Cycling of Matter and Energy
This branch of science describes the interactions between living organisms and their physical environment, including the cycling of matter and energy through various ecological processes.
What is ecology?
The biggest factor in calculating population dynamics involves these two rates.
What are the birth and death rate?
The change in an ecosystem over time. Can be primary or secondary.
What is succession?
The number of different types of species found in an ecosystem.
What is biodiversity?
Deer competing for food is an example of this type of limiting factor.
What is a density dependent limiting factor?
Energy is transferred through trophic levels in an ecosystem, and this graphical representation can be used to visualize this process.
What is an energy pyramid/biomass pyramid/food web?
The movement of individuals into and out of a population.
What are immigration and emigration?
Temperature and precipitation can change as the result of this long term phenomenon.
What is climate change?
A resource that will eventually run out.
What is a nonrenewable resource?
Deer are hunted and eaten by wolves, making them this type of an organism in a food web.
What is prey?
Precipitation, evaporation, and transpiration are all processes that are part of this biogeochemical cycle.
What is the water (hydrologic) cycle?
Living factors that can limit population growth are called this.
What are biotic limiting factors?
When an ecosystem reestablishes itself after a catastrophic event like a tsunami or forest fire.
What is secondary succession?
A fuel derived directly from living matter.
What are biofuels?
Lyme disease is spread by ticks from deer to deer and limits the deer population in Minnesota. An example of this type of limiting factor.
What is a density dependent limiting factor.
The nitrogen cycle requires these types of organisms to make nitrogen available to plants.
What are decomposers?
Water temperature is an example of this type of limiting factor.
What is an abiotic limiting factor?
Populations of ecosystems change throughout the year because the Earth is tilted on its axis creating these.
What are seasonal variations?
The avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance.
What is sustainability?
The common name for a male deer, also slang for one dollar.
What is a buck?
This process involving many chemical reactions allows producers to make their own food.
What is photosynthesis?
A population is said to reach this once the population number stabalizes.
What is the carrying capacity?
The species that move into an area where there has not been life before.
What are pioneer species?
A natural disaster like a hurricane can have a large impact on an ecosystem. Hurricanes are becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change caused by human actions. Hurricanes are this type of limiting factor.
What is a density independent limiting factor?
This famous white tailed deer is friends with Thumper the rabbit and Flower the skunk.
Who is Bambi?