Ecology - AP Biology

A flower in this example is a producer, which means it will make its own energy through photosynthesis. As a result, the flower must be the first element of our chain; food chains will always start with a producer. The caterpillar, frog, and snake are consumers, meaning they will need other organisms for energy.

Water, carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphorus have cyclic pathways that allowing them to flow within an ecosystem. Iron is not involved in very many ecological processes, and does not follow a defined chemical cycle.

Plants and animals receive carbon through photosynthesis and consumption, respectively.

Nutrient recycling specifically refers to the movement of materials within food webs and ecosystems that recycle them back into production. Nutrient recycling can be distinguished from biogeochemical cycles, like the water, nitrogen, and carbon cycles, which describe the exchange of matter through living and non-living components of the Earth.

The food web presents a graphical representation of the interconnected food chains within an ecosystem. In other words, food chains illustrate the trophic levels of a particular ecosystem.

Trophic level is the term used to a specific point on the food chain. An organism’s trophic level is the place they occupy in the food chain of a particular ecosystem.

Biodiversity refers to the different types of life present on Earth. This can refer to the variety of species in an ecosystem, the genetic variation across the planet, and ecosystem variation.

Despite their relatively small abundance, keystone species have a large impact on the environment in which they inhabit. If a keystone species is removed from an ecosystem, then there may be a large change in ecosystem’s stability.

Deforestation can be defined as the removal of forests by humans. Deforestation has many negative environmental impacts including soil erosion, a decline in biodiversity, and an increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

Tropical rainforest biomes have the greatest biodiversity of all biomes. They have only two seasons (rainy and dry) and the soil in these environments is generally nutrient-poor. Tropical rainforests also have a multi-layered canopy that allows little light to penetrate to the ground.

Primary succession is the colonizing of a new environment that lacks organisms and plant life. Primary succession is different from secondary succession; secondary succession is the colonizing of an environment that once supported life but was abandoned due to an ecological disturbance. An example of this is the colonizing of new land formed by lava flow.

Secondary succession can be described as the colonization of a habitat that once supported plant and animal life but was abandoned due to ecological disturbance. Types of ecological disturbances such as hurricanes and floods can empty a habitat.

Primary succession occurs in an environment without previous life, or a barren habitat. Secondary succession occurs in an area that had previously been inhabited but experienced a disturbance, such as a wildfire. In this scenario, there still would be soil.

Primary succession occurs in an environment without previous life, or a barren habitat. The first organisms to grow (called pioneer species) are fast growing, hardy species.

Primary succession occurs in an environment without previous life, or a barren habitat. Secondary succession occurs in an area that had previously been inhabited but experienced a disturbance, such as a wildfire. The newly created volcanic island has no previous life, and is made of rock, devoid of soil.

Pioneer species are the first species to colonize an environment, and thus would be found in the early stages of succession.

Primary succession occurs in an environment without previous life, or a barren habitat. Secondary succession occurs in an area that had previously been inhabited but experienced a disturbance, such as a lava flow. Secondary succession occurs in environments that have been distrubed, but have some remaining soil and vegetation.

The first species to inhabit an area that has been disrupted are called pioneer species. This is true in both primary and secondary succession. These pioneer species are hardy species that can withstand harsh conditions.

Ectotherms do not regulate their body temperature; their body temperature fluctuates due to their external environment.