ESS UNIT 2: Ecosystems and Ecology

living (biotic) and nonliving components of an ecosystem (abiotic)

Producers-plants that convert energy into matter Consumers-animals that eat plants/animals Decomposers-break down waste into reusable components

An organism's particular role in an ecosystem

the environment were species usually live

Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support

Exponential growth under ideal conditions with plenty of resources and limited competition. Population continues to grow until environmental resistance takes effect.

when resources are limited (limiting factors). Only possible for a short period of time because as the population grows, resources are depleted and the growth rate slows and will eventually plateau off. More likely to be accurate until population approaches carrying capacity.

regulate population size and impact the balance of the food web

where one organism (the predator) kills another organism (the prey) for energy to survive and reproduce.

the consumption of plant material by herbivores

is when an organism (the parasite) takes nutrients from another organism (the host).

where two organisms of different species exist in a mutually beneficial relationship.

Is the position an organism occupies in the food chain. LEVELS: producers, herbivores, omnivores, carnivores

green plants are able to take light energy and use it to make chemical energy to gain biomass Inputs - carbon dioxide, water, light energy Outputs - Oxygen, Glucose, chemical energy

is the oxidation of glucose to release energy that is then used in all activities in the organism. Inputs - Oxygen, Glucose Oxidation Outputs - carbon dioxide, water, energy

the amount of usable biomass in an ecosystem

all the biomass produced by primary producers in a given time

The production of organic matter by the consumers

calculated by substracting respiratory losses from GSP

the amount of biomass that can be extracted without reducing natural capital of the ecosystem.

Hadley Cells(larger cell; greatest heating), Ferrel Cells (flow in the opposite direction) Polar Cells (smaller cells)

is a collection of ecosystems that are classified according to their predominant vegetation.

is the change in a vegetation community along an environmental gradient (spatial and terminated by changes in the abiotic factors)

is the predictable change in a vegetation community over time (starts with a pioneer community) a group of species whom all inhabit new land together) Primary - occurs in areas that never have been occupied Secondary - occurs in areas has been a natural or human-made disturbance

Colonization - initiated by pioneer and r-strategists species Energy and nutrient cycling is limited. NPP is high, GPP is low. Establishment - the 'ecosystem' starts to compose. Soil becomes deep enough for invertebrates. Competition - The environment is less extreme and more sustainable—k-strategist start to dominate. Climax Community - is in steady state equilibrium. NPP is low and GPP is high.

Produce very few offsprings, but they increase the quality of them by investing in a lot of parental care. In this case quality means fit for purpose - survive long enough to reproduce themselves. K-selected species tend to produce few off springs at a time but they invest lots of time and energy looking after them to ensure they survive. In succession, stability increases with time so K-strategists are more common in the climax community.

Focus on increased quantity of offspring at expense of quality. With little or no parental care, survival chances are low but high numbers of offspring ensures at least some to survive.The early stages of succession are unstable, harsh environments thus r-selected species are

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

select some starting point and then select every kth element in the population

divide subjects into subgroups called strata based on characteristics that they share

is a shaped plot used to identify an area you wish to study

Turbidity, flow velocity, wind speed, slope angle, and soil

To measure the transparency of a water body. Measured using a Secchi Disk which enters the water until is no longer visible.

The speed at which a river flows. Measured using a flow meter, and simple flow. Which you put it on the water and the speed at which it rotates tells you the speed of the river.

Measured using an anemometer.

Measured using a clinometer.

Traps, Nets, Pitfall Traps, Aerial Photography, Kick-sampling, Sweep Nets

:an indirect method by which the size of an animal population can be estimated. capture/mark/release/release/recapture Assumptions - the proportion of marked animals in the second sample is the same as the proportion of marked animals in unmarked animals - Enough time has elapsed to allow full mixing of marked and unmarked animals - The population is closed and that there is no immigration