Vocabulary
Define Biodiversity.
Diversity among and within plant and animal species in a environment.
What is always at the very bottom level of a trophic pyramid?
Producers (like plants and algae).
Define primary succession,
Primary succession is the process of a lifeless area evolving into a thriving ecosystem.
Biotic factors are living components of an ecosystem
True
Define Consumer
An organism especially an animal within a community that feeds upon plants or other animals.
What are the animals on the second level that eat the plants?
Primary consumers
Why does primary succession typically take hundreds to thousands of years?
It must account for the time-consuming process of soil formation from bare rock.
Primary consumers are carnivores
False, primary consumers are herbivores, as they feed on producers (plants).
Define the word Sustainable
Pertaining to a system that maintains its own viability by using techniques that allow for continual reuse.
What happens to most of the energy as it moves from one level to the next?
Most of it (about 90%) is lost as heat.
What is the main thing missing at the very start of primary succession?
Soil. (It starts on bare rock).
Trophic pyramids illustrate the flow of energy from one trophic level to the next.
True
Define Succession
The progressive replacement of one community by another until a climax community is established.
About what percentage of energy is actually passed up to the next level?
Only about 10%.
How does the death of pioneer species contribute to the next stage of succession?
As pioneer species like lichens and mosses die and decay, they add organic matter (humus) to the broken-down rock, gradually creating a thin layer of soil that can support larger plants.
In an energy pyramid, the top predators have the most available energy
False, energy decreases as you move up the pyramid; the producers at the bottom have the most energy.
Define Detrivore
An organism that uses organic waste as a food source.
Where do the producers at the bottom get their energy from?
The Sun (through photosynthesis).
Name the five stages of primary succession.
1. Nudation
2. Invasion
3. Competition
4. Reaction
5.Stabilizations
Primary succession occurs in areas that previously supported vegetation.
False, primary succession occurs in an area lacks vegetation and other organisms.