Biology Sections 2.1, 2.2, and 3.1 Flashcards

Ecosystem Fundamentals

• Biotic vs. Abiotic Factors: Biotic factors are living, such as plants and animals, while abiotic factors are nonliving, including sunlight and temperature.
• Levels of Biological Organization: Ranges from individual organisms to populations, communities, ecosystems, biomes, and the biosphere.

Ecological Roles and Energy Flow

• Habitat vs. Niche: Habitat refers to the physical location of an organism, while niche encompasses its role in the ecosystem and interactions with living and nonliving elements.
• Energy Flow: Starts with solar energy captured by autotrophs, then transferred through various consumer levels, eventually recycled by detritivores.

Food Relationships

• Food Chains vs. Food Webs: Food chains outline direct energy transfer, whereas food webs illustrate complex interconnections between multiple food chains.
• Trophic Levels: Each level represents a step in the food chain: producers at the base, followed by primary consumers (herbivores), secondary consumers (carnivores/omnivores), and tertiary consumers (top predators).

Succession and Limiting Factors

• Limiting Factors: Conditions that limit the growth, reproduction, and distribution of organisms, such as sunlight and temperature.
• Primary vs. Secondary Succession: Primary succession occurs in lifeless areas where soil is created, while secondary succession happens in areas where a disturbance has cleared a community but left the soil intact.

Organism Roles in Ecosystems

• Autotrophs: Organisms that synthesize their own food using sunlight (e.g., plants).
• Heterotrophs: Organisms that obtain energy by consuming other living things; includes herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores.
• Detritivores: Consume decomposing organic matter, returning essential nutrients to the ecosystem.

Ecological Structures

• Ecological Pyramid: Illustrates trophic levels from producers at the bottom to apex predators at the top, showing energy flow and biomass distribution.
• Species Definition: A group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring, sharing similar genetic traits.

Additional Concepts

• Ecological Succession: The process where communities evolve due to changing environmental conditions, replacing existing communities.
• Lupins: A plant species with nitrogen-fixing bacteria that enrich the soil.
• Pine Trees: Produce cones that require fire for seed release, adapted for survival in fire-prone environments.