3.1
What is a species?
A group of similar organisms who can produce viable offspring.
What method of inquiry is used when a scientist counts population numbers in the field?
Observation
What is the total mass of an organism in a given area called?
biomass
Describe the difference between a food chain and a food web.
A food web is made up of many food chains.
What would be the most likely limiting nutrient in a pond?
Nitrogen
What term describes the process of an ecologist graphing out a formula for productivity?
modelling
What term describes the study of interactions between organisms and their environment?
ecology
What is the overall growth rate for a group of producers?
primary production
What would happen to the pond if a large amount of nitrogen was dumped into the pond?
Algal Bloom
What was the keystone species in the documentary on coastal waters?
sea otters
What is the primary source of energy on earth?
What are all of the chemical compounds required by an organism for life?
nutrients
What are the three types of ecological pyramids, and what does each one represent?
Numbers - Relative numbers
Biomass - Total mass of organisms
Energy - Total Energy at each trophic level
What is transpiration, and what cycle is it a part of?
Release of water from the leaves of plants. It is part of the water cycle.
What happens when there aren't enough sea otters?
The sea urchins eat all of the kelp which destroys the ecosystem (kelp forest)
What makes up the base of a biomass pyramid?
Producers
What is chemosynthesis? Does it require sunlight?
Organisms use hydrogen sulfide to make carbohydrates. It does not require sunlight.
How much energy can be passed from one ecological level to the next?
10%
Define heterotroph, autotroph, consumers, producers, detritivores, and decomposers.
Heterotroph - obtains energy by consuming other organisms.
Autotroph - Produces its own food
Consumers - Consume producers or other consumers
Producers - Produce their own food
Detritivores - Consume dead organisms and their excrement.
Decomposers - Decompose nutrients
Producers produce 1000kg of biomass. What amount of consumers could be created from this amount of producer biomass?
100kg
What is the organization of ecosystems from smallest to largest
species, population, community, ecosystem, biome, biosphere
What is nitrogen fixation, and what organisms carry it out?
The fixing of nitrogen from the atmosphere into legumes. It is carried out by bacteria on the root nodules of legumes.
What form is the energy lost between trophic levels?
Heat
What are first-level and second-level producers and consumers (give examples)?
First Level - Consume producers (grasshopper)
Second-Level Consumers - Consume first level consumers (Birds eat grasshoppers)
10000 kcals of energy is produced by producers. How many calories are lost between the producers and consumers.
9000kcals