Abiotic Factors and Ecosystems
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Questions and Answers

Which of the following is an abiotic factor?

  • Competitors
  • Predators
  • Temperature (correct)
  • Disease

    • Biodegradable materials can be broken down by natural biological processes.

    True

    What term describes the maximum number of a species that can be sustainably supported by a given environment?

    Carrying capacity

    The __________ is the part of the Earth inhabited by organisms.

    <p>biosphere</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which statement best describes biodiversity?

    <p>The variety of life in a particular habitat or ecosystem</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in water quality assessment?

    <p>It measures the amount of dissolved oxygen needed to break down organic material.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Match the following terms with their definitions:

    <p>Competition = A common demand for limited resources Climax community = A stable ecosystem in equilibrium Biome = A collection of similar ecosystems Biotic factor = A living component affecting ecosystems</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The __________ of solar radiation reflected by a surface is known as albedo.

    <p>proportion</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is described as the critical threshold when a small change can have dramatic effects on a system?

    <p>Tipping Point</p> Signup and view all the answers

    A closed system can exchange both matter and energy with its surroundings.

    <p>False</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What term describes the arrangement of plant communities in response to a changing environmental factor?

    <p>Zonation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    A system that exchanges neither matter nor energy with its surroundings is called an ______ system.

    <p>isolated</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What describes a more economically developed country (MEDC)?

    <p>A highly industrialized country with high average GNP per capita</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Natural capital can only include renewable resources.

    <p>False</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is mutualism?

    <p>A relationship between individuals of two or more species in which all benefit and none suffer.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    A non-renewable resource refers to natural capital that cannot be __________ within a timescale similar to its consumption.

    <p>replenished</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which type of pollution is derived from numerous dispersed origins?

    <p>Non-point source pollution</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Smog is only caused by natural phenomena.

    <p>False</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define speciation.

    <p>The process through which new species form.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    An r-strategist is species that tends to spread its reproductive investment among a large number of __________.

    <p>offspring</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Match the types of productivity with their definitions:

    <p>Gross Productivity = Total gain in energy or biomass Net Primary Productivity = Gain by producers after respiratory losses Gross Primary Productivity = Total gain by photosynthesis Net Secondary Productivity = Gain by consumers after allowing for respiratory losses</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an example of a stable equilibrium?

    <p>A climax ecosystem that shows no long-term changes</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The soil profile reveals the vertical section of soil down to the bedrock.

    <p>True</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is succession in ecological terms?

    <p>The orderly process of change over time in a community.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the crude death rate?

    <p>The number of deaths per thousand individuals in a population per year</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Demographic transition refers to the changes in fertility and mortality levels over time.

    <p>True</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define ecological footprint.

    <p>The area of land and water required to sustainably provide resources based on population consumption rates.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The natural enrichment of a body of water, leading to oxygen depletion, is called __________.

    <p>eutrophication</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is true about greenhouse gases?

    <p>They absorb infrared radiation and warm the atmosphere.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    K-strategist species have a high number of offspring to increase survival rates.

    <p>False</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the Gaia hypothesis?

    <p>The concept that Earth functions as a living organism with feedback mechanisms to maintain equilibrium.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The doubling time for a population with a natural increase rate of 1% is approximately __________ years.

    <p>70</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Match the following terms with their characteristics:

    <p>Feedback, negative = Tends to stabilize a system Feedback, positive = Amplifies changes in a system Natural increase rate = Growth of population over time Isolation = Separation of populations leading to possible new species</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does a diversity index measure?

    <p>The variety of species and their abundance</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Latitude refers to the distance from the North Pole only.

    <p>False</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is meant by habitat diversity?

    <p>The range of different habitats or ecological niches in an ecosystem.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The __________ component of an ecosystem includes all living organisms and their interactions.

    <p>biotic</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Abiotic Factors

    • Non-living physical factors affecting organisms and ecosystems.
    • Examples: temperature, sunlight, pH, salinity, precipitation.

    Albedo

    • Proportion of solar radiation reflected by a surface or body.

    Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)

    • Measure of dissolved oxygen needed to break down organic matter in water.
    • Measured through aerobic biological activity.

    Biodegradable

    • Capable of decomposition by natural biological processes.
    • Example: decomposer organisms.

    Biodiversity

    • Amount of biological variety per unit area.
    • Includes species diversity, habitat diversity, and genetic diversity.

    Biomass

    • Mass of organic material in organisms or ecosystems.
    • Often measured per unit area.
    • Sometimes "dry weight biomass" is used, measuring mass after removing water.

    Biome

    • Collection of ecosystems with similar climate conditions.
    • Examples: tundra, tropical rainforest, desert.

    Biosphere

    • Part of Earth inhabited by organisms.
    • Thin zone (a few km thick) where life exists, from upper atmosphere to deep crust.

    Biotic Factors

    • Living, biological factors influencing organisms and ecosystems.
    • Examples: predation, parasitism, disease, competition.

    Carrying Capacity

    • Maximum sustainable population size an environment can support.

    Climax Community

    • Relatively stable community in equilibrium with environmental conditions.
    • End point of ecological succession.

    Community

    • Group of interacting populations in a common habitat.

    Competition

    • Demand for limited resources (food, water, light, space, mates, nesting sites) by multiple organisms.
    • Can be intraspecific (within a species) or interspecific (between species).

    Correlation

    • Measure of association between two variables.
    • Positive correlation: variables move in the same direction.
    • Negative correlation: variables move in opposite directions.

    Crude Birth Rate

    • Births per 1000 individuals per year in a population.

    Crude Death Rate

    • Deaths per 1000 individuals per year in a population.

    Demographic Transition

    • Model describing changing fertility and mortality in human populations over time.
    • Often associated with industrialization and urbanization.

    Diversity

    • General term for heterogeneity.
    • Meaning depends on context (species, habitat, or genetic).

    Genetic Diversity

    • Variety of genetic material in a gene pool or population.

    Habitat Diversity

    • Range of habitats or ecological niches per unit area.
    • Conserving habitat diversity often conserves species and genetic diversity.

    Diversity Index

    • Numerical measure of species diversity.
    • Based on number and relative abundance of species.

    Species Diversity

    • Variety of species in a given area.
    • Includes species number and relative abundance.

    Doubling Time

    • Years for a population to double in size at its current growth rate.
    • 70 / natural increase rate = doubling time (approximately)

    Ecological Footprint

    • Area of land and water needed to sustainably provide resources consumed by a population.

    Ecosystem

    • Community of interdependent organisms and their physical environment.

    Entropy

    • Measure of disorder, chaos, or randomness in a system.
    • Higher disorder = higher entropy.

    Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

    • Detailed survey before major development.
    • Usually independent and paid for by the developer.
    • Includes baseline study (environmental conditions before).
    • Report is called an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

    Equilibrium

    • Balanced state among system components.

    Eutrophication

    • Natural or artificial enrichment of water (nitrates and phosphates).
    • Can lead to oxygen depletion.
    • Accelerated by human activities (detergents, sewage, fertilizers).

    Evolution

    • Gradual change in genetic characteristics over generations.
    • Results in new species from common ancestors.

    Feedback

    • Part of system output returned as input, affecting future outputs.

    Negative Feedback

    • Dampens deviation from equilibrium, promotes stability.

    Positive Feedback

    • Amplifies change, leads to exponential deviation from equilibrium.

    Fertility

    • Potential for reproduction in a population.
    • Measured by fertility rate (births per 1000 women of child-bearing age) or total fertility (average children per woman's lifetime).

    Gaia

    • Earth compared to a living organism with feedback mechanisms maintaining equilibrium.

    Global Warming

    • Increase in average Earth temperature.

    Gross National Product (GNP)

    • Current value of all goods and services produced annually in a country.

    Greenhouse Gases

    • Atmospheric gases absorbing infrared radiation, causing warming.
    • Examples: water vapor, CO2, methane, nitrous oxide.
    • Human activities increasing CO2, methane, nitrous oxide levels.

    Habitat

    • Environment a species normally lives in.

    Halogenated Organic Gases (Halocarbons)

    • Potent greenhouse gases, e.g., chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
    • Initially identified as ozone layer depleters.

    Isolation

    • Process separating populations geographically, behaviorally, genetically, or reproductively.
    • Prevents gene flow, leading to new species.

    K-strategist

    • Species investing in fewer offspring, increasing survival rate, adapting to climax communities.

    Latitude

    • Angular distance from the equator, measured in degrees.

    LEDC (Less Economically Developed Country)

    • Low to moderate industrialization and GNP per capita.

    MEDC (More Economically Developed Country)

    • Highly industrialized with high GNP per capita.

    Model

    • Simplified representation of an object, system, or concept.

    Mutualism

    • Relationship where all species benefit.

    Natural Capital

    • Natural resources providing goods and services.

    Non-renewable Natural Capital

    • Resources not replenished within human timescales (e.g., fossil fuels).

    Renewable Natural Capital

    • Resources with sustainable yields (e.g., food crops, timber).

    Replenishable Natural Capital

    • Non-living resources replenished by solar energy (e.g., groundwater).

    Natural Increase Rate

    • Human population growth rate, ignoring migration.

    Niche

    • Species' role in its habitat, including where it lives and what it does.

    Parasitism

    • Relationship where one species (parasite) lives on or in another (host), obtaining food.

    Plate Tectonics

    • Movement of Earth's lithosphere plates on the asthenosphere.

    Pollution

    • Addition of harmful substances (heat) at a rate exceeding environmental cleanup.

    Non-point Source Pollution

    • Pollutants from numerous dispersed sources (e.g., vehicle exhausts).

    Point Source Pollution

    • Pollutants from a single, identifiable source (e.g., factory).

    Population

    • Group of same species organisms in the same area, capable of interbreeding.

    Gross Productivity (GP)

    • Total energy or biomass gain per unit area per unit time.

    Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)

    • Energy or biomass gain per unit area per unit time in photosynthesis by producers.

    Gross Secondary Productivity (GSP)

    • Energy or biomass gain by consumers through absorption.

    Net Productivity (NP)

    • Energy or biomass gain remaining after respiratory losses.

    Net Primary Productivity (NPP)

    • Producer energy or biomass gain after respiratory losses.

    Net Secondary Productivity (NSP)

    • Consumer energy or biomass gain after respiratory losses.

    Primary Productivity

    • Producer energy or biomass gain per unit area per unit time (gross or net).

    Secondary Productivity

    • Biomass gained by heterotrophic organisms through feeding & absorption (mass/energy/area/time).

    R-strategist

    • Species spreading reproduction over many offspring, colonizing new habitats, exploiting short-lived resources.

    Sere

    • Set of communities succeeding one another during ecological succession.

    Smog

    • Hazy atmosphere caused by air pollutants.
    • Photochemical smog: UV light effects on internal combustion engine products (ozone).

    Society

    • Arbitrary group of individuals sharing a common characteristic.

    Soil

    • Mixture of mineral particles and organic material, supporting terrestrial plants.

    Soil Profile

    • Vertical section of soil layers (horizons) to parent material.

    Speciation

    • Process of new species formation.

    Species

    • Interbreeding organisms producing fertile offspring.

    Stable Equilibrium

    • Tendency to return to previous equilibrium after disturbance.

    Standing Crop

    • See biomass.

    Steady-State Equilibrium

    • Open system without long-term change, with short-term oscillations.
    • Constant matter/energy inputs/outputs.

    Succession

    • Orderly community change over time.
    • Environmental changes by community shifts allow new communities to establish via competition.

    Sustainability

    • Resource use at a rate allowing natural regeneration and minimal environmental damage.

    System

    • Set of interrelated parts forming a complex whole.

    Closed System

    • Energy, but not matter, exchanged with surroundings.

    Isolated System

    • Exchanges neither matter nor energy with surroundings.

    Open System

    • Matter and energy exchange with surroundings (e.g., natural ecosystems).

    Transfer

    • Energy/matter flow changing location but not state.

    Transformation

    • Energy/matter flow changing state (chemical/physical/energy).

    Tipping Point

    • Critical threshold where small changes cause large effects.

    Trophic Level

    • Organism's position in a food chain or group occupying the same position.

    Zonation

    • Arrangement of plant communities/ecosystems in parallel bands.
    • Response to environmental factor changes over distance.

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    Description

    Test your knowledge on abiotic factors, biodiversity, and biomes that influence ecosystems. This quiz covers key concepts such as biomass, albedo, and biochemical oxygen demand, along with examples from nature. Challenge your understanding of how these elements interact within the biosphere.

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