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85 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
What is Ecology? |
The scientific investigation of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their physical environment. |
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What are the four laws of ecology? |
1. Everything is connected to everything else 2.Everything must go somewhere 3. Nature knows best 4. There is no such thing as a free lunch (every benefit has it's costs |
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Why is climate important in biology? |
It is a major factor in contributing to species distributions in ecosystems. |
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What are the four spheres of the climate system? |
1.Biosphere (life) 2.Hydrosphere (water) 3.Geosphere (land) 4.Atmosphere (air) |
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In what direction does latitude run? |
left to right |
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in what direction does longitude run? |
up and down |
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the central longitude line is the ________ it divides the earth into _________ and _____________ hemispheres. |
Prime Meridian Eastern Western |
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The central latitude line is the _________ it divides the earth into __________ and ____________ hemispheres. |
Equator Northern Southern |
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The atmospheric layer closest to the earth is the___________ |
Troposphere |
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The ozone layer is part of the ___________ |
Stratosphere |
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What is climate? |
the Average patterns of temperature, wind, humidity, and precipitation, and other variables in a region over a long period of time. |
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What is weather? |
Atmospheric conditions over a short period of time |
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The primary source of energy for the earths climate system is __________ |
The sun |
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Earths surface is heated unevenly due to it's __________ |
Curvature |
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Seasonal weather variations occur due to the earth's ____________ |
axial tilt |
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In june the earths northern hemisphere is tilted (toward or away) from the sun? |
toward |
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Circling surface currents in the ocean are called? |
Gyres |
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Ocean current patterns are affected by? |
Prevailing winds Earths rotation unequal heating of surface waters locations and shapes of continents |
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Wind movements are caused by differences in ______________, which are caused by differences in _______________ |
Atmospheric pressure temperature |
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Compared with cooler air warm air is (more, less) dense, (lower,higher) pressure, can hold (more, less) moisture , (rises, falls) |
less lower more rises |
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Tropic climate zones on earth occur mainly between the tropic of ___________and the tropic of ____________ on either side of the ____________ |
cancer capiercon Equator |
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Most hot deserts occur where cool dry air falls at __________ and ____________ of the equator |
30n and 30s of equator |
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rainshadow deserts often occur on the inland side of |
mountains |
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What is the biosphere? |
all living organisms on in or above earth |
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what is a biome? |
large geographical area of distinctive plant and animal groups that adapted to the particular climate. |
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What is migration? |
annual long distance movement of animals usually on a seasonal basis |
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What can trigger animal migrations? |
Changes in day length Temperature hormonal changes linked to annual reproductive cycles and migrations |
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two life processes that naturally affect oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are _____________ and ______________ |
photosynthesis and respiration |
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two important greenhouse gases are ________________and ____________ |
Carbon-Dioxide and Methane |
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What is an ecosystem? |
a community of interacting populations that also interact with the enviornment |
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An ecosystem consists of ____________ and ____________ components |
biotic and abiotic |
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What is an ecological niche? |
a species' role or position in the ecosystem |
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Can two species successfully occupy the same niche? |
no |
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What is niche overlap? what happens when niches overlap? |
niche overlap is when two or more species she one or more resources. when niches overlap the species compete for the same resource |
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what is the source of energy for producers? consumers? decomposers?
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producers = the sun consumers= plants and animals decomposers= detritus (animal wastes, plant litter, and dead organisms) |
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what is an autotroph? |
an organism that makes its own food usually through photosynthesis |
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What is a Heterotroph? |
an organism that cannot make it's own food so it has to find other ways like eating other animals or plants |
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What is the essential role of decomposers in an ecosystem? |
they recycle nutrients throughout the ecosystem, and break down complex molecules into chemical components |
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The two dynamic processes that sustain an ecosystem are? |
1.energy flow through the ecosystem 2. Chemical cycling through the ecosystem |
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------------ flows through the ecosystem, and ----------- cycle within the ecosystem |
energy and chemicals |
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with every use of chemical energy ----------- is lost to it's surondings |
Heat |
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Energy moves through an ecosystem according to it's ------------- |
trophic structure |
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What is Trophic structure? |
the pattern of feeding relationships within an ecosystem |
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the foundation of trophic structures is ------------- |
the producers or autotrophs |
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Primary consumers are ------------- which eat -------------- |
Herbivores eat producers |
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What is primary production in an ecosystem? |
total biomass of an ecosystem total amount of energy available to the ecosystem sets energy budget for ecosystems |
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the energy budget of an ecosystem is set by the amount of |
total biomass primary production |
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At each trophic level, ------- of energy consumed is lost as heat, and ------- is stored as biomass |
90% lost 10% stored |
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Given 20,000 Kcal as the total energy budget for the following tropic structure fill in the number of energy lost and stored
Biomass heat Tertiary (fox) Secondary primary con producer 20,000kcal 0 |
Biomass Heat Tertiary 20 180 secondary 200 1800 primary 2,000 18000 producer 20,000 0
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In a trophic cascade ----------- limit the number of ------------ which increases the survival of ------------ |
predators limit prey which increases the survival of the next lowest trophic level |
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in an ecosystem that depends on trophic cascade , loss of predators results in (increase, Decreased) population of herbivores, and consequently in (increase, decrease) of ----------- |
increased decrease producers |
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How did the loss of sharks affect some ecosystems? |
it increased the population of rays decreased the population of shellfish collapsed shellfisheries |
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How did reintroducing wolves into yellowstone park restore the rivers? |
they kept the deer to certain areas allowing more animals to return, which regenerated the forest which stabilized the banks and stopped soil erosion |
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in an ecosystem bottom up processes determine the -------- of resources, whereas top down processes (trophic cascades) determine the ---------- of resources. |
determine flow of resources determine resource distribution |
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place the water cycle in order |
evaporation, condensation, percipitation, infiltration |
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Infiltration is important because it refills |
Groundwater storage |
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Impervious sources reduce ----------------- and accelerate ------------ of percipitation |
groundwater storage runoff |
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What are the four important functions of the oceans as the earths life support system? |
1. provide 50- 70 percent of out oxegen 2. regulate climate 3. absorb carbon dioxide 4. hold 97% of earths water |
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What are the four major environmental factors that affect where species live in the oceans |
1. Water temperature 2. dissolved oxygen 3. Salinity 4. sunlight |
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In the oceans, surface water is (colder, warmer) than bottom water |
Warmer |
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What is salinity? |
the amount of dissolved salt |
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salinity is determined by the balance between the ---------- and ----------- |
evaporation and freshwater input |
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the foundation of nearly all marine trophic structures is -------------- which consists of two types ---------- and --------------. |
plankton phytoplankton (photosynthetic algae) zooplankton (marine invertabrates) |
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The coral animal is a ------------- and has tentacles containing ----------- |
animal nematocysts |
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most corals contain nutrients from ------------ that live in their cells. |
photosynthetic algae |
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What is coral bleaching? |
warm water temperature stresses the coral and causes the polyps to eject algae |
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What are the two forms of ventillation used by sharks |
mouth ventilation ram ventilation |
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What produces bioluminesence? |
light producing bacteria light producing reactions in cells |
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What sort of animal is a sea pig? |
a type of sea cucumber |
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The deepest spot of the earth is ---------------, located in the ----------- |
challenger deep marianas trench
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What are hydrothermal vents? What is in the "smoke" from vents? |
chimney like undersea geysers minerals (sulfer, methane, amonia)
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What kinds of life do hydrothermal vents support? What are the primary producers in these communities? |
chemeosynthetic bacteria
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What is the greenhouse effect? |
the greenhouse effect is where the atmosphere acts like a greenhouse to the earth trapping in the atmosperic heat from the sun to warm the earth |
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What is climate change? |
significant and persistent change in average or extreme weather changes over a long period |
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What are the two primary factors that affect the amount of solar energy leaving earths climate system |
refelectivity of earths surface absorbation of earths atmosphere |
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rank the following according the their ability to absorb solar energy water snow ice |
water snow ice |
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how do scientists estimate the temperature and carbon dioxide levels in ancient atmospheres? |
carbon pockets trapped in ice |
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for the past 800,000 years, the temperature of earth on earth has been correlates with atmospheric contractions of which greenhouse gas? |
co2 |
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until 2008, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels never exceeded -------- ppm |
400 |
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What is the source of the additional carbon dioxide in the atmosphere? |
due to combustion of fossil fuels and deforrestation |
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what is the positive feedback mechanism that is accelerating the melting of glaciers and ice sheets? |
climate change means warmer temperatures which melts the glaciers |
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there are currently about --------- billion people living in the world |
7 billion |
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what is the world biggest cause of infection? |
lack of sanitation |
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what factors contribute to the success of water.org? |
local partners and community members |
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how are increased atmospheric carbon dioxide levels,increased global temperatures and worldwide global changes related? |
they are all caused by human and are effects of each other. |