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Chapter 52
Biodiversity Spring 2026- Exam 4
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is ecology? | The study of interactions between organisms and their environment, determining their distribution and abundance |
| What are the four main ecological scales? | Organismal ecology Population ecology Community ecology Ecosystem ecology |
| What does organismal ecology study? | How individual organisms interact with their environment (physiology and behavior) |
| What is population ecology? | Study of groups of interbreeding individuals and factors affecting population size, density, and growth |
| What is community ecology? | Study of interactions between different species living together |
| What is ecosystem ecology? | Study of energy flow and nutrient cycling in ecosystems |
| What are abiotic factors? | Nonliving environmental factors (e.g. temperatures, water, light, pH, salinity) |
| What are biotic factors? | Interactions among living organisms (e.g. competition, predation) |
| List key abiotic factors that affect organism distribution | Temperature Water availability Light Oxygen Salinity pH Nutrients Wind |
| What are the two most important factors determining terrestrial biomes? | Temperature and water (precipitation) |
| What is a biome? | A large ecological region defined by climate and dominant vegetation |
| How does temperature affect organisms? | Influences enzyme activity, metabolism, and survival range |
| What happens when organisms experience extreme temperatures? | They experience stress or may die (outside tolerance range) |
| How does water availability affect distribution? | Determines where plants grow, which then affects animal distribution |
| What are geographic barriers? | Physical obstacles (mountains, oceans, continents) that limit species movement |
| How does elevation affect climate? | Higher elevation = lower temperature (~10°C drop per 1000 m) |
| What is a rain shadow? | Dry area on the leeward side of mountains due to loss of moisture on windward side |
| How does global warming affect species distribution | Species shift ranges (often poleward or deeper in water) Timing of life events changes (earlier reproduction) Some populations decline |
| Why is the rate of warming important? | Species may not adapt or migrate fast enough to survive |
| What is climate? | Long-term weather patterns in a region |
| What does biotic mean? | Living components of an ecosystem |
| What does abiotic mean? | Nonliving components of an ecosystems |
| What is an ectotherm? | Organism that gets heat from the environment |
| What is an endoterm? | Organism that generates heat internally via metabolism |
| What is species distribution? | Where a species is found geographically |
| What is species range? | The full geographic area a species occupies |
| What is a Hadley cell? | A global atmospheric circulation pattern that drives climate and rainfall near the equator |
| Why is salinity important in aquatic ecosystems? | Affects water balance and survival of organisms |
| Why is pH important? | Organisms can only survive within a narrow pH range |
| Where does photosynthesis occur in oceans? | Top ~100 meters (where light penetrates) |
| What limits marine organism distribution besides light? | Nutrient availability |
Created by:
KristenR2025