Producers in Food Webs Quiz

Here are the study notes for the text:

Intraspecific Competition

• Intraspecific competition: an ecological interaction where members of the same species compete for resources necessary for survival.
• Occurs when there are not enough resources to maintain a population.
• Can be direct or indirect, e.g. fighting for food, water, shelter, and mates.
• Examples: increased aggression, territory marking, and ornamental features (e.g. peacock's colorful feathers).

Interspecific Competition

• Interspecific competition: competition between members of different species for shared resources.
• Types: competition for space, food, and nesting locations.
• Competitive exclusion: two species cannot persist in the same ecological habitat for an extended period without being pushed out due to competition for limited resources.

Ecological Interactions

• Ecological competition: the battle between two species for the same resources in an ecosystem.
• Limiting factors: factors that can prevent a population from growing (e.g. food, water, living space).
• Types of limiting factors: biotic (living), abiotic (physical), density-dependent, and density-independent.

Population Dynamics

• Carrying capacity: the maximum number of organisms an ecosystem can support.
• Population growth: occurs when there are plenty of resources and few limiting factors.
• Population decline: occurs when there are not enough resources and greater limiting factors.

Food Chains and Webs

• Food chains: series of organisms where one is dependent on another for energy.
• Food webs: complex, interconnected interactions between food chains in an ecosystem.
• Producers: organisms that create their own food (e.g. plants, algae, bacteria).
• Trophic levels: levels of energy transfer in an ecosystem (e.g. producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers).

Decomposition

• Decomposers: organisms that break down or eat decaying material for energy (e.g. bacteria, fungi, worms).
• Decomposition stages: fragmentation, leaching, catabolism, humification, and mineralization.
• Detritivores: type of decomposer that consumes dead matter to break it down further.

Ecology

• Ecological succession: gradual and continuing replacement of plant species after an environmental disturbance.
• Primary succession: occurs after geological events (e.g. volcanic eruptions, glacier retreats).
• Secondary succession: occurs after fires, floods, and agricultural activities.
• Pioneer species: hardy primary producers that help restore plant life after a disturbance.

Reproduction

• Sexual reproduction: involves two parents, resulting in genetically diverse offspring.
• Asexual reproduction: involves one parent, resulting in genetically identical offspring.
• Meiosis: production of gametes (sex cells) for sexual reproduction.
• Mitosis: splitting of a parent cell into identical daughter cells for asexual reproduction.

Energy Flow

• Energy pyramid: a diagram showing the flow and quantification of energy transfer in an ecosystem.
• Energy transfer: occurs from one trophic level to the next, with only 10% of energy being transferred.
• 10% rule: each trophic level can only give 10% of its energy to the level above it.

Cycles

• Carbon cycle: moves carbon between the Earth, atmosphere, and living things.
• Nitrogen cycle: moves nitrogen between the atmosphere, Earth, and living things.
• Human impact: disruption of these cycles can lead to global warming, climate change, and eutrophication.### Ecological Interactions
• Exploitation competition: indirect interaction between species over a limited resource, leading to reduced access to resources for both species.
• Interference competition: direct interaction between species, involving violence, that affects feeding, survival, reproduction, or physical establishment of individuals.
• Niche differentiation: process by which competing species exploit their environment differently to coexist.
• Fundamental niche: ideal environments with no limiting factors or competition, where a species can survive.
• Realized niche: where the species actually live, considering limiting factors and competition.
• Ecomorphs: populations of distantly related animals with morphological differences to adapt to certain environments.

Limiting Factors

• Factors that prevent a population from growing, including:
  • Biotic factors: living factors, such as plants and animals as food sources.
  • Abiotic factors: physical factors, such as temperature and water resources.
  • Food, water, and living space are three of the most important limiting factors.
• Limiting factors can be classified into:
  • Physical factors
  • Biological factors
  • Density-dependent factors
  • Density-independent factors
• Limiting factors impact ecological processes, such as photosynthesis, and can affect human populations as well.

Population Growth and Carrying Capacity

• Population numbers rise and fall over time, influenced by limiting factors and resources.
• When there are fewer limiting factors, populations will grow until they reach their carrying capacity.
• Carrying capacity: the maximum number of organisms a population can hold.
• When a population reaches its carrying capacity, it will begin to decrease due to limited resources.

Population Graphs

• Population graphs show how populations change in an ecosystem.
• Types of population graphs:
  • Predator-prey graphs: show the direct relationship between predator and prey populations.
  • Carrying capacity graphs: represent the maximum number of organisms an ecosystem can support.
  • Population density graphs: show how density changes characteristics of a population.

Producers and Energy Transfer

• Producers: organisms that make their own food, including autotrophs, photoautotrophs, and chemoautotrophs.
• Producers are the basis for all energy transfers in the ecosystem.
• Energy transfer: from producers to herbivorous primary consumers, through secondary consumers, to tertiary and quaternary consumers.
• Energy is lost due to heat and metabolism in organisms, and only 10% of energy is transferred to the next trophic level.

Decomposers and Decomposition

• Decomposers: organisms that break down or eat decaying material, including:
  • Bacteria
  • Fungi
  • Insects
  • Worms
• Decomposition stages:
  • Fragmentation
  • Leaching
  • Catabolism
  • Humification
  • Mineralization

Food Chains and Food Webs

• Food chains: series of organisms where one is dependent on another for energy.
• Food webs: complex, interconnected interactions between all food chains within an ecosystem.
• Producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers, and quaternary consumers are the main trophic levels.

Energy Pyramids

• Energy pyramids: diagrams showing the flow and quantification of energy transfer in an ecosystem.
• Energy pyramids are based on the trophic levels of a food web.
• The ten percent rule: each trophic level can only give 10% of its energy to the level above it.

Cycles of Matter

• The carbon cycle: moves carbon between the Earth, atmosphere, and living things.
• The nitrogen cycle: moves nitrogen between the atmosphere, Earth, and living things.
• Human activities can disrupt these cycles, leading to global warming and climate change.

Ecological Succession

• Ecological succession: the gradual and continuing replacement of plant species after an environmental disturbance.
• Primary succession: occurs after geological events, eliminating all topsoil in the ecosystem.
• Secondary succession: occurs after fires, floods, and agricultural activities remove vegetation, leaving topsoil behind.
• Ecological succession leads to a climax community, where dominant species exist in a steady state with minimal resource competition.

Reproduction

• Reproduction can occur sexually or asexually.
• Asexual reproduction: Mitosis, resulting in genetically identical offspring.
• Sexual reproduction: Meiosis, resulting in genetically diverse offspring.
• Fertilization: the process of combining male and female sex cells to create a zygote.
• Zygote development:Mitosis, leading to an embryo, and eventually, a genetically similar but not identical individual.

Test your knowledge on producers in food webs, the trophic levels, and different types of producers like photoautotrophs and chemoautotrophs.