APES Chapter 3 Flashcards

4889485007	ecosystem	A particular location on earth distinguished by its particular mix of interacting biotic and abiotic components	0
4889485008	Ecosystem Boundaries	Some ecosystems, such as a caves and lakes have very distinctive boundaries. However, in most ecosystems it is difficult to determine where one ecosystems stops and the next begins.	1
4889485009	Ecosystem Processes	Even though it is helpful to distinguish between two different ecosystems, ecosystems interact with other ecosystems.	2
4889485010	Cellular Respiration	the process by which other organisms gain energy from eating the tissues of producers.	3
4889485011	Energy Flow through Ecosystems		4
4889485012	Producers (autotrophs)	are able to use the suns energy to produce usable energy through the process called photosynthesis.	5
4889485013	Circle of Life		6
4889485014	Consumers (heterotrophs)	obtain energy by consuming other organisms	7
4889485015	Primary Consumers	(herbivores) consume producers	8
4889485016	Secondary Consumers	(Carnivores) obtain energy by eating primary consumers	9
4889485017	Tertiary Consumers	(Carnivores) eat secondary consumers	10
4889485018	Food Chain	The sequence of consumption from producers through tertiary consumers.	11
4889485019	Food Web	A more realistic type of food chain that takes into account the complexity of nature.	12
4889485020	Food Chain vs. Food Web		13
4889485021	Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)	The total amount of solar energy that the producers in an ecosystem capture via photosynthesis over a given amount of time.	14
4889485022	Net Primary Productivity (NPP)	The energy captured (GPP) minus the energy respired by producers measured in g C/m^2	15
4889485023	Biomass	The energy in an ecosystem is measured in terms of biomass.	16
4889485024	Standing Crop	The amount of biomass present in an ecosystem at a particular time.	17
4889485025	Ecological Efficiency	The proportion of consumed energy that can be passed from one trophic level to another. (picture explains it is 90% efficient)	18
4889485026	Trophic Pyramid	The representation of the distribution of biomass among trophic levels.	19
4889485027	Biosphere	the combination of all ecosystems on earth	20
4889485028	Biogeochemical cycles	the movement of matter within and between ecosystems involving biological, geologic, and chemical processes	21
4889485029	The Hydrologic Cycle	The movement of water through the biosphere	22
4889485030	Transpiration	The process where plants release water from their leaves into the atmosphere.	23
4889485031	Evapotranspiration	The combined amount of evaporation and transpiration.	24
4889485032	Runoff	When water moves across the land surface into streams and rivers, eventually reaching the ocean	25
4889485033	Human Influences on the water cycle	withdraw large quantities of fresh water - water diversion, groundwater depletion, wetland drainage clear vegetation - increase runoff, decrease infiltration & groundwater recharge, increase flooding & soil erosion; modify water quality - add nutrients (P, N...) & pollutants	26
4889485034	The Carbon Cycle		27
4889485035	Carbon Chemistry		28
4889485036	Human Influences on the Carbon Cycle	removal of vegetation - decreases primary production (decreases carbon fixation); burning fossil fuels & biomass (wood) - increase movement of carbon into the atmosphere; the resulting increased concentration of atmospheric CO2 is believed to be sufficient to modify world climate through global warming (see Chapter 19).	29
4889485037	Guano (nitrogen) harvest	people would take bags of bird droppings for excess nitrogen	30
4889485038	The Nitrogen Cycle		31
4889485039	Human Influences on the Nitrogen Cycle	emit nitric oxide (NO), which leads to acid rain emit nitrous oxide into the atmosphere - nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas & also depletes ozone in stratosphere mine nitrogen-containing fertilizers, deplete nitrogen from croplands, & leach nitrate from soil by irrigation - leads to modification of nitrogen distribution in soils; remove N from soil by burning grasslands & cutting forest - leads to decreased N in soils; add excess N to aquatic systems - runoff of nitrates & other soluble N-containing compounds stimulates algal blooms, depletes oxygen, & decreases biodiversity; add excess N to terrestrial systems - atmospheric deposition increases growth of some species (especially weeds) & can decrease biodiversity;	32
4889485040	Role of Phosphorus	essential nutrient for plants & animals - especially building block for DNA, other nucleic acids (including ATP; ATP stores chemical energy), various fats in cell membranes (phospholipids), & hard calcium-phosphate compounds (in bones, teeth, & shells); limiting nutrient in many ecosystems - typically, addition of P leads to increased productivity, especially for fresh water aquatic systems.	33
4889485041	The Phosphorus Cycle		34
4889485042	Human Influences	mine large quantities of phosphate rock - used for organic fertilizers & detergents; can cause local effects from mining & releases more P into environment; sharply decrease P available in tropical forests & other ecosystems where P is limiting - deforestation & certain agricultural practices decrease available P; add excess P to aquatic ecosystems - leads to excessive algal growth, depletion of oxygen, & decrease in biodiversity; such eutrophication ("over nourishment")	35
4889485043	Disturbance	An event caused by physical, chemical or biological agents that results in changes in population size or community composition.	36
4889485044	Watershed	All of the land in a given landscape that drains into a particular stream, river, lake or wetland.	37
4889485045	Resistance	A measure of how much a disturbance can affect its flows of energy and matter.	38
4889485046	Resilience	The rate at which an ecosystem returns to its original state after a disturbance.	39
4889485047	Restoration Ecology	A new scientific discipline that is interested in restoring damaged ecosystems.	40
4889485048	The Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis	states that ecosystems experiencing intermediate levels of disturbance are more diverse than those with high or low disturbance levels	41
4889485049	Instrumental Values of Ecosystems	Provisions- Goods that humans can use directly. Regulating services- The service provided by natural systems that helps regulate environmental conditions. Support systems- The support services that natural ecosystems provide such as pollination, natural filters and pest control. Resilience- Resilience of an ecosystem ensures that it will continue to provide benefits to humans. This greatly depends on species diversity. Cultural services- Ecosystems provide cultural or aesthetic benefits to many people.	42