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Definition
| all biological communities in an area with their physical habitat |
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| all organisms that appear in a particular habitat that interact with one another |
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| how many different species in the community + how many individuals of each species |
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| linear sequence of predator and prey in an ecosystem (who eats who) |
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| interconnection of food chains in an ecosystem |
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| Pyramid of Numbers (Elton) |
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Definition
| The larger the animals, the scarcer they are |
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| Pyramid of Energy (Lindeman) |
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Definition
| Amount of energy transferring between trophic levels decreases |
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| feeding level on food chain |
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| autotrophs - in a food chain, these produce the energy |
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| Herbivores and carnivores - gain energy from eating rather than self-production |
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| Gross primary production (GPP) |
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Definition
| solar energy produced by plants |
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| Net primary production (NPP) |
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Definition
| the amount of usable energy from a plant after it takes the energy it needs for itself |
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| past initial 4 trophic levels |
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| total biomass predator/total biomass prey |
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| overestimation in number of large carnivores |
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Definition
| delicate proportions between organisms and environment (resources) |
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Term
| Extrinsic limiting factor |
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Definition
| acting outside the population |
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| Intrinsic limiting factor |
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Definition
| acting inside the population |
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Definition
| competition, predation, symbiosis |
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Definition
| Sunlight, water, nutrients, food, resources |
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Term
| Density-dependent limiting factor |
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Definition
| Acting in proportion to population density |
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| Density-independent limiting factor |
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Definition
| Acting regardless of population density (forest fires, tidal waves) |
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Term
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Definition
| Populations are regulated by a combination of limiting factors, never reaching full reproductive potential. Results from a balance of interactive forces, especially competition and predation |
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Definition
| forces that disrupt a natural ecosystem. Abiotic (forest fire, flood) v. Biotic (disease, parasites) |
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Definition
| extrinsic, density-dependent limiting factor that occurs when two or more organisms use the same resource in a way that affects the birth rate or death rate of the opposing organism |
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Term
| Intraspecific competition |
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Definition
| competition between members of the same species |
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| Interspecific competition |
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Definition
| competition between members of different species |
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Definition
| the ecological role that a species plays in a biological community |
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| The intensity of competition between different species depends on how much this occurs. |
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| the intended niche of an organism, limited by competition |
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| organisms are force into this by competition |
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| occurs when one species is a better competitor than another, forcing it into local extinction |
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Definition
| cannot occur if organisms share the same limiting resource |
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| Mixed-species foraging flock |
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Definition
| occurs in birds, consists of multiple species banding together to have specialized feeding zones |
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Term
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Definition
| occurs when organisms live in the same habitat and use it at the same time of day, but exploit the same resource in varying ways |
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| modification of physical shape through natural selection |
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Definition
| exploitation - exploit resources by using them up |
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| interference - engage in a face to face battle over limited resources |
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| an area that an animal defends against other animals |
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Definition
| develops in animals who defend their territory |
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Definition
| only territory holders will mate - bachelor males become these |
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| an organism that eats another organism |
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| organism that is injured/killed by predator |
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| kills its prey and eats it |
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| lays its eggs in a host (often paralyzed), young hatch and eat host alive |
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| hides and waits for prey to come to it |
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| method of startling prey by skin/plumage |
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| occurs between predator and prey - the thicker the armor, the sharper the claw |
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| population fluctuations over time due to predation |
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| a predator that is necessary for the proper functioning of an ecosystem. Example: otters v. urchins v. kelp. Otters killed, urchin pop. explodes. Kelp dies, causing coastal erosion. |
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Definition
| examines the way in which behavior is adaptive, how behavior varies, and how it evolves |
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| Order of bats which eat mainly flowers, fruit, and nectar |
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| Order of bats which feed on insects, some feeding on lizards or the blood of cows |
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| the ability to hunt by sound (bats, dolphins, some birds) |
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Definition
| when natural selection favors traits useful for mating, but possibly harmful for survival |
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Definition
| males compete to attract females |
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| females actively select their desired mates |
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| Good genes model (Borgia) |
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Definition
| male's appearance, ability to thrive suggest that he has good genes - great for making babies |
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Term
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Definition
| if male can carry around huge tails/antlers/other mating traits while avoiding predators and feeding himself, he must be great |
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Term
| Aesthetic preference (Darwin) |
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Definition
| females simply make an aesthetic choice - like the way the male looks... |
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| Runaway selection (Fisher) |
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Definition
| mating trait becomes reinforced generation after generation, until it is greatly exaggerated, becomes a burden |
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Term
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Definition
| linear sequence of dominant and sub-dominant males (alpha male, beta male) |
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Term
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Definition
| dominance hierarchy, linear sequence of dominant, sub-dominant... |
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Term
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Definition
| elaborate, ritualized behaviors including songs, dances, used to attract mates |
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Definition
| the number of songs a male bird can sing, directly correlates with his reproductive success |
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| offering a potential mate a juicy morsel to show you are interested |
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| courtship arena in which males perform for groups of females (derived from Swedish "leka," meaning sex play) |
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| large gray bird, size of pigeon, build bowers |
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| structures built to attract a mate (bowerbird) |
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| constructed by juvenile male bowerbirds to develop their constructing skills |
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| certain physical traits attract mate - becomes replaced by external objects (bower decorations) |
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