Unit 5: Ecology

Ch. 3 questions

  1. What is ecology? What five levels of the organization of matter are the main focus of ecology?
  2. Distinguish among a species, population, community, and ecosystem.
  3. Sketch figure 3.6 (in textbook) and label and describe the following: atmosphere, troposphere, stratosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere.
  4. How does the sun help sustain life on the Earth? How is this related to the Earth’s natural greenhouse effect?
  5. What are biomes, and how do they relate to climate?
  6. What are aquatic life zones? What are the two major groupings for aquatic life zones?
  7. Distinguish between the biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems, and give three examples of each.
  1. Describe in your own words the range of tolerance concept: how does this range of tolerance idea affect the composition of ecosystems?
  2. What is a limiting factor, and how do such factors affect the composition of an ecosystem? Give two important limiting factors for (a) terrestrial ecosystems and (b) aquatic ecosystems.
  3. Distinguish between producers and consumers in ecosystems. Give three examples of each. What is another name for a producer? What is another name for a consumer?
  4. What is photosynthesis, and why is it important to both producers and consumers? Write out the formula for photosynthesis.
  5. What is chemosynthesis? What kinds of organisms use this method to produce nutrient compounds?
  6. What is aerobic respiration? How is it different from anaerobic respiration? Write the formula for photosynthesis, and then the formula for aerobic respiration. How do they relate to each other?
  7. Distinguish among primary consumers/ herbivores; secondary consumers/ carnivores; tertiary consumers; omnivores; scavengers; and decomposers. Why are decomposers important?
  1. What are the four important components of biodiversity? Explain an ecological reason and an economic reason why biodiversity matters.
  2. What does the acronym HIPPO, describing causes of species extinction, stand for?
  3. Distinguish between a food chain and a food web. Place these terms in the correct order of trophic level to show a food chain: carnivore, producer, top carnivore, herbivore. Show where decomposers play a role.
  4. What is the pyramid of energy flow for an ecosystem? What is ecological efficiency? How does this concept relate to the second law of thermodynamics?
  5. Distinguish between gross primary productivity and net primary productivity. Explain in your own words what NPP = GPP –R means.
  6. List two of the most productive and two of the least productive ecosystems or aquatic life zones.

Soil review!

  1. List the soil horizons.
  2. What is humus, and why is it important?
  3. Distinguish between infiltration and leaching.
  4. What is soil permeability? What is soil porosity?

Biogeochemical cycles

  1. What is a biogeochemical cycle?
  2. What two major processes influence the water (hydrological) cycle? List two things humans do that can interfere with the water cycle.
  3. Describe the carbon cycle and explain the roles of photosynthesis and aerobic respiration in this cycle. List two human activities that alter the cycle,
  4. Describe the nitrogen cycle. Distinguish among nitrogen fixation, nitrification, assimilationor uptake, ammonification, and denitification. Why is nitrogen important to life on Earth? Why does the level of nitrogen in soil limit plant growth? List six ways that humans alter the nitrogen cycle.
  5. Describe the phosphorus cycle. Explain why the level of phosphorus can limit plant growth on (a) land and (b) in freshwater. List three ways humans alter the phosphorus cycle.
  6. Describe the sulfur cycle. List three ways humans can alter this cycle.
  1. Distinguish among field research, laboratory research and systems analysis as methods for learning about ecosystems.