Define ecology
What is the difference between ecology and environmentalism?
What are the levels at which ecology is studied?
Define biotic and abiotic factors
What abiotic factors are most important? Why?
Define producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer, decomposer. What role do each play in energy flow?
How much energy is lost from one trophic level to the next?
What does that mean for the number of organisms necessary to support the next level?
What are biogeochemical cycles?
Explain the carbon and water cycles.
Define community.
Define commensalism, mutualism, parasitism, predation, herbivory. In these relationships, which organisms benefit? Be able to identify examples of each.
Describe energy transfer in the form of food webs and food chains.
Define biological magnification.
What is a keystone species? Why are they so important?
What is an invasive species?
How do invasive species harm the ecosystem?
What is biodiversity?
List and describe three ways of looking at biodiversity in an ecosystem.
How does genetic diversity relate to the ability to adapt and evolve?
Define extinction.
What is the current rate of extinction? What is causing it?
What services do a healthy ecosystem provide?
What is the greatest threat to biodiversity?
What is causing habitat destruction?
Why are invasive species so harmful to biodiversity?
Define overharvesting.
What types of pollution are a problem?
What is causing climate change?
Understand age structure graphs.
Understand the difference between exponential and logistic growth.
What causes exponential and logistic growth?
Define carrying capacity and understand the factors that play a role in determining this number.
What are limiting factors?
Describe how the human population has grown over the last 250 years.
What growth model is the human population following?
What are the potential consequences of this growth?
How many humans are on earth?
What is an ecological footprint?
Understand the daily choices and activities that influence your ecological footprint.
Explain the difference in population size and resource use in developed and developing countries.
Describe the implications of human population growth and resource use.
What is a biodiversity hotspot?
What is the impact when these hotspots are harmed?
What causes habitat fragmentation?
What are the greenhouse gasses? What do they do in the atmosphere?
What human activities are producing greenhouse gasses?
How do global temperatures relate to CO2 accumulation?
What is the greenhouse effect?