Ecology AP Readiness

Mr. Snider

Sherman Oaks CES

socesbio.com – download this ppt

Topics

• Biotic and Abiotic factors• Wind circulation• Biomes• Ecological succession • Food Chain vs Web• Energy Pyramid• Primary productivity• Growth, K –r selection

• Cycles – N C O H2O

• Predator / Prey

• Past essays– 2010 A + B– 2009 A– 2008 A (2) + B– 2007 A + B

Biotic and Abiotic factors

• Biotic – Living Abiotic - Nonliving• Plant – Producers Primary importance• Fungus Bacteria – Decomposers 2 imp.• Animal – Consumers 3 imp.• Temperature - average & range• Rainfall – average and monthly• Soil type – thick, thin, material• Sunlight – direct, length of day (season)

2010 B

Why do deserts form?

• Cool dry air moves down, expands, absorbs moisture

• Driven by global wind circulation

• Also mountain affects –

Sonora, Gobi

Climatograph2 data sets – 1 temperature (C);

1 rainfall (mm)

Different graphs have different scales - Caution

Desert

• Less than 30 cm rain• Cold or Warm (30> )• Cacti, succulents• Hawks, snakes,

lizards• Scorpions, rodents

Rainforest – Tropical

• Broadleaf evergreen, epiphytes: orchids, bromeliads

• Rainfall over 200-400 cm• Temp - hot 25-29 C• Big cat, big snake,

colorful birds, primate Most diverse

• Thin soil – nutrients in plants

• Near equator – 12 hr sun, daily afternoon rain

Rainforest – Tropical Dry

• Rain 150-200 cm• Temp 25-29 C• Seasonal dry, wet• Monsoons –heavy

seasonal rains• India • Tiger, Asian elephant

Savanna – tropical grassland

• Low rain 30-50 cm• Short wet winter,

long dry summer• Fire renewed• Grasses, shrub,

acacia & boabab tree• Lions, cheetah, zebra,

hyena, elephant(Lion King)

• Thick soil

Chaparral- Mediterranean Shrub

• Long dry summer, Short wet winter

• Fire renewed• Temperate • Low rain 30-50 cm• Herby plants, shrubs,

small trees• Deer, goat, birds, insect,

amphibians, reptiles• Us- SoCal

Temperate grassland – Prairie, steppes

• Seasonal temp– cold winters, hot summers

• Seasonal rain, high summer, wet winter

• Grass, forbs • Fire renewed• Buffalo, horse, deer,

antelope (O Give me)• Burrowers – prairie dog• Deep, fertile soil

Temperate broadleaf forest

• Cold winters, warm summers

• Seasonal rains• Fertile soil• Maple, Oak, beech

trees• Deer, bears,

wolverines

Northern coniferous forest - Taiga

• Long cold winter, short summer

• Low precipitation• Fir, Spruce• Deer, bear

Tundra (+ Alpine)

• Permafrost layer• Caribou, reindeer,

arctic – fox, owl, wolf, lemmings

• Mosses, grasses• Very low precipitation• Dark 3 months of year

Succesion

• Pioneer orgainism – lichen

• Primary – lichen, moss, grass, shrub, conifer, hardwood

• Secondary – Fire: return to grasses– Ex. Mt. St Helens

• Pond – buildup, convert to swamp then grassland

2008 A

Chain vs web

• Food chain – simple: who eats who

• Food web – complicated: who everone is related to; if weighted, arrows different thicknesses

• Reality – web; testable - chain

Energy Pyramid

~ 10% added to next level as biomass

~ 90% lost to environment as heat

Not all at once, each process, enzyme, mechanical energy loses up to 80%

Origin of Energy – Sun ?%

Vocab

• Autotroph – own energy

• Heterotroph – other energy

Internal – animal

External – fungus

• Producer• Consumer (levels below)• Decomposer• Herbivore – plant only• Omnivore – both• Carnivore – meat only• Saprobe – decomposer

2009 A

Compared with other terrestrial biomes, deserts have extremely low productivity.

(a) Discuss how temperature, soil composition and annual precipitation limit productivity in deserts

(b) Describe a four organism food chain that might characterize a desert community, and identify the trophic level of each organism

(c) Describe the results depicted in the graph. Explain one anatomical difference and one physiological difference between species A and B that

account for the CO2 uptake patterns shown. Discuss the evolutionary significance of each difference.

2007 A

The energy flow in ecosystems is based on the primary productivity of autotrophs

(a) Discuss the energy flow through an ecosystem and the relative efficiency with which it occurs

(b) Discuss the impact of the following on energy flow on a global scale.

(a) Deforestation

(b) Global climate change

2007 B

K = carrying capaciity exponential growth in middle

Populations

• P=I+B-E-D• Populations= Immigration + Birth-

Emigration-Death• Be able to calculate rates• Ex. What is the population after 5 years if

the initial population is 5000 flying monkeys, the birth rate is 1/250 monkey per year, death rate is 1/500 monkeys per year, immigration is 10 monkeys per year and emigration is 50 monkies to Oz?

Short lived

Little parental care

Many offspring

Wide distribution

Rapid reproduction

Long lived

Parental care common

Fewer offspring

Narrow distribution

Delayed reproduction

RK

Answer is 4850 flying monkeys – run away

2008 A

Dissolved O2 saturation graph

Higher temp= lower saturation

How to suffocate a fish w/o removing O2 directly – heat the water

2008 B

Nitrogen Cycle – Bacteria rock

Carbon Cycle

Water cycle

Delayed increase due to reproduction and delayed decrease due to starvation

Predator prey