APES- Unit #3 Study Guide
Species Interactions and Community Ecology
1: What makes the Zebra Mussel an invasive species?- It makes it a invasive species because they have no natural predators, competitors, or parasites
2: Define the following species interactions:
* Competition: both species are harmed
* Predation, Parasitism, and Herbivory: one species benefits and the other is harmed
* Mutualism: both species benefit
3: What are some of the resources that species compete for in competition?
-relationship where multiple organisms seek the same limited resources they need to survive:
- Food - Water
- Space - Shelter
- Mates - Sunlight
4: Define Competitive Exclusion: one species completely excludes another species from using the resource
5: What must happen for species to co-exist? When neither species fully excludes the other from resources, so both live side by side- This produces a stable point of equilibrium, with stable population sizes
- Species adjust to minimize competition by using only a part of the available resource
6: What is the difference between fundamental and realized niche? Explain why a species wouldn't fulfill its fundamental niche?
-• Fundamental niche = when an individual fulfills its entire role by using all the available resources
-Realized niche = the portion of the fundamental niche that is actually filled
-Not all animals will fulfill it because they don't always have access to all the resources necessary
7: Give an example of resource partitioning:
-when species divide shared resources by specializing in different ways
-example:one species is active at night, another in the daytime
8: How does character displacement help with competition?
-competing species evolve physical characteristics that reflect their reliance on the portion of the resource they use
-The resources they use depend on them which can make them evolve which can increase competition because those resources that already compete evolve those characteristics
9: Explain how predator and prey populations depend on each other:
process by which individuals of one species (predators) capture, kill, and consume individuals of another species (prey)
- Structures food webs
- Influences community composition through number of predators and prey
11: Define the following:
* Cryptic Coloration: is the homogeneity of risk attributable to shared genetic
* Warning Coloration: Like a monarch butterfly
* Mimicry: Like a caterpillar: the action or art of imitating someone or something, typically in order to entertain or ridicule.
12: Define Parasitism: -a relationship in which one organism (parasite) depends on another (host) for nourishment or other benefit
13: What is the idea of “coevolution”?
-hosts and parasites become locked in a duel of escalating adaptations
- Has been called an “evolutionary arms race”
- Each evolves new responses to the other
- It may not be beneficial to the parasite to kill its host
14: What are some plant adaptations that help to protect plants against herbivory?
-Chemicals: toxic or distasteful parts
- Physical: thorns, spines, or irritating hairs
- Other animals: protect the plant
15: Explain how pollination is a form of mutualism:
-In exchange for the plant nectar, the animals pollinate plants, which allows them to reproduce
16: Define the following:
* Allelopathy: certain plants release harmful chemicals
* Commensalism: a relationship in which one organism benefits, while the other remains unaffected
* Facilitation: plants that create shade and leaf litter allow seedlings to grow
17: What is a community of organisms? -an assemblage of species living in the same place at the same time
-Its when animals of an area interact with each other and accumulate with the food web.
Autotrophs
Primary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Tertiary Consumers
Omnivores
Detritivores
Decomposers
(at the very end)
19: How is most energy lost in an ecosystem?
-They are lost in the trophic levels
20: Explain why this statement is true: “ A human vegetarian’s ecological footprint is smaller
than a meat-eater’s footprint.”
-This is a true statement because the vegetarians food and resources use less and it takes less time to do
21: What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?
-Food Chain: the relationship of how energy is transferred up the trophic levels
-Food web = a visual map of feeding relationships and energy flow
22: What is a keystone species and what happens to an ecosystem when it gets removed?
-A keystone pyramid is the one on top of the food chain, has a strong or wide-reaching impact far out of proportion to its abundance
-If it is removed it will alter the food chain
23: What is a trophic cascade? Why is it important? -predators at high trophic levels can indirectly affect populations of organisms at low trophic levels by keeping species at intermediate trophic levels in check
24: Communities of organisms respond to disturbances differently. Explain resistance and
resilience.
-Resistance = community of organisms resists change and remains stable despite the disturbance
-Resilience = a community changes in response to a disturbance, but later returns to its original state
25: What is an invasive species? How do we control a species that has become invasive? (Name
several ways)
-non-native (exotic) organisms that spread widely and become dominant in a community- Growth-limiting factors (predators, disease, etc.)
are removed or absent
- They have major ecological effects
- Chestnut blight, from Asia, wiped out American
chestnut trees
27: Biomes: Name the type of SOILS in the following:
*Temperate deciduous forests: Fertile soil
*Temperate rainforests: Less precipitation and very moist and humid
*Tropical rainforests: poor acidic soils
*Tropical dry forest: Erosion-prone soil
* Desert: Saline soils
*Tundra: Permafrost: permanently frozen soil
*Boreal forest (Taiga): Poor and acidic soil
28: How do biomes change with altitude? Explain.
-Vegetative communities change along mountain slopes
-
Species Interactions and Community Ecology
1: What makes the Zebra Mussel an invasive species?- It makes it a invasive species because they have no natural predators, competitors, or parasites
2: Define the following species interactions:
* Competition: both species are harmed
* Predation, Parasitism, and Herbivory: one species benefits and the other is harmed
* Mutualism: both species benefit
3: What are some of the resources that species compete for in competition?
-relationship where multiple organisms seek the same limited resources they need to survive:
- Food - Water
- Space - Shelter
- Mates - Sunlight
4: Define Competitive Exclusion: one species completely excludes another species from using the resource
5: What must happen for species to co-exist? When neither species fully excludes the other from resources, so both live side by side- This produces a stable point of equilibrium, with stable population sizes
- Species adjust to minimize competition by using only a part of the available resource
6: What is the difference between fundamental and realized niche? Explain why a species wouldn't fulfill its fundamental niche?
-• Fundamental niche = when an individual fulfills its entire role by using all the available resources
-Realized niche = the portion of the fundamental niche that is actually filled
-Not all animals will fulfill it because they don't always have access to all the resources necessary
7: Give an example of resource partitioning:
-when species divide shared resources by specializing in different ways
-example:one species is active at night, another in the daytime
8: How does character displacement help with competition?
-competing species evolve physical characteristics that reflect their reliance on the portion of the resource they use
-The resources they use depend on them which can make them evolve which can increase competition because those resources that already compete evolve those characteristics
9: Explain how predator and prey populations depend on each other:
process by which individuals of one species (predators) capture, kill, and consume individuals of another species (prey)
- Structures food webs
- Influences community composition through number of predators and prey
11: Define the following:
* Cryptic Coloration: is the homogeneity of risk attributable to shared genetic
* Warning Coloration: Like a monarch butterfly
* Mimicry: Like a caterpillar: the action or art of imitating someone or something, typically in order to entertain or ridicule.
12: Define Parasitism: -a relationship in which one organism (parasite) depends on another (host) for nourishment or other benefit
13: What is the idea of “coevolution”?
-hosts and parasites become locked in a duel of escalating adaptations
- Has been called an “evolutionary arms race”
- Each evolves new responses to the other
- It may not be beneficial to the parasite to kill its host
14: What are some plant adaptations that help to protect plants against herbivory?
-Chemicals: toxic or distasteful parts
- Physical: thorns, spines, or irritating hairs
- Other animals: protect the plant
15: Explain how pollination is a form of mutualism:
-In exchange for the plant nectar, the animals pollinate plants, which allows them to reproduce
16: Define the following:
* Allelopathy: certain plants release harmful chemicals
* Commensalism: a relationship in which one organism benefits, while the other remains unaffected
* Facilitation: plants that create shade and leaf litter allow seedlings to grow
17: What is a community of organisms? -an assemblage of species living in the same place at the same time
-Its when animals of an area interact with each other and accumulate with the food web.
Autotrophs
Primary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Tertiary Consumers
Omnivores
Detritivores
Decomposers
(at the very end)
19: How is most energy lost in an ecosystem?
-They are lost in the trophic levels
20: Explain why this statement is true: “ A human vegetarian’s ecological footprint is smaller
than a meat-eater’s footprint.”
-This is a true statement because the vegetarians food and resources use less and it takes less time to do
21: What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?
-Food Chain: the relationship of how energy is transferred up the trophic levels
-Food web = a visual map of feeding relationships and energy flow
22: What is a keystone species and what happens to an ecosystem when it gets removed?
-A keystone pyramid is the one on top of the food chain, has a strong or wide-reaching impact far out of proportion to its abundance
-If it is removed it will alter the food chain
23: What is a trophic cascade? Why is it important? -predators at high trophic levels can indirectly affect populations of organisms at low trophic levels by keeping species at intermediate trophic levels in check
24: Communities of organisms respond to disturbances differently. Explain resistance and
resilience.
-Resistance = community of organisms resists change and remains stable despite the disturbance
-Resilience = a community changes in response to a disturbance, but later returns to its original state
25: What is an invasive species? How do we control a species that has become invasive? (Name
several ways)
-non-native (exotic) organisms that spread widely and become dominant in a community- Growth-limiting factors (predators, disease, etc.)
are removed or absent
- They have major ecological effects
- Chestnut blight, from Asia, wiped out American
chestnut trees
27: Biomes: Name the type of SOILS in the following:
*Temperate deciduous forests: Fertile soil
*Temperate rainforests: Less precipitation and very moist and humid
*Tropical rainforests: poor acidic soils
*Tropical dry forest: Erosion-prone soil
* Desert: Saline soils
*Tundra: Permafrost: permanently frozen soil
*Boreal forest (Taiga): Poor and acidic soil
28: How do biomes change with altitude? Explain.
-Vegetative communities change along mountain slopes
-