All Flashcards
What is the effect of energy loss at each trophic level?
Limits the number of trophic levels in an ecosystem and results in fewer top predators.
What is the effect of removing a keystone species?
Can lead to a trophic cascade and significant changes in community structure and biodiversity.
What is the effect of overgrazing by herbivores?
Reduces plant biomass, leads to soil erosion, and can alter plant species composition.
What is the effect of competition for limited resources?
Can lead to resource partitioning or exclusion of one species from the habitat.
What is the effect of increased hunting of deer in a forest ecosystem?
Can help restore balance in the ecosystem by reducing overgrazing and allowing plant communities to recover.
What is the effect of introducing a new predator to an ecosystem?
Can control prey populations, but may also disrupt the existing food web and impact other species.
What is the effect of deforestation on trophic levels?
Reduces the number of producers, impacting the entire food web and decreasing biodiversity.
What is the effect of pollution on aquatic food webs?
Can accumulate in higher trophic levels (biomagnification), harming top predators.
What is the effect of climate change on predator-prey relationships?
Alters species distributions and behaviors, potentially disrupting established interactions.
What is the effect of habitat loss on keystone species?
Can lead to their decline or extinction, causing cascading effects throughout the ecosystem.
Define trophic level.
Position an organism occupies in a food chain or food web.
Define autotroph.
Organism that produces its own food, using sunlight or chemical energy.
Define heterotroph.
Organism that obtains energy by consuming other organisms.
Define primary consumer.
An organism that eats producers (herbivore).
Define secondary consumer.
An organism that eats primary consumers (carnivore).
Define tertiary consumer.
An organism that eats secondary consumers (top carnivore).
Define food chain.
Linear sequence of organisms through which nutrients and energy pass as one organism eats another.
Define food web.
Interconnected network of food chains in an ecosystem.
Define scavenger.
Organism that consumes dead animals.
Define detritivore.
Organism that feeds on dead organic material (detritus).
Define decomposer.
Organism that breaks down dead organic matter into simpler substances.
Define mutualism.
Symbiotic relationship where both organisms benefit.
Define commensalism.
Symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits and the other is neither harmed nor helped.
Define parasitism.
Symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits and the other is harmed.
Define keystone species.
Species with a disproportionately large impact on its ecosystem relative to its abundance.
What is the 10% rule?
Only about 10% of the energy is transferred to the next trophic level; the rest is lost as heat.
Explain the importance of decomposers.
They recycle nutrients by breaking down dead organic matter, making nutrients available to producers.
What is resource partitioning?
When species divide a limited resource to avoid direct competition, allowing them to coexist.
Why are food webs more accurate than food chains?
Food webs show the complex, interconnected feeding relationships in an ecosystem, while food chains are simplified linear sequences.
Describe the role of producers in an ecosystem.
Producers are the foundation of the food web, converting sunlight into energy that supports all other organisms.
How do predator-prey relationships regulate population sizes?
Predators control prey populations, preventing overpopulation, while prey availability influences predator numbers.
Explain the significance of keystone species.
Keystone species maintain the structure and function of their community; their removal can cause dramatic ecosystem changes.
How does competition influence natural selection?
Species better adapted to access limited resources are more likely to survive and reproduce, driving evolutionary change.
What are the main differences among primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers?
Primary consumers eat producers, secondary consumers eat primary consumers, and tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers.
Explain the difference between a scavenger and a detritivore.
Scavengers eat dead animals, while detritivores break down dead tissues and waste products.