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Definitions |
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pyramids
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Biomass
energy
numbers
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Detritivores
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a decomposer.
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Tropical rainforest
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Most biodiverse
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Secondary Consumers
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carnivores eating herbovores
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Grain
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effective landscape "resolution" relevant to the organism
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5th trophic level
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forth-level consumers (heterotrophs)
Top carnivores, parasites, detritivores, decomposers.
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Increases
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Biodiversity ________ with humidity and temperature increase. (Desert more diverse than a tundra)
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microclimate
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climate in a small area
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dentrification
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soil bacteria convert nitrates into nitrogen gas
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primary producers
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autotrophs; green plants or chemosynthetic bacterium that converts light or chemical energy into organismal tissue
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Mineral
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a naturally occurring inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition and crystal structure
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Life
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an orchestrated suite of biochemical reactions
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predation
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a relation between animals in which one organism captures and feeds on others
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nitrogen fixation
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process in which bacteria convert nitrogen gas into nitrogen compounds plants can use to make proteins
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Stores:
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Where nutrients are found in an ecosystem
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biomass
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includes the mass of offspring and from growth
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Tundra
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Temperature below freezing most of the year, very cold and harsh winters
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Neritic
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inshore waters in a marine ecosystem that are highly productive .
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Primary producer
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an autotrophy, usually a photsynthetic organism; collectively, autotrophs make up th etrophic level of an ecosystem that ultimately supports all other levels
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decomposers
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obtain energy from breaking down the remains or products of organisms
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mutualism
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both benefit from the relationship (ie flowers)
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Scavenger
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animals eat the bodies of other dead animals for food
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Net primary productivity:
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amount of energy available to consumers.
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turnover time
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when this is rapid, the smaller community of producers can support a larger community of 2nd consumers
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Water movement
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Caused by wind movement and follow coriolis patterns.
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Production efficiency
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the percentage of energy stored in food that is not used for respiration or eliminated as waste
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Primary consumers
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an herbivore, an organism that easts plants and other autotrophs
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Competition
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use or defense of a source by one organism that prevents use by other organisms
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Red Tides:
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Occur naturally and as a result of human activities; It is caused by algal blooms of dinoflagellates (protists) often associated with production of natural toxins.
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food chain
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the pathway along which food energy is transferred from trophic level to trophic level, beginning with producers
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protective covering
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when organism has a tough back or for example a turtle has a shell to protect itself
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Factors limiting NPP in terrestrial ecosystems
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Temperature and moisture, Actual evapotranspiration (movement of water throughout the ecosystem) and Mineral Nutrients
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Water cycle biological importance
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water is essential to all organisms and its availability influences te rates of ecosystem processes, particularly primary production and decomposition in terrestrial ecosystems
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Grasslands (prairies and savannas)
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Enough rain to support lots of grass and small plants but not enough for forests.
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why is nitrogen fixation important? what kinds of organisms are able to fix nitrogen?
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plants need nitrogen to grow. main usable forms are ammonia (NH3) and nitrate (NO3). nitrogen fixation converts nitrogen to these usable forms.
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Water cycle forms available to life
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liquid water is teh primary physical phase in which water is used, though some organisms can harvest water vapor; freezing of soil water can limit water availability to terrestrial plants
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Global Warming
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greenhouse effect
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Bioturbation
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process whereby burrowing organisms(worms) alter the physical and chemical properties of soil composition.
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biosphere
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ecosystem compromising the entire earth and living organisms inhabit it
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food web
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the interconnected feeding relationships in an ecosytem
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Ecosystem
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large-scale systems of interconnected chemical reactions
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primary level consumer
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they eat produces
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consumer
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organisms eat other organisms as source of energy
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Biomes:
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Large geographic regions with distinct climates and specific species (especially vegetation) adapted to them.
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Trophic Efficiency
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percentage of production transferred from one trophic level to another
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Reef
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Shallow-water hard structure (coral or rock) that provides complex habitats for many organisims. Found in neritic zone.
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Photic zone
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photosynthesis limited to uppermost waters
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Toxin
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a poisonous substance produced during the metabolism and growth of certain microorganisms and some higher plant and animal species
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Terrestrial productivity
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enhanced by warm temperatures, precipitation (moisture), and available nutrients (phosphorus and/or nitrogen usually limiting nutrients)
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Abiotic factors
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non-living parts of an ecosystem.
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Mimicry
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a harmless organism mimics a harmful one
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Fluxes:
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processes that move nutrients from one store to another; change the nutrient from one form to another.
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Nutrient Enrichment
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Use of fertilizers increases nitrogen level; leads to oxygen dead zone
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Savanna
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an area of grassland with scattered trees and bushes
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autotrophic
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organisms that can make their own food
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Biomass pyramid
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Pyramid showing total weight of oganisms
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secondary succession
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disturbance of some kind changes without removing the soil (cleared land abandoned or wild fire burned woods)
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lithosphere
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the solid, outer layer of the earth that consists of the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle
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Primary Production
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amount of light energy converted into chemical energy by autotrophs measured in energy per unit area per unit time (J/m^2*yr), sets upper limit on ecosystem diversity
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Greenhouse effect
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natural situation in which heat is retained in Earth's atmosphere by carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other gases (25% heat absorbed)
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Denitrification
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conversion of nitrates in the soil by bacteria into nitrogen gas
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Top threats to biodiversity
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habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, invasive exotics
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paratism
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one organism lives on or in another and harms it (ie tapeworms, fleas, ticks)
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Sunspot cycles
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Shifts in storm activity on the sun's surfact affect rainfall. (opperate on level of decades)
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energy pyramid
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shows the amount of energy that moves from one feeding level to another in a food web
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What are the major fluxes in the Carbon cycle?
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Photosynthesis, diffusion, evaporation, respiration, decomposition, burning of fossil fuels, combustion, land use change, flooding, and run-off.
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1)Absorbs, reflects heat differently 2) Holds heat differently 3) Drier air over land 4)Exhibits surfact topography 5) Influences ocean circulation
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Factors that land create which complicates climate.
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Immigration and extinction rates
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teh equilibrium number of species on an island represents a balance between teh immigration of new species and the extinction of species already there
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Three factors that may determine ecosystem productivity.
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The amount of insolation (solar radiation), availability of water, and availability of nutrients.
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Water cycle reservoirs
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the oceans contain 97% of the water in the biosphere; approximately 2% is bound in glaciers and polar ice caps, and the remaining 1% is in lakes, rivers, and groundwater, with a negligible amount in the atmosphere
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What are some consequences of the changing atmosphere?
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Global climate change, increase in global temperature, rising sea levels, changes in precipitation patterns, and ocean acidification.
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What is the positive outcome of more available nitrogen?
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The increase in productivity of agricultural crops has helped us feed and expanding human population.
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