Whats for Dinner?
Amount of energy in a food pyramid transferred from one level to the next
10%
What type of ecological succession occurs on newly formed volcanic islands
Primary Succession
What is a series of predictable changes that occur in an ecosystem that lead to the sustainability of life?
Succession
_____________ is the variety of life on Earth, on both the species and genetic levels.
Biodiversity
The population of mice in a local forest ecosystem has recently died out due to disease. In the past, these mice were the main predators of the forest beetles.
The drop in the mouse population will lead to an increase in the beetle population.
The American Bison was once common in the prairie, but now wild bison are rare. Like cows, bison eat grass. What kind of organism is a bison?
Primary Consumer
Why does primary succession take longer to reach climax community?
What is the main difference between primary and secondary ecological succession?
Primary begins WITHOUT soil; Secondary begins WITH soil
Biodiversity describes the variety of life on earth. How does biodiversity contribute to the sustainability of an ecosystem?
Greater genetic diversity within and between species increases the chances of survival despite changes to the ecosystem.
The mountain ecosystems in Utah are home to short plants and grasses. Some large mammals can also be found there, such as the moose. If the hunting of moose increases, what would happen to the population of producers?
it would increase due to the decreased number of moose eating them
What is the greatest number organisms an ecosystem can support called?
Carrying Capacity
The first organisms that appear in an ecological community is called? and give an example of one...
Pioneer Species - is the first type of organism to colonize a previously uninhabited or disturbed area, starting the process of ecological succession.
Lichens are a common example of a pioneer species
The land on this farm is no longer being plowed and planted. Why is this considered secondary succession?
There is existing soil
What does biodiversity indicate about an ecosystem?
the ability of the ecosystem to survive change
A farmer had an accident and spilled a chemical into his pond. Several days later, he notices many dead frogs around the pond. That summer, the number of gnats around the pond was higher than ever. This is because
the frogs are a limiting factor for the gnats.
Several owls live in a forest. The owls prey on mice. Hawks also prey on mice. Which might happen if several hawks move to the forest where the owls live?
The number of owls and mice will decrease.
After a volcanic eruption, lava covers the land. What is the order that plants grow to repopulate the area?
Lichens → Grasses → Shrubs → Trees
The land on this farm is no longer being plowed and planted. If left to itself, what would you expect to see five years down the road?
Grass, weeds, perennials, small shrubs, and saplings
Biodiversity is important for the sustainability of ecosystems. However, many of the human actions that are aimed at growing communities are decreasing the biodiversity of these areas, leaving populations and ecosystems vulnerable. Name 2 ways human activities can lead to decrease biodiversity?
Habitat destruction , Pollution, Overexploitation of natural resources , Introduction of invasive species , Climate change, Urbanization , Agricultural practices, Ocean acidification, Plastic pollution , Genetic modification , Mining and resource extraction, Tourism
The population of mice in a local forest ecosystem has recently died out due to disease. In the past, these mice made up a large part of the diet of the forest fox.
What is the best prediction about what will happen to the foxes?
The drop in the mouse population will lead to a drop in the fox population.
I'm the tapestry of life, with threads untold,
In forest, sea, and prairie I unfold.
My strength lies not in sameness, but in variation,
A million hues in nature's grand creation.
I'm the shield against disaster's mighty blow,
Yet humans often cause my threads to go.
In my richness, ecosystems find their health,
But count me not in silver, gold, or wealth.
The more of me, the stronger life becomes,
From tiniest microbe to the mightiest ones.
What am I, this complex, living measure,
Earth's true resilience and greatest treasure?
Biodiversity
I am a complex dance of life,
Where eaters and eaten are rife.
No crown or base, just intertwined fate,
Remove one strand, and all may deflate.
Sun-catchers feed, yet also are fed upon,
In my world, energy's never truly gone.
Food Web
Born from fire, ice, or stone,
I'm a tale that's never twice told.
No inheritance do I claim,
Yet riches I'll slowly ordain.
Lichens whisper my opening line,
While forests may be my final rhyme.
Time's my ally, change my game,
Barren to bustling, that's my aim.
What force am I, that starts so small,
Yet shapes new worlds, once and for all?
Primary Succession
I'm more than a home, yet less than a world,
In ecology's tapestry, I'm tightly furled.
Multidimensional, yet precisely defined,
In me, species' roles are carefully aligned.
Hutchinson saw me as a hypervolume grand,
Where resources and conditions go hand in hand.
I'm shaped by abiotic factors and biotic too,
Fundamental or realized, I can be viewed.
Competition may shrink me, or absence expand,
In my space, no two species identically stand.
I'm the reason for Darwin's finches' diverse beaks,
And why in one pond, many plankton species peaks.
Generalist or specialist, each has their own,
Through me, evolution's pathways are shown.
What am I, this concept so intricate and vast,
That explains how in nature, diversity can last?
Niche
I'm the key to nature's swift return,
When forests fall or grasslands burn.
Unlike my "primary" kin so slow,
I let life's comeback quickly grow.
Hidden beneath destruction's mask,
I hold the seeds of recovery's task.
No bare rock am I built upon,
But on history's organic dawn.
Dormant life within me springs,
As time its transformation brings.
Faster than starting from naught,
I'm the advantage dearly bought.
In me, roots of the past still dwell,
Waiting for regrowth's signal bell.
What am I, this crucial base,
That gives second chances such pace?
Soil Presence