APES test ch. 8-10
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- Biomass
-
the total amount of organic matter on Earth or in any ecosystem or area
(measured as an amount per surface unit area) - Biological Production
- the capture of usable energy from the environment to produce organic compounds in which that energy is stored
- Energy Fixation
- the "capture" of usable energy for biological production
- What are the 2 kind of biological production?
-
primary production
secondary production - Primary Production
- the production carried out by autotrophs (organisms that make their own food)
- Most autotrophs function through __________
-
photosynthesis
6CO2 + 6H20 = C6H12O6 + 6O2 - chemoautotrophs
- autotrophic bacteria that can derive energy from inorganic sulfur compounds instead of photosynthesis
- Secondary Production
- production carried out by heterotrophs (organisms that can't make their own food) that depends on the production of autotrophic organisms
- Most heterotrophs function through __________
-
respiration
C6H12O6 + 6O2 = 6CO2 + 6H2O + ATP - Respiration is the use of _______ to release energy that can be used to do work
- biomass
- the production and use of biomass includes 3 steps:
-
1. organism produces organic matter--> GROSS PRODUCTION
2. uses new organic matter as fuel in RESPIRATION
3. stores some of the newly produced organic matter for future use (what is left is net production) - Equation for net production
- gross production - respiration
- Energy
- the ability to do work, move matter
- Ecosystem energy flow
- the movement of energy through an ecosystem from the external environment through a series of organisms and back to the external environment
- How energy enter enters an ecosystem (2 ways)
-
1. energy fixed by organisms
2. heat energy is transferred through soils and warms living things - 1st Law Of Thermodynamics
-
AKA Law of Conservation of Energy:
in any physical or chemical change, energy is neither created nor destroyed but merely changed from one form to another - 2nd Law of Thermodynamics
- addresses how energy changes in form-always from a more useful, more organized form to a less useful, disorganized form. Energy can't be recycled to its original state.
- The measure of decrease in order (as stated by the 2nd law of thermodynamics) is called ___________
- entropy
- The net flow of energy through an ecosystem is a __________ flow
- one-way
- Why is an ecosystem said to be an Intermediate System?
- it lies between a source of usable energy and a sink for degraded (heat) energy
- Thermodynamic System
- the energy source, sink, and ecosystem together
- No system can be 100% _________
-
efficient.
Energy is degraded as it flows through the food web. - Energy Efficiency
- the ratio of output to input, and further, the amt. of useful work obtained from some amt. of available energy
- Trophic-level Efficiency
- the ratio of production of one trophic level to the production of the next lower trophic level. It's a common ecological measure of energy efficiency
- More than 90% of all energy transferred between trophic levels is ____ ___ ______
- lost as heat
- What is the approximate rate of transfer in trophic-level efficiency?
- approx. 10%
- Balance of nature
- an environmental myth that states that the natural environment, when not influenced by human activities, will reach a constant status, unchanging over time, referred to as a balance or equilibrium state
- Climax state
- a steady-state stage that would persist indefinitely and have maximum organic matter, maximum storage of chemical elements, and maximum biological diversity
- Prairie Restoration
-
they were the most common ecosystem in the US
2 kinds:
unplowed, intact prairies--> restoration is simpler
plowed land--> harder to restore - ecological succession
- the process of the development of an ecological community or ecosystem, usually viewed as a series of stages
- Primary succession
- an original establishmant of an ecosystem
- Secondary succession
- a reestablishment of an ecosystem (contains remnants of the last biological community)
- The general pattern of succession aka successional stages include:
-
1. an initial kind of vegetation specifically adapted to unstable conditions takes root, and help stabilize the environment
2. small plants, that grow rapidly, with rapidly spreading seeds start to grow
3. larger plants, like trees, enter and begin to dominate
4. a mature forest develops - early-successional species
-
AKA PIONEER
the pioneer species are characteristic of early successional stages. They have evolved and adapted to environmental conditions early on - late-successional species
- plant species that dominate late stages of succession. they tend to be slower growing and longer lived
- The amount of chemical elements stored in soil depends on soil __________
-
particle size:
larger, coarser particles have a small total surface area--> stores smaller amount of chemicals - How species in successional stages react (3 ways)
-
1. facilitation
2. interference
3. life history difference - facilitation
- during succession, one species prepares the way for the next
- interference
- early successional species can, for a time, prevent the entrance of later successional species
- life history differences
- one species may not affect the time of entrance of another; 2 species may appear at different times during succession b/c of differences in transport, germination, growth, etc.
- Chronic Patchiness
- when species dont interact and succession doesn't take place
-
4 kinds of species
(hint: think about our field trip) -
1. native/ endemic
2. non-native/introduced/exotic
3. invasive (aka generalist-hardy w/o specific requirements) - Changes caused by succession
-
biodiversity increases
biomass increases
gross production increases
net production DECREASES (b/c of a huge increase in respiration)
soil organic content and storage of chemical elements start off by increasing then they decrease) - biogeography
- large global patterns of life
- Wallace's Realms
- biogeographic areas based on fundamental plants and animals found in a region
- taxa
- how we group/classify all plants and animals
- biotic provinces
- characteristic set of organisms-bounded by barriers...
- biomes
- a particular kind of ecosystem (17 of them!)
- convergent evolution
- different genes, look similar, adapted to similar environments
- divergent evolution
-
(ex/ finches)
common ancestor, separated, occupy different habitats and niches - island biogeography
- the smaller an island and the further away from a mainland, the lower the biodiversity
- adaptive radiation
- adapting to fill a certain unoccupied niche
- humans alter biodiversity in 3 ways
- hunting, disrupting habitats, species introduction
- Biodiversity increases when _______ and/or _________ decrease
- latitude; altitude
- Tundra
-
arctic or alpine--> cold, permafrost, harsh
vegetation=mostly grassy plants
humans drill for oil - Taiga
-
aka boreal forest
high lats and alts. cold. little rain.
conifers.
moose, rabbits, wolves, birds.
humans use for lumber - temperate deciduous forest
-
north america, eurasia, japan
moderate rain and temp.
tall deciduous trees
small mammals
humans use for hardwood--> one of the most changed by humans - temperate rain forests
-
some parts of S, Canada, New Zealand
high rain, moderate temp.
evergreen conifers
insects.
used for lumber
called "giant forests" - temperate woodlands
-
USA east coast
moderate to low rain, moderate temp.
small pines + evergreen oaks
squirrels, birds
humans use for recreation - temperate shrublands
-
california coast, chile, south africa, mediterranean
low rain, cool season
aromatic vegetation
reptiles, small mammals
human impacts= watersheds, erosion control, settlement
chapparal= mini woodland dominated by dense shrubs - temperate grasslands
-
US prairies, Eurasian steppes, plains, etc.
low rain, moderate temp.
grasses, flowering plants
wild horses, antelope, bison
humans hunt - tropical rainforests
-
south and central america, hawaii, etc.
high rain, high temp.
ferns, palm trees, vines
insects and other invertebrates
humans clearcut and burn forests - tropical seasonal forests +savannas
-
india, africa
high but seasonal rain
grasses, scattered trees
large mammals
human impact= grazing - deserts
-
mexico, north africa, SW US
low low rain
cactus, mesquite
snakes and other reptiles
humans = global warming - wetlands
-
swamps, marshes, bogs
mangroves, mosses, floating plants
insects, birds, amphibians, snakes
humans= coal mining, shellfish industry - fresh water
-
lakes, ponds, rivers, streams
floating algae
invertebrates (zooplankton), shellfish
human: water supply, recreation, transport - intertidal
-
areas exposed alternately to air and ocean water water (tide-based)
large algae (coral)
shellfish, birds
humans fish - open ocean
-
vast areas
low productivity and diversity of algae and animals
aka pelagic region - benthos
- bottom portion of oceans (too dark for photosynthesis)
- upwellings
- areas where upward flow of deep ocean waters brings nutrients (from dead organisms) to surface = allowing abundant algae growth
- hydrothermal vents
- plate tectonics create vents of hot water w/ high concentration of sulfur compounds