle of life and death, moving up and down traffic levels through consumption and decomposition

Question 30

The carbon cycle

Answer 30

-The main reservoir of carbon is biomass, carbon is found in every single macromolecule on Earth - Fossil fuels are major deposits of carbon - commonly carbon is released from cell respiration - carbon dioxide reenters the biosphere in photosynthesis - carbon transfers between living things as it moves up traffic levels - burning things will move their carbon to the atmosphere

Question 31

Phosphorus cycle

Answer 31

-The reservoir of phosphorus is the rock of the earth, many rocks are made of minerals that contain phosphates - erosion breaks down the phosphorus so that it is able to be dissolved in water - then it enters the biosphere where it is used to form useful proteins - eventually, the phosphorus precipitates out of the solution and settles at the bottom of the ocean becomes Rock