Ecology Basics
What is the smallest level of ecological organization?
Organism
What do primary consumers eat?
Producers (plants)
What type of growth curve has a J-shape?
Exponential growth
What is an apex predator?
An animal at the top of the food chain with no predators
Which type of consumers play a role in the decomposition process?
Detrivotes and Decomposers
What's the difference between a population and a community?
A population is one species, while a community is many.
What is the role of decomposers in a food web?
They break down dead matter and recycle nutrients.
What limits exponential population growth in nature?
Limiting factors like food, space, and disease
Give an example of a keystone species and its impact.
Sea otters eat urchins, protecting kelp forests.
In the Northern Hemisphere, south-facing sides of trees and buildings receive more sunlight, and are often warmer and drier, than north-facing sides.This is an example of:
micro-climate
Give an example of a biotic and an abiotic factor working together.
Plantss (biotic) use sunlight (abiotic) for photosynthesis
Draw or describe a simple food chain with four trophic levels.
(Answers can vary)
Grass → Rabbit → Snake → Hawk
What is carrying capacity?
The maximum number of individuals an ecosystem can support
What’s an invasive species?
A non-native species that harms ecosystems
The range of physical and biological conditions in which a species lives and the way the species obtains what it needs to survive and reproduce.
niche
Name the levels of ecological organization from smallest to largest.
Organism → Population → Community → Ecosystem → Biome → Biosphere
Why are food webs better than food chains?
They show complex, realistic feeding relationships.
List one density-dependent and one density-independent limiting factor.
Disease (dependent), flood (independent)
Compare parasitism and mutualism.
Parasitism harms one, mutualism helps both.
What limits Earth's Carrying Capacity for humans?
Food, Water, Disease, Space
Explain how abiotic factors can limit the growth of a population.
Without enough water, sunlight, or space, organisms can’t survive or reproduce.
What would happen if producers were removed from a food web?
Consumers would starve and populations would collapse.
What usually happens when a population exceeds its carrying capacity?
The population crashes due to resource shortages.
Why are keystone species crucial to ecosystems?
They maintain balance; without them, ecosystems collapse.
The 4 main components that determine population growth are:
immigration, emigration, birth rate, death rate