Download Ecology Population Ecology Classwork Which level of organization

Ecology
Population Ecology
Classwork
1. Which level of organization includes all others?
2. What does a community include?
3. The red-billed oxpecker is a bird that lives in the savanna of Africa. These birds feed on
ticks and are known to rest on the backs of large mammals, such as giraffes and
impalas, and eat ticks off of the mammals’ skins. Think of two questions that an ecologist
would study about this interaction.
4. You notice two birds living in different parts of the same tree outside your house. They
have similar markings and are a similar size. After continual observation, you realize that
they cannot interbreed. Do these birds belong to the same population?
5. In reference to the birds in the above question, do they belong to the same community?
6. What is an abiotic factor? Give two examples.
7. How are a habitat and a niche different?
8. List two factors that increase population size and two factors that decrease population
size.
9. Coral reefs are ecosystems that are found in ocean water that is clear, warm and
shallow. A variety of animals thrive in coral ecosystems, such as reef fish, mollusks,
sharks, turtles and coral vegetation. Describe three abiotic factors of the coral reef
ecosystem.
10. Describe three biotic factors of the coral reef ecosystem.
11. Explain the growth rate during exponential growth.
12. Describe what is happening in a population during logistic growth.
Homework
13. At what level of organization does evolution occur?
14. How is an ecosystem different from a community?
15. Deserts are found throughout the world. They are characterized by hot, dry weather with
very little vegetation. Plants that live in the desert, such as cactus, shrubs and low-lying
trees, have adaptations to preserve water. There are a variety of animals that thrive in
the desert, such as the coyotes, desert rats, bobcats, owls, lizards and toads. Describe
three components of the desert community.
16. In addition to the three components listed above, what else is included in the desert
ecosystem?
17. Deserts can be found throughout the world, including in the western United States,
Africa and Australia. At what level of organization would deserts be classified?
18. What is a biotic factor? Give two examples.
19. What happens if two species attempt to occupy the same niche?
20. Explain the growth rate when a population is at its carrying capacity.
21. Triggerfish are brightly colored fish that inhabit the warm, shallow waters of coral reefs.
Their powerful teeth are used to eat through the protective coverings of bottom dwellers
such as crustaceans, molluscs and sea urchins. During reproduction, eggs are buried in
small holes in the sand. After spawning, both males and females guard the fertilized
eggs. Triggerfish are known to be highly aggressive while protecting their eggs. What is
the habitat of the triggerfish?
22. Describe the niche of the triggerfish.
23. Under what two conditions would exponential growth occur?
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Ecology
Community Ecology
Classwork
24. What is the difference between weather and climate?
25. Describe how the uneven heating of Earth’s surface causes circulation.
26. How do greenhouse gases affect climate?
27. When does competition occur?
28. Describe a win/win type of symbiosis.
29. Describe a win/lose type of symbiosis.
30. What are two terms given to organisms that are able to produce their own food?
31. What type of heterotrophs are the following animals:
a) Cows only eat grass.
b) Fungi break down organic matter.
c) Lions eat other mammals.
d) Earth worms eat decaying plants and animals.
e) Bears eat both vegetation and meat.
32. What do food webs/food chains illustrate?
33. What is ecological succession?
34. Describe the process of primary succession from bare rock to climax community.
Homework
35. List two factors that produce climate.
36. List two factors that produce weather.
37. How does climate change affect species?
38. How does predation drive co-evolution of predator/prey species?
39. Describe a win/neutral type of symbiosis.
40. What are two terms given to organisms that rely on other organisms for food?
41. In a food chain, if an arrow points from an insect to a bird, what does this mean?
42. What is the difference between a food web and a food chain?
43. What is the difference between primary succession and secondary succession?
44. What is a pioneer species?
45. What is a climax community?
Nutrient Cycling
Classwork
46. How do transpiration and evaporation differ?
47. Draw a flowchart illustrating the cycling of water via the following processes:
condensation, evaporation, precipitation, runoff, transpiration.
48. Where is most carbon found?
49. Describe how removing all plants would affect the carbon cycle.
50. How do geochemical processes affect atmospheric carbon?
51. Why is nitrogen important to all organisms?
52. How is nitrogen changed into a useable form?
53. When organisms die, what process returns nitrogen into the soil/atmosphere?
54. Why is phosphorous important to all organisms?
55. Where is most phosphorous found?
Homework
56. What two processes are sources of water for cloud formation?
57. After water has formed clouds in the atmosphere, what two processes bring water back
to the oceans?
58. Describe two ways in which humans release carbon into the atmosphere.
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59. How do dead organisms contribute to the carbon cycle?
60. In what form is most nitrogen found?
61. Describe the type of symbiosis that carries out nitrogen fixation.
62. How does phosphorous make its way to marine organisms?
63. How does phosphorous make its way to terrestrial organisms?
64. Phosphorous is a limiting nutrient for most plants. What does this mean?
65. How can overusing fertilizers result in decreased aquatic life?
Conservation Biology
Classwork
66. What is biodiversity?
67. How do disturbances affect biodiversity?
68. What does it mean to say that an ecosystem is resilient?
69. What is a natural resource?
70. How did technologies invented during the Industrial Revolution impact population
growth?
71. How does hunting affect biodiversity?
72. Describe two ways that environmental degradation affects ecosystems.
73. What is an invasive species?
74. Why do invasive species reproduce rapidly?
75. What is the purpose of conservation?
76. What is the purpose of sustainable development?
77. List three sources of alternative energy.
Homework
78. List two examples of disturbances to biodiversity.
79. How did the Industrial Revolution impact the use of natural resources?
80. What is a renewable resource? Give an example.
81. What is a nonrenewable resource? Give an example.
82. Describe two ways that farming impacts the ecosystem.
83. Describe two effects of global warming.
84. Describe two effect of invasive species.
85. Describe one method for conserving each of the following:
 Land
 Water
 Atmosphere
 Biodiversity
 Energy
86. What is a pro and a con of using:
 Biofuels
 Nuclear energy
87. Why are bioplastics preferable to regular plastics?
88. Some climbing robots mimic the adhesive properties of gecko feet. What is this an
example of?
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Ecology
Free Response
1. The carbon cycle is the pathway of carbon through the biosphere.
a. Describe the importance of photosynthesis and cellular respiration to the carbon
cycle.
b. How has human behavior affected the carbon cycle?
2. Antarctica is home to several species of penguins, including the Adelie and the
Chinstrap. Adelie penguins live on ice packs while Chinstrap penguins live mostly in the
open water. Over the past 50 years, the midwinter temperature of western Antarctica
has increased 7-9⁰ C. In response to that, the Adelie population has decreased 22%
over the past 25 years while the Chinstrap population has increased roughly 400%.
a. Propose a reason for the different growth patterns for Adelie and Chinstrap
penguins in western Antarctica over the past 25 years.
b. Over the past 25 years, what type of growth has the Chinstrap penguins
experienced? For how long will this growth pattern continue?
c. Why is it impossible for both the Adelie and the Chinstrap penguins to inhabit the
same niche?
3. The Sargasso Sea is a gyre in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that is created by the
convergence of four different oceans currents. Although classified as the open ocean,
the Sargasso Sea often is teeming with life. One important habitat in the Sargasso Sea
is large floating mats of sargassum, a brown seaweed. This seaweed is washed into the
Sargasso Sea from coastal areas by the many different currents. Since the seaweed
floats on the surface, many organisms use the seaweed as an ecosystem in which to
live. Turtle hatchlings use sargassum mats as nurseries; shrimp, crabs and fish live in
sargassum; tuna and birds use sargassum as hunting grounds. A common fish in this
habitat is the planehead filefish. These fish are very slender with small fins and a
retractable file on the head. They are mottled brown in appearance, which allows them
to hide well in the sargassum. Filefish have a varied diet of algae and invertebrates,
most of which can be found in the sargassum ecosystem. Spawning sites are prepared
by the males, although both males and females may guard the site.
a. How do ocean currents form?
b. What is the difference between a niche and a habitat? Use the planehead filefish
as an example.
4. Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for all organisms. While most nitrogen is found as a gas
in the atmosphere, many organisms are unable to use gaseous nitrogen.
a. Why is nitrogen an essential nutrient?
b. Describe fully the interaction between Rhizobium and plants. How does this
benefit organisms?
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Ecology
5. The image below shows a food web for polar bears. Use it to answer the following
questions:
Source: EPA.gov
a. What is the difference between abiotic and biotic factors? Give two examples of
each, based on this food web.
b. Ice algae are algae that grow in pockets of sea ice and are consumed by
zooplankton. In terms of ice algae abundance, how would continual global
climate change affect the polar bear population?
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Ecology Answer Key
1. The biosphere includes all other levels of organization.
2. A community includes all the populations in a specific area.
3. An ecosystem includes all the living and nonliving factors in an area while a community
only includes the living factors.
4. Answers will vary.
5. They do not belong to the same population because they cannot interbreed (they are
separate species).
6. An abiotic factor is a nonliving factor in an ecosystem. Examples: sunlight, precipitation,
temperature, wind, soil and nutrient availability.
7. A habitat is where an organism lives. A niche describes how the organism lives.
8. Increase population: immigration and births. Decrease population: emigration and
deaths.
9. Temperature, depth, and turbidity (how clear the water is)
10. Answers will vary. Examples: fish, molluscs, sharks, turtles, coral vegetation.
11. During exponential growth, the growth rate remains constant.
12. During logistic growth, a population initially experiences unlimited resources that leads to
exponential growth. As the population size outgrows the resources, however, the growth
rate decreases until the population reaches the carrying capacity.
13. Evolution occurs at the population level.
14. They belong to the same community because they live in the same area.
15. Answers will vary (any three populations).
16. Nonliving factors such as hot temperatures and lack of precipitation.
17. Biome
18. A biotic factor is a living factor in an ecosystem. Examples: plants, animals, fungi,
bacteria.
19. Competition between the two species will displace one of the species into a different
niche.
20. At the carrying capacity, the growth rate approaches zero.
21. Coral reefs
22. Triggerfish use sharp teeth to eat molluscs, crustaceans and echinoderms. Eggs are
buried in the same and both sexes take part in caring for fertilized eggs.
23. Exponential growth occurs in the absence of predation/disease or in the presence of
unlimited resources.
24. Weather is the conditions present at a particular place and time. Climate is the average
weather of a location.
25. Uneven heating of the Earth’s surface causes wind circulation.
26. Greenhouse gases trap the sun’s energy which results in warmer climates.
27. Competition occurs when organism try to obtain the same resources at the same time
and place.
28. In mutualism, both species benefit from the relationship. Examples will vary.
29. In parasitism, one species benefits while the other species is harmed. Examples will
vary.
30. Autotrophs and producers
31. a) herbivore; b) decomposer; c) carnivore; d) detritivore; e) omnivore
32. Food webs/food chains show the flow of energy in an ecosystem.
33. Ecological succession is the series of changes that occur in an ecosystem over time.
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34. Lichen and moss grow on bare rock. When they die, the nutrients added to the ground
become soil. Grasses, small plants and then climax communities follow as the soil
becomes better able to sustain life.
35. Climate is caused by latitude, altitude, land masses, wind, ocean currents, atmospheric
interactions and precipitation.
36. Weather is caused by wind, temperature and precipitation.
37. Species are adapted to the climate of their ecosystem. If the climate changes, they may
not have the adaptations necessary to survive in the new conditions.
38. As prey evolve adaptations to escape predators, the predators evolve adaptations that
allow them to become better at capturing prey. One adaptation drives the evolution of
the other adaptation.
39. In commensalism, one species benefits while the other species is neither harmed nor
benefitted. Examples will vary.
40. Heterotrophs and consumers
41. This means that the bird eats the insect.
42. A food chain shows one pathway of energy in an ecosystem. A food web shows all
pathways of energy in an ecosystem.
43. Primary succession occurs when a community forms where there was previously no life.
Secondary succession occurs when a climax community reforms after a drastic event.
44. A pioneer species is the first organism to populate an uninhabited environment.
45. A climax community contains the organisms that remain stable in an ecosystem over
time.
46. Evaporation occurs when liquid water changes into gaseous water in the atmosphere.
Transpiration occurs when liquid water evaporates from plants.
47. Evaporation/transpiration condensation precipitation runoff
48. Most carbon is found in the atmosphere.
49. With no plants, there would be no pathway to remove carbon from the atmosphere.
50. Geochemical processes release carbon into the atmosphere.
51. All organisms use nitrogen to build proteins.
52. Nitrogen is changed into useable form via nitrogen fixation.
53. Denitrification releases nitrogen back into the soil/atmosphere when organisms die.
54. Phosphorous is used to build ATP, DNA and RNA.
55. Most phosphorous is found in rocks and sediment.
56. Transpiration and evaporation
57. Precipitation and runoff
58. Answers may vary. Cellular respiration, mining, forest fires, and the burning of fossil
fuels.
59. Under pressure, dead organisms are converted into fossil fuels.
60. Most nitrogen is found as a gas in the atmosphere (N2).
61. Mutualism between bacteria and legumes. The bacteria carry out nitrogen fixation in
exchange for nutrients from the plant.
62. When phosphate is released from rock, some of it is washed into waterways where it is
used by marine organisms.
63. When phosphate is released from rock, some of it remains in the soil where it is taken up
by plants.
64. Phosphorous is a limiting nutrient, meaning that plants will not grow unless they have an
adequate supply of this nutrient. Their growth is limited by the availability of this one
nutrient.
65. When fertilizers are overused, excess nutrients wash into the waterways. The nutrients
are used by aquatic producers, causing algal blooms. The enlarged population of
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producers uses all of the oxygen in the water. The lack of oxygen causes other aquatic
species to decrease.
66. Biodiversity is the variety of plants and animals on Earth.
67. Disturbances remove species from ecosystems which decreases biodiversity.
68. A resilient ecosystem is able to recover from a disturbance.
69. Natural resources are factors that occur naturally in an ecosystem and can be used to
fulfill the needs of organisms.
70. Technology during the Industrial Revolution led to a substantial increase in world
population.
71. Hunting decreases biodiversity by removing or severely limiting species.
72. Answers will vary.
73. An invasive species is a foreign species that is transported to a local ecosystem.
74. Invasive species reproduce rapidly because they have no natural predators to regulate
their population size.
75. Conservation preserves healthy ecosystems by managing natural resources and
communities.
76. Sustainable development aims to use resources in such a way that the needs of humans
and ecosystems are met.
77. Hydro, nuclear, biofuel, solar, wind
78. Fire, flood, drought, human activity
79. The Industrial Revolution substantially increased the use of natural resources.
80. Renewable resources can be regenerated by nature. Examples will vary.
81. A nonrenewable resource cannot be replenished by nature. Examples will vary.
82. Answers will vary.
83. Answers will vary. Melting ice caps, rising sea level, coastal flooding, disruption of
habitat
84. Answers will vary. Prey on native species, outcompete for resources, disease, disruption
of native reproduction
85. Answers will vary
 Land – windbreaks, crop rotation, terrace, replanting
 Water – restore wetlands, prevent waste, prevent pollution, reuse gray water, low
flow shower heads and toilets
 Atmosphere – remove fossil fuels, remove/limit pollutants
 Biodiversity – ban the dumping of waste, protect land, breeding programs
 Energy – limit car transportation, use energy efficient products
86. Answers will vary.
 Biofuels – PRO: renewable, less CO2. CON: reduces food supply, requires
energy
 Nuclear energy – PRO: high amounts of energy, reduces carbon emissions.
CON: possibly harmful radiation, must be stored properly
87. Bioplastics can be decomposed while regular plastics cannot.
88. Biomimicry
1.
a. Photosynthesis and cellular respiration have opposite effects on the carbon
cycle, via CO2. Photosynthesis removes carbon from the atmosphere while
cellular respiration recycles carbon back into the atmosphere.
b. Human activity has increased the burning of fossil fuels. This releases abundant
CO2 into the atmosphere and drives global climate change.
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2.
a. As temperatures have increased, sea ice has decreased. This has decreased the
habitat of Adelie penguins while simultaneously increasing the habitat of
Chinstrap penguins, leading to the different growth patterns.
b. Chinstrap penguins have been experiencing exponential growth. This will
continue until the population grows to such a size that competition for resources
occurs. At this point, the growth rate will approach zero as the population
reaches its carrying capacity.
c. Two species cannot occupy the same niche at the same time. When this
happens, competition for resources will displace one of the species into a
different niche.
3.
a. The uneven heating of the Earth causes warm water at the equators and cold
water at the poles. As cold water sinks, warm water remains at the surface and is
moved via wind. This results in the ocean currents.
b. A habitat is where an organisms lives. The habitat of the planehead filefish is
sargassum mats. A niche is a description of how an organism lives. The
planehead filefish hide in sargassum mats and eat algae and invertebrates. The
males build spawning sites which are heavily guarded by both males and
females.
4.
a. Nitrogen is used by all organisms to build amino acids, which are used to build
proteins.
b. Rhizobium is a bacteria that participates in a mutualistic relationship in the roots
of legumes. They fix atmospheric nitrogen into a form that can be used by plants.
In exchange, they receive nutrition from the plants. This mutualistic relationship
benefits all organisms in that it provides nitrogen in a form that can be used by
organisms.
5.
a. An abiotic factor is a nonliving factor in an ecosystem, such as sunlight and
nutrient availability. A biotic factor is a living factor in an ecosystem, such as
zooplankton and seals.
b. As climate change continues, sea ice will decrease. This will cause a decrease in
ice algae populations. In turn, zooplankton populations will decrease which will
cause similar changes up the food web. With less food available, polar bear
populations will also be negatively affected.
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