Definitions
What is a disturbance?
An event human or natural that changes a community
Macroclimate vs Microclimate?
Macro: patterns on the global, regional, and landscape level
Micro: very fine, localized patterns
Name the different types of ecology (6 total):
Global, Landscape, Ecosystem, Community, Population, Organismal
How are they determined?
The input of solar energy and Earth’s movement in space
Can terrestrial biomes overlap?
Yes
What is a biome?
Major life zones characterized by vegetation type (terrestiral) or by the physical environment (aquatic)
Difference between windward and leeward sides of mountains?
Windward: air rises and cools, releasing moisture
Leeward: cooler, dry air descends, absorbing moisture and producing a rain shadow, causing deserts
Earliest humans lived in which biome?
Savannah
Coastal regions are generally wetter than inland areas at the same latitude. True or False?
True
What type of layering is important for terrestrial biomes?
Vertical
What is climate?
The long-term, prevailing weather conditions in a given area
What is difference between landscape ecology and ecosystem ecology?
Landscape ecology focuses on the factors controlling exchanges of things across multiple ecosystems whereas ecosystem ecology emphasizes energy flow and chemical cycling between organisms and the environment
Why is there abundant precipitation in tropical regions?
High temperatures caused by intense solar radiation evaporates water cand causes warm, wet air masses to rise and release much of their water content
What causes seasonal cycles?
Earth’s tilted axis of rotation and the changing angle of the sun
What depth determines the abyssal zone?
The part of the ocean 2 km to 6 km below the surface
What is a climograph?
A plot of the annual mean temperature and precipitation in a particular region
Native animals of temperate grassland vs deserts
Grassland: large grazers, burrowing mammals
Desert: snakes and lizards, bugs, migratory and resident birds, many nocturnal species
When did the last ice age end?
About 16,000 years ago
Determinants of microclimate?
Fine-scale differences in abiotic (nonliving) factors such as sunlight and temperature
What separates a warm upper layer from cold deeper water in oceans and most lakes?
An abrupt temperature change called a thermocline
Origin of the word Ecology
Greek words oikos and logos (home and study)
Oligotrophic vs eutrophic lakes
Oligotrophic: nutrient-poor and oxygen-rich
Eutrophic: Nutrient-rich and often depleted of oxygen in icy winters and in summers
Every 1 km increase in elevation or 880 km increase in latitude causes an approximate drop of how much degrees Celcius?
6
Why do oceans and large lakes tend to moderate the climate of nearby land?
Water has a high specific heat
What type of feeders are benthos?
Detritus