Biosphere and Ecology
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139 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Mycorrhiza | meaning "fungus root"; it absorbs phosphorous and other essential minerals and makes the available to the plant |
| Vascular Tissue | most plants, including ferns, pines and flowers contain this; it is a network of thick-walled cells joined by narrow tubes that extend throughout plant body; seed and seedless Two types- Xylem (dead matter) and Phloem (alive matter); |
| Pollen | The structure that will produce sperm in plants; the male gametophyte |
| Ovary | a unique angiosperm adaptation that encloses the ovules |
| Fruit | The ripened ovary of a flower, is an adaptation that helps disperse seeds |
| Nonvascular Tissue | also called bryophytes, is a general term of plants without a vascular system; |
| Angiosperms | flowering plants, the most recent major episode in plant evolution |
| Spore | in plants and algae; a haploid cell that can develop into a multicellular individual without fusing with another cell |
| Gynosperm | meaning "naked-seed" because they are not produced in specialized chambers; the largest group of gynosperms are conifers |
| Imperfect fungi | fungi that have NO SEXUAL stage; includes many molds and yeasts |
| Gamete | A sex cell; a haploid egg or sperm |
| Anther | a sac at the top of each filament on a flower; contains male sporangia and will eventually release pollen |
| Ovules | inside the ovary, contains a sporangium that will produce a female gametophyte and eventually become a seed |
| Hyphae | threadlike filaments that have feeding network (mycelium); surrounded by a cell wall |
| Sporophyte | diploid part in alternation of generations; produces spores |
| Alternation of Generations | The diploid and haploid stages are distinct multicellular bodies (uses mitosis and fertilization) |
| Mycelium | the feeding network of hyphae |
| Heterokaryotic | many fungi have this stage; means "different nuclei" in which cells contain two genetically distinct haploid nuclei |
| Stomata | in leaves allows gas exchange between plant and atmosphere |
| Pollination | occurs when a pollen grain lands on an ovulated scale and enters an ovule |
| Lichen | associations of millions of green algae or cyanobacteria held in a mass of fungal hyphae; consists of fungi living in close association with photosynthetic organisms |
| Bryophytes | resemble other plants in having apical meristems and embryos that are retained on the parent plant but they lack true roots and leaves; nonvascular plants |
| Flower | contains reproductive structure; spores and gametes |
| Xylem | part of the vascular tissue; includes dead cells that form microscopic pipes conveying water and minerals up from the roots |
| Phloem | part of vascular tissue; includes living cells, distributes sugar throughout the plant |
| Stamen | male reproductive structure of a flower |
| Carpel | The female reproductive structure of flower; contains the ovary |
| Symbiosis | The close associations between organisms of two or more species |
| Zygote | The fertilized egg; which is diploid and results from the union of sperm cell nucleus and an egg cell nucleus |
| Photoautotroph | An organism that obtains energy from sunlight and carbon from carbon dioxide by the process of photosynthesis |
| Ecology | The scientific study of how organisms interact with their environments |
| Environmentalism | advocacy of the preservation of improvement of the natural environment |
| Rachel Carson | famous ecologist; wrote the book Silent Spring to reveal to people the global danger of pesticide use harming birds and their feeding habits |
| Precipitation | all forms of water particles (rain) whether it is liquid or solid that fall from the atmosphere to the ground; includes rain, snow and hail |
| Evaporation | is the process by which water is converted from liquid form to vapor or gas and thus transferred from land and water masses to the atmosphere |
| Biome | Major types of ecological associations that occupy broad geographic regions of land or water and are characterized by organisms adapted to their particular environments |
| Benthic Zone | seafloor; where no light shines through an photosynthesis can NOT occur |
| Estuary | The area where a freshwater stream or river merges with the ocean |
| Coniferous Forest | forest populated by cone-bearing evergreen trees; mostly found in northern latitudes |
| Pelagic Zone | oceans, includes all open water from low water on shore to the deepest part of an ocean (the width from land across a body of water, in a sense) |
| Intertidal Zone | where the ocean meets the land, the shore is pounded by waves during high tide and exposed to the sun |
| Population | A group of individuals belonging to one species and living in the same geographic area |
| Community | An assemblage of all the organisms living together and potentially interacting in a particular area |
| Ecosystem | All organisms in a given area along with the abiotic and biotic factors with which they interact a biological community and its physical environment |
| Landscape | the application of ecological principles to the study of the structure and dynamics of a collection of ecosytems; the scientific study of the biodiversity of interacting ecosystems |
| Organisms are adapted to biotic and abiotic factors by | natural selection |
| Biotic | A living component of a biological community; an organism of factor pertaining to one or more organisms |
| Abiotic | A nonliving component of an ecosystem such as air (wind), water, sunlight and temperature |
| Rain Shadow | an area that has little precipitation because some barrier causes the winds to lose their moisture before reaching it |
| Coriollis Effect | the appernt curving of the path of moving objectsdue to the earths rotation |
| Westerlies | In temperate zones, the slower moving surface produces these winds that blow from the east to west |
| Epiphyte | any plant that grows upon or is some manner attached to another plant or object merely for physical support; are primarily found in the tropical distribution and are often known as air plants because they have no attachment to the ground of other obvious nutrient source; they obtain water and minerals from rain |
| Photic Zone | regions of a body of water where light penetrates, enabling photosynthesis (light exposure is the greatest) |
| Wetlands | constitute a biome that is transitional between an aquatic ecosystem (marine or freshwater) and a terrestrial one |
| Turnover | the mixing of waters in a lake as a result of changing water profiles; oxygen from the top is distributed to the bottom of the lake as nutrients from the bottom rises to the top |
| Oligotrophic | A lake that has low or no nutrient concentration and low plant growth |
| Hydrothermal vent | an area where ocean water sinks through cracks in the ocean floor, is heated by the underlying magma, and rises again through the cracks |
| Deciduous forest | Biome located between the polar region and tropics; air masses from both the cold polar region and warm tropic region contributes to climate change. Much of the human population live in this biome |
| Taiga | the largest terrestrial biome on earth stretching in a broad ban across North America. Characterized by long, cold winters and short wet summers |
| Savanna | a biome dominated by grass and scattered trees; temperature is warm all year round; poor soils and lack of moisture inhibits the establishment of most trees |
| Deserts | The driest of all terrestrial biomes and characterized by low and unpredictable rainfall |
| Chaparral | is a shrubland and characterized by dense, spiny shrubs with tough evergreen leaves. Characterized by rainy winters and hot, dry summers |
| Permafrost | The arctic tundra is characterized by this; it is continuously frozen sub soil |
| Transpiration | loss of water vapor from parts of plants especially in leaves, but also in stems, flowers and roots; occurs in stomata |
| Arctic Tundra | is a treeless biome characterized by extreme cold, wind and permafrost |
| Tropical forests | Occur in equatorial areas where the temperature is warm and days are short; lost of rainfall and variety of species |
| Aphotic Zone | Below the photic zone, there is not enough light for photosynethesis; also called "Twilight Zone"; variety of small fishes and crustaceans. Above the benthic zone, this is the middle zone |
| Population ecology | is concerned with changes in population sizes and the factors that regulate population over time |
| Population | a group of individuals in a single species that occupy the same general area |
| Population density | the number of individuals of a species per unit volume or area |
| Doubling time | The number of years needed to double a population, assuming a constant rate of natural increase |
| Carrying capacity | maximum population size that a particular environment can sustain |
| Integrated Pest Management | uses a combination of biological, chemical and culturing methods to control agricultural pests. It relies on knowledge of population ecology of the pest and its associated predators and parasites |
| Survivorship Curve | constructed by life tables, plots survivorship as the proportion of individuals from an initial population that are alive at each age; |
| Age structure | reveals a population's growth trend; and indicates social conditions.; is a great demographic tool that can help predict a population's further growth |
| J curve | graphing data of population growth; is typical of exponential growth as population increases the slope becomes steeper; growth under ideal, unrestricted conditions |
| S curve | typically is produced by logostic growth model data; population growth with LIMITING FACTORS as its population size increases |
| Demographic Transition | the world population in undergoing a change, a shift from zero population growth in which birth rates and death rates are high but roughly equal, to zero population growth characterized by low birth rates and death rates |
| Life history | the traits that affect an organisms schedule of reproduction and death |
| Boom and Bust Cycle | some populations undergo dramatic fluctuations in density with remarkable regularity. Booms are characterized by rapid exponential growth and are followed by busts, during which the population falls back to a minimal level |
| ZPG or Zero Population Growth | is a condition of demographic balance where the number of people in a specified population neither grows nor declines. It is the ideal towards which countries and whole world should aspire in interest of long term environmental sustainability |
| Clumped Dispersion | where the population is dispersed in distinct patches |
| Uniform Dispersion | where the population is dispersed by even spaces |
| Random Dispersion | where the population disperses and spaced unpredictably |
| Maximum Sustainable Yield | The level of harvest that produces a constant yield without forcing a population to decline |
| Population Momentum | In a population where R=0, the continuation of population growth as girls in the prereproductive age group reach the reproductive years |
| Limiting factor | environmental factors that restrict population growth |
| Ecological footprint | is an estimate of the amount of land required to provide the raw materials an individual or nation consumes, includes food, fuel, water, housing and waste dispersal |
| Biodiversity | the variety of living things, encompassing genetic diversity, species diversity and ecosystem diversity |
| Species richness | number of different species in a community |
| Species Diversity | defined by two components: species richness and relative abundance; the proportional representation of a species in a community |
| Dominant Species | one of a small number of species which dominate in an ecological community |
| Keystone Species | is a species whose impact on its community is much larger than its biomass or abundance indicate |
| Resilience | is the property of a material to absorb energy when it is deformed elastically and then upon unloading to have this energy recovered. It is the maximum energy per unit volume that can be elastically stored |
| Food chain | The sequence of food transfer up the trophic levels |
| Food web | A more realistic view of the trophic structure of a community, which is the network of interconnecting food chains |
| Trophic structure | a pattern of feeding relationships that consists of several different levels. (food chain) |
| Parasitoid | is an organism that spends a significant portion of its life history attached to or within a single host organism (which it ultimately kills in the process) |
| Mullerian Mimicry | is a natural phenomenon when two or more harmful species that are not closely related share one or more common predator (is dangerous) |
| Batesian Mimicry | form of mimicry typified by a situation where a harmless species has evolved to imitate the warning signals of harmful species directed at a common predator (EX: The flower resembles a honeybee but the flower fly has no stinger) |
| Decomposer | breaks down organic molecules into inorganic ones. Decomposition by prokaryotes and fungi links ALL the trophic levels |
| Parasitism | a parasite lives in or on a host from which it obtains nourishment (+,-) |
| Herbivory | consumption of a plant parts or algae by an animal. An interspecific interaction that clearly benefits one population and harm another (+,-) |
| Coevolution | Evolutionary change in which adaptations in one species act as a selective force on a second species, inducing adaptations that in turn act as a selective force on a the first species; mutual influence on the evolution of two different interacting species |
| Mutualism | both populations benefit (+,+) |
| Commensialism | When one member benefits from another and the other is neither benefitted or harmed. (+, X) |
| Competition | occurs when two populations of two different species compete for the same limited source; (-,-) |
| Habitat | a place where an organism lives |
| Ecological Niche | each species in a community has its own need for existence, the sum of its use of biotic and abiotic resources in an environment (its role or functioning position) |
| Pioneer Species | plants or communities that are first to be established in an area previously empty of life |
| Successional Species | fast growing, well dispersed species (r-selected); species that occupy an area in which life once existed but is now destroyed |
| Climax Species | well-adapted, slow-growing species, most stable community, greatest diversity |
| Ecosystem | consists of all organisms within a community as well as the abiotic environment in which the organisms interact |
| Detritivore | Another trophic level of consumers, in which they get their energy from eating dead material produces; detritus includes animal wastes, plant litter and dead organisms |
| Crafoord Prize | prize awarded to Odum for his work in biosciences and ecosystem ecology; study of pollution on ecosystems |
| Biomass | ecologists call the amount of mass of living organic material in an ecosystem |
| Primary Productivity | The amount of solar energy converted to chemical energy (in organic compounds) by an ecosystems producers for a given area and during a given time period |
| Energy Pyramid or Pyramid of Production | illustrates the cumulative loss of energy with each transfer in the food chain; helps us understand why most food chains are limited 3 to 5 levels |
| 10% Rule | In the pyramid of production only 10 percent of energy available at each trophic level becomes incorporated into the next higher level |
| Nitrogen Fixation | the assimilation of atmospheric nitrogen by soil bacteria and its release for plant use on the death of the bacteria |
| Algal Bloom | goes hand in hand with eultrophication (lots of nutrients) rapid and heavy bacterial and algal growth greatly reduces oxygen level at night, when the photosynethesizers prosper |
| Eultrophication | process in which added nutrients cause algae and cyanobaceria to multiply rapidly; resulting in a bloom |
| Hubbard Brook Study | shows the major change in terrestrial ecosystem disrupts chemical cycling, moving nutrients to other areas such as streams or lakes |
| Eugene Odum | compared succession to the development of maturation of an organism; won the Crafoord Prize and had much to do with looking at the effects of pollution |
| Biological Control | the intentional release of a natural enemy to attack a pest population |
| David Schindler | talks about the effects of nutrients on freshwater ecosystems; He did experiments on lakes in Northern Ontario; these experiments led to the banning of phosphates in detergents |
| Guano | the droppings of seabirds and bats that farmers use to add phosphates to the soil |
| Competitive Exclusionary Principle | principle that states that no two species can occupy the same niche in the same habitat at the same time |
| Resource Partioning | is a way in which different species use the same resource such as food without occupying the same physical location at the same point in time |
| Character Displacement | a pattern in which two species with overlapping ecological requirements differ more when they co-occur than when they do not |
| Energy flow | the passage of energy through components of the ecosystme |
| Chemical Recycling | the transfer of chemical nutrients and material within the ecosystem |
| Mold | refers to any rapidly growing fungus that reproduces asexually by producing spores, from at the tips of specialized hyphae |
| Fertilization | the union of the nucleus of a sperm cell with the nucleus of an egg cell, producing a zygote |
| Chemoheterotroph | are unable to fix carbon and form their own organic compounds; they utilize organic energy sources- they derive energy from carbon from the oxidation of performed organic compounds, these include fungi which do not have a chloroplasts to use photosynthesis |
| Charophytes | green algae; Chara and Coleochaete; the oldest algae |
| Apical Meristem | growth producing regions of cell divisions are found near the stems and roots |
| Yeast | refers to any single-celled fungus that reproduces asexually by cell division or budding |
| Seed | consists of an embryo packaged with food supply within a protective covering |
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