...Biology Biome: the largest division of the biosphere. Biosphere: the thin layer of air, land, and water on or near Earth’s surface in which all living things on Earth exists. Climatograph: A graph of climate data for a specific region. Ecosystem: a part of a biome in which abiotic components interact with biotic components. Biodiversity: the variety of all living species of plants, animals, and micro-organisms on Earth. Niche: The special role an organism plays in an ecosystem, including the way in which it contributes to and fits into environment. Structural adaptations: a physical feature of an organism’s body having a specific function that contributes to survival of the organism. Physiological: a physical and chemical event that occurs within the body of an organism that enables survival. Behavioral: what an organism does to survive in the unique conditions of its environment. Species: a group of closely related organisms. Population: all members of a particular species. Community: all the population of the different species. Bioremediation: the use of organisms (micro or plants), to break down chemical pollutants in water or soil to reverse/lessen environmental damage. Decomposition: breaking down of organic wastes and dead organisms. Biodegradation: action of living things such as bacteria to break down dead organic matter. Decomposer: change wastes and dead organisms into usable nutrients. Detrivores: consumers that obtain their energy by eating bodies...
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...group had a fence enclosed around it. Also, there was a predation relationship between the wildflowers and the kangaroo rats because the kangaroo rats eat wildflowers. Assuming that the fence was limiting the space of the experimental plot, competitive exclusion caused the extinction of the 4 other wild flowers. To begin, there was some interspecific competition, which happens when individuals of different species compete for a resource that limits their survival, between the 5 flower species in the experimental plot because they had their space limited to the fence that they were enclosed in. this competition was a density dependent factor in that the death rate rose when population density in the plot rose. Also, some of the specie’s ecological niches (like what nutrients they needed and how many branches would form) would have had to been the same or else they could coexist together. Then, one of the species of wildflower might have had a reproductive advantage like thorns to repel the kangaroo rats which would have allowed them to prosper and the other species to die out. This is the principle of competitive exclusion. On a tangent, the kangaroo rats would have learned to stay away from the wildflower with thorns by classical conditioning because they paired the idea of getting stung with eating that particular wildflower species and eventually stopped. The control plot, on the other hand, did not have a fence, so they had all the room to grow and didn’t not have to compete...
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...Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis Background Habitats and the ecological communities they support are often greatly impacted by disturbance. For example, forest communities can be disrupted by fires, blow-downs, floods, and hurricanes. Alpine plant communities can be devastated by landslides or avalanches. Marine systems such as coral reefs can be decimated by storms, ravaged by predators, or trashed by inconsiderate tourists. On a smaller scale, many habitats can be disturbed both above and below ground by burrowing creatures such as gophers or moles. All of these disturbances can change the composition of species in a habitat and can also change relative species abundances. Both the intensity and the frequency of disturbance can influence how the composition of species in an area will change. In general, when disturbance is minimal or rare, then the species that are best at competing with other species for resources will eventually take over. Alternatively, when disturbance is extensive or frequent, then species that are good colonizers or can recover from disturbances rapidly will be at an advantage and will dominate. For example, a forest that has not been disturbed for a long time generally hosts species of trees and other plants that can grow under low light, but will not include many grasses or bushes. If the same area were burned periodically, the trees would rarely have time to become established. Instead, a grassland community comprising species capable of...
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...Living organisms change as the abiotic and biotic components in their environment change. The process that makes change possible in living things is called natural selection. Scientists use the term adaptive radiation to describe the change from a common ancestor into a number of different species that “radiate out” to inhabit different niches. Ecological succession is the term scientists use to refer to changes that take place over time in the types of organisms that live in an area. Primary succession occurs in an area where no soil exists, such as on bare rock. Pioneer species is the term scientists use to describe the lichens and other plants that are the first organisms to survive and reproduce in an area. The process of primary succession leads to the development of a mature community, which is sometimes called a climax community. Flooding occurs in coastal areas, rivers, and lakes, when the volume of water exceeds the ability of the water body to contain it. Tsunami is the term used to describe a huge, rapidly moving ocean wave and it is usually caused by large earthquakes or underwater volcanic eruptions. Drought is a recurring event in many parts of the world, it usually occurs when there is a below-average amount of precipitation in an area over a period of many months or years. Land use refers to the ways we use the land around us for urban development, agriculture, industry, mining, and forestry. Resource use refers to the ways we obtain and use these materials...
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...FAQ: Biodiversity and Ecosystems Question 1: What is meant by succession, and what factors are responsible for succession? Answer 1: Succession is the order in which an ecosystem becomes established. It is the process by which species within a community replace one another in a given ecosystem. Usually, the complexity of the communities increases as they are replaced. Succession is triggered by a disturbance (fire or storm) or newly created open areas (deforestation). Ecological succession has several levels including primary and secondary succession. Primary succession involves pioneer species, which are usually the first ones to colonize open areas. They are hardy species and include things like microbes, mosses, and lichens. Eventually, the pioneer species become replaced by climax species. Climax species only occur after a long period without disturbance. Climax species are usually long-lived and require a stable environment. Question 2: How can natural selection lead to the development of new species? What are the prerequisites and the limitations? Answer 2: Natural selection was first proposed by Charles Darwin in his book Origin of Species. Natural selection is the process by which certain gene combinations give an organism a certain advantage over the others in a population. This trait then becomes selected as the population continues to reproduce. For example, suppose a certain mouse can run faster than any of the other mice in a population. The mouse will have a better...
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...SUCCESSION Virtually all plant communities experience, from time to time, disturbances that remove all or some of the plant biomass. Thus, diversity is influenced heavily by disturbance =is the directional change in community composition and structure over time. • "begins" when a disturbance is followed by colonization or re-growth of the disturbed site by plants • Natural, gradual changes in the types of species that live in an area; can be primary or secondary • The gradual replacement of one plant community by another through natural processes over time Causes of Plant Succession • Autogenic succession (2 types) can be brought by changes in the soil caused by the organisms there. These changes include accumulation of organic matter in litter or humic layer, alteration of soil nutrients, change in pH of soil by plants growing there. The structure of the plants themselves can also alter the community. For example, when larger species like trees mature, they produce shade on to the developing forest floor that tends to exclude light-requiring species. Shade-tolerant species will invade the area. • Allogenic changes are caused by external environmental influences and not by the vegetation. For example soil changes due to erosion, leaching or the deposition of silt and clays can alter the nutrient content and water relationships in the ecosystems. Animals also play an important role in allogenic changes as they are pollinators, seed dispersers and...
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...Invasive Species Author’s Name Institutional affiliation Date Invasive species are non-native (plants or animals) to an ecosystem and their introduction is probable to cause human health, environmental, or economic damage in the ecosystem. Africanised bee (Apis hybrid), hybrid of European and African honeybees, is an invasive species in U.S.A. It invaded into Southwestern U.S northwards from Brazil (origin). The species can be curbed by cold temperatures (mild winter) which renders them inactive (Emerton, 2008). They (killer bees) attack violently and usually entail many stings, which, when accumulated, are fatal to people and animals. The thriving population of lionfish in Atlantic Ocean affects us by reducing the resources available for commercial fishing industry. Lionfish feed on small crustaceans, coral reefs, and young fish (inclusive of the young of vital commercial fish). Lionfish’s venomous spines are very painful to the human body. Natural predators and groupers are set to remedy this hazard since the available potential predators cannot alleviate the lionfish available in the Ocean. Spearing and eating them is also remedying the situation. Zebra mussels are invasive species in the Great Lakes. They were inadvertently brought into Lake St. Clair, after which they spread all through the Great Lakes. They caused harsh problems at municipal water supplies, power plants, clogging intake screens, cooling systems, and pipes. They have also alleviated, nearly...
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...Ecology Booklet Project Trey FitzMorris 1/6/2014 2rd Period Interrelationships Among Organisms In An Ecosystem Ecosystem – community of living and nonliving things that interact with one another to function as a system Stable Ecosystem – an ecosystem that is able to maintain its structure and function over a long period of time Niche – an individual’s place within an ecosystem, or a species location in an ecosystem relative to other species Predation Predation – one animal killing and eating others to provide themselves with adequate nutrients Predation is an important relationship between animals. It provides the predator with a source of energy that allows it to exist in that certain ecosystem. Predation also limits the predator and prey relationship because if the prey did not exist the predator could not exist, and if the predator did not exist the population of the prey would be able to become overpopulated. Competition Competition – individuals of a species fighting each other for a limited amount of resources needed to survive Competition is an important interspecies interaction, because it limits the size of a population. Animals that do not have a predator do not have to worry about their population being limited by another species. However what the limit lacks in predation it makes up in competition. When individuals of a species do not have enough resources to go around they must compete with one another to obtain these resources...
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...tornados, earth quakes, floods, etc. Even after the rare cases of these disasters the system that has been noted to be perfect would reset itself back to its original state. Marsh explained that before the British colonization, North America, geographically was balanced and had a system of perfection. The soil or ground has been perfectly separated by frost, chemicals, gravity, and flow of water, and or deposits which created a perfect top soil so that trees and plantation could grow back immediately. When Indians and Europeans were at war they began to burn down the trees and plantation, but because the destruction was during the early ages thee systems would replenish the trees as a fast rate. Returning the forest to its normal state. “The succession involved no interruption of growth, and but little break in the ‘boundless contiguity of shade…” (Marsh 48) During this time the trees covered the land and not much light would get through at any moment. There were other forces, other than nature, that have...
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...After viewing the succession of the ecosystem in the Succession animation I have determined it is an example of a secondary succession. A secondary succession is defined as a change in species composition after a disturbance destroys the existing vegetation in an area that contains soil (Wiley, 2000-2012). The Succession animation was about a forest that contained a small creek. The natural flow of this creek was disturbed by a dam built by beavers thus creating a flood in the forest, the death of the current trees and plants and the new growth of trees and plants in later years. That is why it is a secondary succession. Evolution takes place in the process of natural selection. This process is one where necessary and successful characteristics and traits are passed on to future members of the species for survival. All traits and characteristics that are unnecessary cease to exist in future offspring. The hypothesis I’ve formed in regard to the aquatic salamander, who is missing hind limbs and has small forelimbs, is it came from a line of salamanders that migrated to a new area where they no longer needed their hind limbs. It is possible their new home had smaller areas for them to swim through and their limbs were proving to be a hindrance. Through the process of natural selection, the offspring of these salamanders were born with smaller limbs until their hind limbs were no more. This would be an example of their struggle for existence. References: • Wiley, J. (2000-2012)...
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...1. Mutualism is a symbiotic relationship and both partners benefit whereas commensalism benefits only one and the other gets nothing. 2. A negative externality is a when a third party effects someone or something in a bad way and there is no compensation. 3. Gathered from my readings in the book negative feedback can be a great thing for nature. It allows a system to stabilize itself. Positive feedback can cause an ecosystem to destabilize. This is usually a bad thing but sometimes good things come from all of the chaos. 4. Isotopes are atoms of an element with different number of neutrons. 5. Entropy describes the chaos that is brought forth when energy transforms. 6. I believe that yes the term carrying capacity can apply to both the ecosystems and human beings. The definition is explained in the book using human population growth. But I also believe that many ecosystems can destroy themselves with over population so in order for them to survive they need a equal “birth” rate and death rate. This carrying capacity would allow an ecosystem to survive. 7. CFC’s are Chlorofluorocarbons. They are used in refrigerators, aerosol, and air conditioning. They have to do with the ozone hole because they are one of the main causes of it. Over the years uses of CFC’s started to grow and with it the hole in our ozone. 8. The Little Ice Age lasted between 1300 and 1870. It was a time when Europe and Northern America endured a much colder temperature then they were used to, and mountain...
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...Early successional forest is habitat caused by disturbance and requires careful management to be maintained. These can include old fields, grasslands, or early forests. Early successional forest provides countless benefits not only to wildlife, but to sportsmen, bikers, hikers, photographers, as well as conservationists and naturalists everywhere. It also contributes to the overall diversity and health of the forest. To wildlife, ESH provides many necessities for survival. The rapid growth of young vegetation provides avid cover and nesting habitat for game and song birds, as well as small and large mammals-- such as the american woodcock, ruffed grouse, whitetail deer and more. Regeneration forests produce a multitude of diverse foods. ESH bears a plethora of insects-- preyed on by nearly all bird species--fruits from berry plants, stems and shoots of new trees, and other young vegetation eaten by wildlife. This diversity of plants also benefits forest health, creating a rejuvenation of old forest, transition zones, and mature forests. Sportsmen recognize the benefits of ESH too. Populations of game in areas managed for regeneration forests tend to be much higher, and it is no coincidence. Fifty six to sixty percent of mammals use early successional habitat. However, many species that depend of this habitat populations are declining. Pennsylvania forests have roughly twelve percent less early successional habitat than the estimated outlook of twenty percent. You may be wondering...
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...With reference to one plagioclimax that you have studied, assess the impact of human activity on plant succession. (10 marks) Plant succession is the process by which one plant community replaces another over time. Human activity can have an impact on the succession of plants in a number of ways these are known as arresting factors. A plagioclimax community is a habitat in which the impact of humans has subsequently meant that the ecosystem has been prevented from developing further. The plagioclimax with which I will give reference in this essay is heather moorland. It must be noted that much of the present vegetation in the UK is a plagioclimax as a result of clearance. Heather moorland provides a choice example of a plagioclimax in the UK. The areas where heather moorland is most prominent are the North York Moors, the Pennines and Eastern Scotland. Much of the land where Heather moorland now exists was once covered by deciduous woodland, the UK’s climatic climax, yet humans have had a critical impact on the way in which heather moorland has manifested itself in these areas. One must acknowledge that heather had featured in these areas prior to the suspension of succession. Humans removed deciduous woodland in these areas to make way for farmland as a result of the need to increase food production. By chopping down vast swathes of deciduous woodland, the soil in these areas began to deteriorate without the much needed nutrients associated with the deciduous woodland biome...
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...survivorship curves common in nature. Explain what k and r selection are and which of the three types of survivorship curves they correspond to. Which curve corresponds to increased quality of offspring? Which corresponds to increased quantity? 3. Species relationships: discuss competition, predation, mutualism, herbivory and parasitism. Give an example of each relationship and explain the benefit or harm that the organism is receiving. 4. Explain the competitive exclusion theory and give an example of what this theory suggests. What is the ultimate outcome of competitive exclusion? Explain how resource partitioning allows organisms to overcome competition. 5. Explain primary succession in plants. What plants are pioneer species? What plants dominate each stage of succession? What is the climax community? 6. Explain the 10% rule of trophic efficiency. Use a food chain as an example. If we start with 1,000 J of energy in producers, how much energy is available to primary consumers? How much would be available to secondary consumers? To tertiary consumers? Where does the “lost” energy go? 7. Define biodiversity and explain three major threats to biodiversity. Describe why the threats exist. What can we do to protect biodiversity? Why should we care? 8. Explain global climate...
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...plant succession which occurs in an urban area which has been abandoned or untouched for 5 years. This form of colonisation is a form a secondary succession. Plant succession is the process in which one plant species replaces another over time which may be influenced by changes in the environment. The first plants to develop are the pioneer plants. They are able to exist in areas where there is little water, obtaining nutrients by photosynthesis and grow in places with very little soil, like concrete. Some examples of pioneer plants are lichens and mosses. When these plants die they provide a mat of organic matter which, mixed with the weather mineral matter produces a protosoil that other plants can root into. Stage two of the colonisation of the wasteland is when the Oxford ragwort starts to grow. It grows in the cracks in the surface because they provide sheltered places where seeds can germinate and retain moisture. During this stage, plant succession is rapid. As these higher plants die off, they produce a thicker and more nutrient-rich soil. Taller plants can then become established. One of the most common is rosebay willow herb, which spreads initially by seeds and then by rhizomes which can extend up to 1m a year. A rhizome is an elongated horizontal underground plant stem producing shoots above and below the ground. These plants gradually shade out the lower plants stopping them from growing as they can’t photosynthesise. The next stage of succession is the...
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