Ecology Review

1. Ecology Review

2. Identify the level of ecology • Studying the sum of the ecosystems- biosphere • Studying biotic and abiotic-ecosystem • Studying behavior of one organism-organism • Studying mosaic of connected ecosystems- landscape • Studying a group of one species- population • Studying interaction between two different species- community

3. Identify the level of ecology • Predator/prey- community • Resource partitioning- community • Carrying capacity- population • Tundra- ecosystem • Age structure graphs- population • Intertidal zone- ecosystem • Symbiosis- community • Lake in a temperate forest- landscape

4. General review • Oasis in a desert is an example of…- microclimate • Sunlight, dissolved oxygen, soil are examples of….- abiotic factors • Movement of organisms from high concentration to low concentration- dispersal • Where an organism CAN live..- potential range • Where an organism DOES live….- actual range • Organism chooses where it wants to live even if it can live in another area- habitat selection

5. Why is species X absent from an area (put in order) • Does behavior limit distribution? 2 • Does dispersal limit distribution? 1 • Do abiotic factors limit distribution? 4 • Do biotic factors limit distribution? 3

6. Terrestrial Biomes (what biome?) • No canopy, trees adapted to snow accumulation, long winters- taiga • no trees, long winters, mild summers, migrating birds in summer- tundra • CAM photosynthesis, low precipitation- desert • Dry and wet seasons, generally warm year round, hunting and cattle ranches- savanna • Two types (dry and wet), canopy, high biodiversity- tropical forest • 4 distinct seasons, moderate precipitation year-round, hibernating mammals- temperate forest • Mild wet winters, and dry summers, many fires - chaparral

7. Aquatic biomes (what biome is it?) • High oxygen, fast moving, cold, low nutrients- upstream • High oxygen, low nutrients, larger mammals, marine, phytoplankton, ocean currents mixing- pelagic zone • Found in neritic tropical waters- coral reef • Oxygen and nutrients are high, adaptations to dry and wet conditions- intertidal • Freshwater, accumulated water, high oxygen, low nutrients, usually deep- oligotrophic lake • Freshwater, accumulated water, low oxygen, high nutrients, not able to support large aquatic organisms- eutrophic lake • Transition of ocean and freshwater- estuary

8. General biomes • In deserts air…… descends • In rainy areas air…… ascends and condenses • Dry side of mountain- leeward • Bottom of aquatic biome- benthic • Shallow marine zone (always under water)- neritic • Photosynthetic zone in lake with plants-limnetic • Frozen soil- permafrost • Mixing two times in a year- dimictic • Warm water in stratification of lake- epilimnion • Area of temperature change in lake or pond- thermocline • Area where light penetrates- photic zone

9. Population terms • Number of organisms (same species) per unit area- population density • Pattern of spacing or organisms in a population- dispersal pattern • Movement out of population- emigration • Type of dispersion with defined territories- uniform • Type of dispersion in a heterogeneous environment- clumped • One-shot pattern of reproduction-semelparity • K value- carrying capacity • N value- number that live in a population • Rmaxvalue- population growth rate • Survivorship curve- humans – type I

10. Type of limiting factor • Disease- DD • Food- DD • Earthquake- DI • Fire- DI • Competition- DD • Predation-DD • Natural disaster- DI

11. Interspecific competition • What is it?- two different species competing • +, - or +, +……..+, - • Role or job of organism in habitat- niche • One species is eliminated because of similar niches between two or more species- competitive exclusion • Actual niche- realized niche • What the niche “could be”- fundamental niche • Helps to avoid competitive exclusion- resource partitioning • Sympatric populations are more diverse than allopatricpopulations- character displacement

12. Predation • What is it?- hunt, kill, eat • +, + or +, -……+, - • Defensive adaptations • Camouflage- cryptic coloration • Warning colors- aposematic colors • One harmless mimics a harmful (king snake and coral snake)- batesian • Two “harmful” mimic each other (bee and wasp)- mullerian

13. Predation: true or false • Only prey have defensive adaptations- false

14. Herbivory (true or false) • It is a +, - relationship ..T • Move herbivores are vertebrates…..F • Plants have toxins and other adaptations to help avoid herbivores…T • Herbivores have adaptations to help them avoid toxic plants….T • All toxins produced by plants are designed to kill herbivores…F

15. Symbiosis • What is it?- close relationship • What are the three major types?- parasitism, commensalism, parasitism • What is the difference between obligate and facultative mutualism?- needed, not needed • Do parasites kill their host?- not usually • Why is commensalism hard to identify?- hard to tell if one is neutral

16. Community structure • The number of different species in an area- species richness • Feeding relationship between different species- trophicstructure • Interconnected food chains- food web • Proportion of population each species represents- relative abundance • Species richness plus the relative abundance-species diversity • Most abundant species in a community- dominant species • Pathogens that can pass from animals to humans- zootonic

17. Community structure continued • Non-native species usually disruption of a community- invasive • Total mass of organisms in a population- biomass • Alter the structure of the community in a positive way to increase biodiversity- facilitators • Exhibit strong control over the community; extinction of this species would be detrimental to the community- keystone species • Type of control that would state: the removal of top predators does not affect the lower trophiclevels- bottom up

18. succession • Succession where soil has not yet formed- primary • First species to arrive to an area- pioneer • An event that changes a community- disruption • True or false: disturbances are harmful to the community structure- false • Stable communities- climax • Pioneers species would be this type of selected population (R or K)- R

19. Energy in ecosystems • Two trophic levels needed in all communities- producers and decomposers • Total photosynthesis- gross PP • How to calculate the net primary production- gross PP minus respiration • What does it mean if an ecosystem is light limited?- negative net PP • What ecosystem or biome has the highest primary production?- ocean (total) • What ecosystem or biome has the highest primary production per square footage?- tropical forest

20. Energy in ecosystem continued • The amount of chemical energy used to produce biomass- secondary production • Percent of production efficiency that moves to the next trophiclevel- trophic efficiency • Percent calculated by taking the secondary production divided by the total assimilation- production efficiency • Percent energy that typically moves on from one trophic level to another- 10 • Rank in order from highest to lowest production efficiency (birds/mammals, small terrestrial insects, terrestrial reptiles, fish)- insects, reptile, fish, mammals

21. Energy in ecosystems continues • Total biomass of primary producers- standing crop • Use detritus for energy- decomposers • Herbivores are always at what trophic level?- primary consumers • Energy in the form of disorder- entropy • Algae and cyanobacteria grow rapidly when nutrients increase in an aquatic ecosystem- eutrophication

22. Biogeochemical cycles Answers for these discussed in class

23. Water cycle

24. Nitrogen cycle

25. Phosphorous cycle

26. Carbon cycle

27. Other chapter 55 terms and concepts • Toxins increase as you move up the food chain- biological magnification • Pyramid that shows energy flow from one trophic level to another-production efficiency pyramid • Pyramid that shows the total mass of each trophiclevel- biomass pyramid • Aquatic systems typically have this type of biomass pyramid- inverted • Trapping of heat due to carbon dioxide- greenhouse effect

28. Conservation • Genetic diversity, ecosystem diversity, and species diversity make up… biodiversity • Three main threats to biodiversity are… habitat loss, overexploitation, species introduction • Small population are more susceptible to… genetic drift • Downward spiral toward a smaller population size- extinction vortex • Minimum number of organisms that should exist in a population in order to avoid extinction- MVP • Number or reproducing organisms in a population or the breeding potential- effective population size • Connect fragmented habitats together- movement corridors • An area where there are many endangered species- biodiversity hotspots • Species found nowhere else in the world- endemic