Unit 2: The Living World: Biodiversity

Question 1

Biodiversity

Answer 1

The variability among species, between species, and of ecosystems

Question 2

Genetic diversity

Answer 2

It describes the range of all genetic traits, both expressed and recessive, that make up the gene pool for a particular species

Question 3

Species diversity

Answer 3

It is the number of different species that inhabit a specific area

Question 4

Ecosystem diversity

Answer 4

It describes the range of habitats that can be found in a specific area

Question 5

Population Bottleneck

Answer 5

It is a large reduction in the size of a single population due to a catastrophic environmental event

Question 6

Minimum Viable Population Size

Answer 6

The number of individuals remaining after the bottleneck and how that compares to the smallest possible size at which a population can exist without facing extinction from a natural disaster

Question 7

Generalist Species

Answer 7

Species that live in different types of environments and have varied diets

Question 8

Raccoons

Answer 8

They are classified as omnivores as they are able to survive on a large variety of food types

Question 9

Specialist Species

Answer 9

These species require unique resources and often have a very limited diet; they often need a specific habitat in which to survive

Question 10

Giant Panda Bear

Answer 10

They survives almost entirely on bamboo and lives in remote bamboo forests in China

Question 11

Species Richness

Answer 11

The number of different speciesDS (diversity) represented in an ecological community or region

Question 12

Cultural Benefits

Answer 12

Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture can directly support recreational services. Recreational fishing is linked to healthy aquatic ecosystems.

Question 13

Provisioning Benefits

Answer 13

Ecosystems provide diversity of materials and products. Livestock provide different types of raw material such as fiber (wool), meat, milk

Question 14

Regulating Benefits

Answer 14

Keep pest populations in balance through natural predators. Keeps food prices lower. Reduces the need for pesticides. Achieved in ecosystems through the actions of predators and parasites as well as by the defense mechanisms of their prey.

Question 15

Supporting Benefits

Answer 15

Form new soil and renew soil fertility. Allows for greater crop yields, which can feed more people. Reduces the need for fertilizers.

Question 16

Island

Answer 16

A suitable habitat for a specific ecosystem that is surrounded by a large area of unsuitable habitat

Question 17

Island Biogeography

Answer 17

It examines the factors that affect the richness and diversity of species living in these isolated natural communities

Question 18

Theory of Island Biogeography

Answer 18

It proposes that the number of species found on an “island” is determined by immigration and extinction of isolated populations

Question 19

Degree of Isolation

Answer 19

Distance to the nearest island or mainland

Question 20

Habitat fragmentation

Answer 20

It occurs when a habitat is broken into pieces by development, industry, logging, roads, etc., and can cause an edge effect

Question 21

Law of Tolerance

Answer 21

It states that the existence, abundance, and distribution of species depend on the tolerance level of each species to both physical and chemical factors within its environment

Question 22

Ecosystem

Answer 22

A community of organisms that interact with each other and their environment and that can change over time

Question 23

Episodic Process

Answer 23

Occurring occasionally and at irregular intervals

Question 24

Periodic Process

Answer 24

Occurring at repeated intervals

Question 25

Random Process

Answer 25

Lacking a regular pattern

Question 26

Adaptation

Answer 26

The biological mechanism by which organisms adjust to new environments or to changes in their current environment

Question 27

Behavioral Adaptation

Answer 27

Such as instincts, mating behavior, or vocalizations

Question 28

Physiological Adaptation

Answer 28

Such as methods of temperature control or how food is digested

Question 29

Structural Adaptation

Answer 29

Involves physical features such as body coverings

Question 30

Ecological succession

Answer 30

The gradual and orderly process of ecosystem development brought about by changes in community composition and the production of a climax community and describes the changes in an ecosystem through time and disturbance

Question 31

Facilitation

Answer 31

When one species modifies an environment to the extent that it meets the needs of another species

Question 32

Inhibition

Answer 32

When one species modifies the environment to an extent that is not suitable for another species

Question 33

Tolerance

Answer 33

When species are not affected by the presence of other species

Question 34

Pioneer Species

Answer 34

Earlier successional plants, generalists

Question 35

r-strategists

Answer 35

mature rapidly; short-lived species; number of organisms within a species is high; low biodiversity; niche generalists

Question 36

K-strategists

Answer 36

mature slowly; long-lived; number of organisms within a species is lower; greater biodiversity; niche specialists

Question 37

Ecological succession

Answer 37

The process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time, which can be millions of years in the case of primary succession or decades in the case of secondary succession

Question 38

Primary succession

Answer 38

The evolution of a biological communitys ecological structure in which plants and animals first colonize a barren, lifeless habitat

Question 39

Secondary succession

Answer 39

A type of ecological succession in which plants and animals recolonize a habitat after a major disturbance

Question 40

Ecological disturbance

Answer 40

An event or force that can result in mortality to organisms and changes in the spatial patterns in their ecosystem and plays a significant role in shaping the structure of individual populations within the ecosystem

Question 41

Succession

Answer 41

A directional, non-seasonal, cumulative change in the types of plant species that occupy a given area over time, involving colonization, establishment, and extinction, shows how an ecosystem changes after an ecological disturbance

Question 42

Species richness

Answer 42

The number of different species represented in an ecological community

Question 43

Keystone species

Answer 43

A species whose very presence contributes to a diversity of life and whose extinction would lead to the extinction of other forms of life

Question 44

Indicator species

Answer 44

These are organisms whose presence, absence, or abundance reflects a specific environmental condition and can indicate the health of an ecosystem

Question 45

global warming

Answer 45

The primary reason for changes in sea level today is glaciers and sea ice melts caused by .

Question 46

0.3

Answer 46

_ of sea-level change is due to the melting of glaciers and ice sheets on land.

Question 47

0.3

Answer 47

_ of sea-level change is due to thermal expansion—as the oceans warm (climate change), water expands.

Question 48

0.4

Answer 48

of sea-level change is due to coastal land subsidence (sinking).

Question 49

Short Term Adaptations

Answer 49

Develops in response to temporary changes in the environment; Involves temporary changes; It is not inherited, nor does DNA change; and plays no role in evolution

Question 50

Long-term adaptations

Answer 50

_ may involve DNA changing over long time periods in response to natural selection involving evolutionary processes.

Question 51

early stages of succession

Answer 51

In the , gross productivity is low due to the initial environmental conditions and low numbers of producers.

Question 52

later stages of succession

Answer 52

In _ near the climax community, gross productivity (GP) may be high, but increased respiration (R) balances it, so net productivity approaches zero and the gross production respiration (GP:R) ratio approaches 1:1.