Name: ____________________________________
TERRESTRIAL ECOLOGY STUDY GUIDE
1. Define population:
Define community:
Explain the difference between a population and a community:
2. Explain the variation in an ecosystem.
3. Describe abiotic factors. Identify THREE abiotic factors.
4. Describe biotic factors. Identify THREE biotic relationships.
5. Describe a biome:
Identify the transitional zone between two ecosystems: _______________________
Identify the TWO factors that determine biomes: __________________________ & ________________________
Identify TWO defining characteristics of the following biomes:
a. Desert
b. Savannas
c. Tropical Rainforests
d. Temperate Forests
e. Grasslands
f.
Tundra
g. Taiga
h. Chaparral
6. Describe the difference between a niche and a habitat.
7. Explain the First and Second Laws of Thermodynamics:
8. Define and identify the trophic level of each organism:
Producer / autotroph Consumer / heterotroph Primary consumer / herbivore –
Omnivore Detritivores / scavenger –
Decomposer –
Name: ____________________________________
9. Describe food chains and food webs.
10. Distinguish between gross and net primary productivity:
11. Describe how energy flows through an ecosystem and label the generalized ecological pyramid:
12. Describe the following pyramids:
Pyramid of Numbers –
Pyramid of Biomass –
Pyramid of Energy –
13. Describe the carbon cycle and explain TWO ways humans have affected the carbon cycle:
14. Describe THREE steps in the nitrogen cycle. Identify the largest reservoir for nitrogen: ____________________
a.
b.
c.
Identify how humans intervene in the nitrogen cycle: __________________________________________________
15. Describe the phosphorous cycle. Does the phosphorous cycle have a gas phase? ________
16. Describe the sulfur cycle and identify human activities that release large amounts of sulfur:
17. Describe the hydrologic cycle.
18. Define inertia and resilience:
19. Define keystone species and identify THREE examples of keystone species:
20. Explain how species diversity increases stability:
21. Describe ecological succession: _____________________________________________________________________
Climax Community: _________________________________________________________________________________
Primary Succession: _________________________________________________________________________________
Name: ____________________________________
Secondary Succession: ______________________________________________________________________________