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biology-biomes
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| ecology | the study of how living things interact with eachother and with their environment |
| what are all organism's basic needs? | energy and matter |
| abiotic factors | the nonliving aspects of the environment |
| biotic factors | the living aspects of the environment |
| ecosystem | a unit of nature, consists of all the biotic and abiotic factors in a area and their interactions |
| are ecosystems closed? | no |
| is energy recycled? | no, it is constantly being inputed |
| is matter recycled? | yes, it is not constantly added to ecosystems |
| niche | refers to the role of a species in its ecosystem, includes all of the ways that the species interacts with the biotic and abiotic factors |
| what are two important aspects of a species niche? | the food it eats and how the food is obtained |
| habitat | the physical environment in which a species lives and to which it is adapted |
| how are a habitat's features determined? | by abiotic factors such as temp. and rainfall |
| competitive exclusion principle | -a give habitat may contain many species, but each species must have a different niche -two different species cannot occupy the same niche in the same place for very long |
| if two species were to occupy the same niche, what do you think would happen? | -they would compete with one another for the same food and other resources in the environment -eventually, one species would likely outcompete and replace the other |
| how does energy enter an ecosystem? | in the form of sunlight or chemical compounds |
| producers | -organisms that produce food for themselves and other organisms -use energy and simple inorganic molecules to make organic compounds -stability is vital to ecosystems because all organisms need organic molecules -autotrophs |
| photoautotroph | use energy from sunlight to make food by photosynthesis |
| chemoautotroph | use energy from chemical compounds to make food by chemosynthesis |
| consumers | -organisms that depend on other organisms for food -take in organic molecules by essentially "eating" other living things -include animals and fungi -heterotrophs |
| herbivores | -consume producers such as plants or algae -necessary link between producers and other consumers |
| carnivores | -consume animals |
| obligate carnivores | carnivores that are unable to digest plants and must eat only animals |
| omnivores | consume both plants and animals |
| decomposers | -break down the remains and other wastes and release simple inorganic molecules back to the environment -producers then use the molecules to make new organic compounds -stability of decomposers is essential to every ecosystem |
| scavengers | consume the soft tissues of dead animals |
| detritivores | consume detritus-the dead leaves, animal feces, and other organic debris that collects on the soil of at the bottom of a body of water |
| saprotrophs | -final step in decomposition -feed on any remaining organic matter that if left after other decomposers do their work |
| food chain | represents a single pathway through which energy and matter flow through ecosystem |
| food web | represents multiple pathways through which energy and matter flow through an ecosystem |
| trophic levels | the feeding positions in a food chain or web |
| whats the 1st level? | producer |
| whats the 2nd level? | primary consumer |
| whats the 3rd level? | secondary consumer |
| whats the 4th level? | tertiary consumer |
| what happens to the 90% of energy that's used? | its used for metabolic processes or given off to the environment as heat |
| biomass | the mass of organisms at a trophic level |
| biogeochemical cycles | -chemical elements and water that are needed by organism continuously recycle -they pass through biotic and abiotic components |
| exchange pool | -part of a cycle that holds an element or water for a short period of time -ex. atmosphere |
| reservoir | -part of a cycle that holds an element or water for a long period of time -ex. ocean |
| the water cycle takes place... | on, above, and below the Earth's surface |
| what are the 3 stages in which water occurs? | 1. gas (water vapor) 2. liquid (water) 3. solid (ice) |
| evaporation | -occurs when water on the surface changes to water vapor -the sun heats the water and gives water molecules enough energy to escape into the atmosphere |
| sublimation | -occurs when ice and snow change directly to water vapor -also happens because of heat from the sun |
| transpiration | -occurs when plants release water vapor through leaf pores called stomata -the water is a product of photosynthesis |
| condensation | -the process in which water vapor changes to tiny droplets of liquid water -the droplets may form clouds -if the droplets get big enough, they fall as precipitation |
| precipitation | -rain, snow, sleet, hail, or freezing rain -most falls into the ocean -eventually, this water evaporates again and repeats the water cycle |
| runoff | -precipitation that falls on land may flow over the surface of the ground -may eventually flow into a body of water |
| groundwater | -some precipitation that falls on land may soak into the ground -may seep out of the ground at a spring or into a body of water like the ocean -may be taken up by plant roots -may flow deeper underground into a aquifer |
| aquifer | an underground layer of rock that stores water |
| where does most of the carbon that dissolves from sedimentary rock end up? | the ocean |
| _____ and _____ are major reservoirs of stored carbon | sedimentary rock and the ocean |
| does carbon cycle quickly? | yes |
| when is carbon released into the atmosphere? | -cellular respiration -when organisms decompose -human actions, such as the burning of fossil fuels -natural processes, such as volcanic eruptions -warm ocean waters |
| when is carbon removed from the atmosphere? | -photosynthesis (autotrophs) removes carbon dioxide and uses it to make organic compounds -runoff, rivers and streams dissolve carbon in rocks and carry it to the ocean |
| carbon cycles far more slowly through geological processes such as ______ | sedimentation |
| nitrogen makes up _____% of Earth's atmosphere | 78 |
| nitrogen is found in... | proteins, nucleic acids, and chlorophyll |
| nitrogen cycle | moves nitrogen through the abiotic and biotic parts of ecosystems |
| nitrogen fixation | -plants cannot use nitrogen gas from the air to make organic compounds for themselves and other organisms -the nitrogen gas must be changed to a form called nitrates, which plants can absorb through their roots |
| nitrogen fixation is carried out by... | nitrogen-fixing bacteria -lives in soil and roots of legume |
| why is water important to our bodies? | every chemical reaction takes place in water |
| why do plants take in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis | to make useable carbon-->glucose |
| why is carbon important to your body? | cellular respiration |
| how does carbon move between living organisms? | respiration, photosynthesis, fossil fuels |
| why is the carbon cycle backlogged with excess carbon in the atmosphere? | because carbon stops the sun's rays from going back out to space |
| what type of organism is needed to modify nitrogen into a usable form? | bacteria |
| why is nitrogen important to your body? | proteins |
| how do animals obtain nitrogen? | they eat plants |
| there is very little phosphorous in the _____ | atmosphere |
| why is phosphorous important to your body? | phospholipids, ATP, DNA |
| how do animals obtain phosphorous? | eating |
| how is phosphorous released into the water and soil? | fertilizers, waste, weathering of rocks |
Created by:
amandathornton
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