DOC PREVIEW
SC BIOL 301 - Intro to Ecology

This preview shows page 1 out of 4 pages.

Save
View full document
View full document
Premium Document
Do you want full access? Go Premium and unlock all 4 pages.
Access to all documents
Download any document
Ad free experience
Premium Document
Do you want full access? Go Premium and unlock all 4 pages.
Access to all documents
Download any document
Ad free experience

Unformatted text preview:

Biol 301 1nd Edition Lecture 1 Outline of Last Lecture I. NoneOutline of Current Lecture II. Population growth equationsIII. Basic Ecological TerminologyIV. Approaches to studying EcologyV. Other important basic informationCurrent Lecture1- Population Growth Equations Nt = N0ert2- Basic TerminologyA. Ecology: 1) the study of the interactions of organisms with one another and with their environment. 2) the study of the distribution and abundance of organisms.B. Evolution: 1) Change in a population’s gene pool over time. 2) science of the origins of biological diversity and its distribution.C. Individual: the most fundamental unit of ecology. Individuals acquire nutrients and energy, and produce waste. Individuals have a membrane boundary that separates internal processes from the external environment.D. Species: individuals that are capable of interbreeding or share genetic similarity. This definition is not universal; there are many definitions of species.E. Population: individuals of the same species living in a particular area and interbreeding- Boundaries can be natural (ex. forest edges) or political (ex. state lines). Boundaries are not always rigid, and they may cover small or large areas- Geographic range (distribution) is the extent of land or water within which a population livesThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.- Abundance is the total number of individuals- Density is the number of individuals per unit area- Composition is the makeup of terms of age, gender, or geneticsF. Community: Populations of species living together in a particular areaG. Ecosystem: One or more communities of living orgamisms interacting with their nonliving physical and chemical environments.H. Biosphere: all ecosystems on EarthI. Phenotype: an attribute of an organismJ. Genotype: the set of genes an organism carries that determines the phenotypeK. Evolution: a change in the genetic composition of a population over timeL. Natural selection: A change in the frequency of genes in a population through differential survival and reproduction of individuals that possess certain phenotypes. Three requirements:1. Individuals vary in their traits.2. Traits are heritable.3. Variation in traits causes some individuals to experience higher fitness (survival and reproduction).M. Producers: or autotrophs—convert chemical energy into resources.N. Consumers: or heterotrophs—obtain their energy from other organisms.O. Mixotrophs: can switch between being producers and consumers.P. Scavengers: consume dead animals.Q. Detritivores: break down dead organic matter (ex, detritus) into smaller particles.R. Decomposers: break down detritus into simpler elements that can be recycled.S. Predation: when an organism kills and consumes an individual.T. Parasitism: when one organisms lives in or on another organism.U. Herbivory: when one organism consumes producers.V. Competition: when two organisms that depend on the same resource have a negative effect on each other.W. Mutualism: when two species benefit from each other.X. Commensalism: when two species live in close association and one receives a benefit, whereas the other is unaffected.Y. Habitat: the place, or physical setting, where an organism lives. Distinguished by physicalfeatures, such as dominant plant type. Examples: Freshwater, marine, coastal, streams, forests, deserts, grasslands. Habitat types overlap and absolute distinctions rarely exist.Z. Niche: the range of abiotic and biotic conditions an organism can tolerate. No two species have the same niche because each has unique phenotypes that determine the conditions it can tolerate.AA. The Scientific Method:a. Hypotheses: ideas that potentially explain a repeated observation.b. Proximate hypotheses address the cause of immediate changes in individual phenotypes or interactions.c. Ultimate hypotheses address the fitness costs and benefits of a response.d. A particular hypothesis can rarely be confirmed beyond a doubt.e. Predictions: statements that arise logically from hypotheses.f. Manipulative experiments: where altering a factor tests a hypothesis hypothesized to be the cause of a phenomenon.g. Treatment: the factor that we want to manipulate in a study.h. Control: a treatment that includes all aspects of an experiment except the factor of interest.i. Experimental unit: the object to which we apply a manipulation.j. Replication: being able to produce a similar outcome multiple times (i.e., the number of experimental units per treatment).k. Randomization: a requirement for manipulation experiments; every experimental unit must have an equal chance of being assigned to a particular treatment.l. Natural experiments: an approach to hypothesis testing that relies on naturalvariation in the environment to test a hypothesis.m. Mathematical models: representations of a system with a set of equations that correspond to hypothesized relationships among the system’s components.- Ecologists often test mathematic models using natural or manipulative experiments.3- Different Approaches to studying ecologyA. Individual approach: Understands how adaptations, or characteristics of an individual’s morphology, physiology, and behavior enable it to survive in an environment.B. Population approach: Examines variation in the number, density, and composition of individuals over time and space.C. Community approach: Understands the diversity and interactions of organisms living together in the same place.D. Ecosystem approach: Describes the storage and transfer of energy and matter.E. Biosphere approach: Examines movements of energy and chemicals over the Earth’s surface.4- Other important basic informationA. 1st law of thermodynamics/ law of conservation of matter: matter and energy cannot be created or destroyed, but can change form.B. Dynamic steady state occurs when gains and losses of matter and energy are in ecological systems are in balanceC. Environments dominated by humans (e.g., cities, farms) are also ecological systems; humans depend on the proper functioning of these systems.D. Humans consume massive amounts of energy and resources, and produce large amounts of waste.E. Greenhouse gases: compounds in the atmosphere that absorb infrared heat energy emitted by Earth and then emit some of the energy back toward Earth. High amounts of these gases can increase average


View Full Document
Download Intro to Ecology
Our administrator received your request to download this document. We will send you the file to your email shortly.
Loading Unlocking...
Login

Join to view Intro to Ecology and access 3M+ class-specific study document.

or
We will never post anything without your permission.
Don't have an account?
Sign Up

Join to view Intro to Ecology 2 2 and access 3M+ class-specific study document.

or

By creating an account you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use

Already a member?