envirnmental science – Flashcards
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Ecosystems
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An interactive complex of communities and the abiotic enviorment affecting them within a particular area. Ecosystems have characteristic forms, such as deserts, grasslands, tundra, deciduours forests, and tropical rain forests.
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Millennium Ecosystems Assessment
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A four year effort by over 1360 scientist to protuce reports on the state of Earth's ecosystems. The reports are aimed at policy makers and the public and are all available on the internet.
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Global Climate Change
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The cumulative eforts of raising levels of greenhouse gases on earth's climate. These effects include global warming, earth changes, and a rising sea level.
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Biodiversity
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the diveristy of living things found in the natural world. The concept usually refers to the different speicies but also includes ecosystems and the genetic diversity within a given species.
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The Kyoto Protocol
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An international agreement among the developed nations to curb greenhouse gas emissions. The Kyoto Protocol was forged in December 1997 and became binding in 2004.
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Enviornmental Science
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The multisiciplinary branch of science concerned with enviormental issues.
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The Enviornmental Movement
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The upwelling of public awareness and citizen action regarding enviormental issues that began during the 1960s.
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The Modern Enviornmental Movement
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Enviornmentalists
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Any person who is concerned about the degradation of the natural world and is willing to act on the concern.
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Enviornmentalism
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An attitude or movement involving concern about pollution, resource depletion, population prerssures, loss of biodiveristy, and other enviornmental issues. Usually also implies action to address those concerns.
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Three Unifying Themes
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Sound Science
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The basis for our understanding of how the world works and how human systems interact with it. It stems from scientific work based on peer-reviewed research and is one of the unifying themes in this text.
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Sustainability
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A property whereby a process can be continued indefinitely without depleting the energy or materia resources on which it depends. As one of the unifying themes of the text, sustainability is the proactical goal toward which our interactions with the natural world should be working.
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Stewarship
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A steward is one to whom a trust has been given. As one of the unifying themes of this text, stewardship is the actions and progrmams that manage natural resorces and human well-being for the common good.
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The Scientific Method
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The process of making ovservations and logically integrating those observations into a model of how the world works. Often involves forming hypotheses, experimenting, and conducting furthur testing for confirmation.
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Assumption
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Observation
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Things or phenomena that are perceived through one or more of the basis five senses in their normal state. In addition, to be accepted as factual, observations must be verifable by others.
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Experimentation
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atomic theory
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hypothesis
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The tentive guess concerning the cause of an observed phenomenon that is then jubjected to experiment to test its logical or empirical consequences.
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theories
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A conceptual formulation that provides a rational explanation or framework for numberous related obervations.
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National laws and concepts
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Generalizations derived from our observations of matter, energy, and other phenomena. Though not absolute, natural laws have been empirically confirmed to a high degree and are often derivable from higher-level theory.
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The role of Instruments in science
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instruments
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the Scientific Community
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New information
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Complex phenomena
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Bias
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Subjective values
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Junk Science
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Information presented as valid science but unsupported by peer-reviewed research. Often, politically motivated and biased results are selected to promote a particular point of view.
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Evaluating Science
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Sustainable yields
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The taking of a biological resource (e.g., fish or forests) that does not exceed the capacity of the resource to reproduce and replace itself.
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Sustainable Societies
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A scociety that functions in a way so as not to deplete the energy or material resources on which it depends. Such a society interacts with the natural world in ways that maintain existing species and ecosystems.
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Sustainable Development
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Development that provides people with a better life without sacrificing or depleting resources or causing enviornmental impactsw that will undercut the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
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Development
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Euaity
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An ideal
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An essental Transistion
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Enviormnetal racism
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Discrimination against people of color wherby hazardous industries are sited in nonwhite neighborhoods and towns.
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Economic changes
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Envirornmental changes
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New commitment
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What are the lessons of Easter Island?
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Easter Island is one of the most isolated islands in the world. Located in the South Pacific 2,000 miles from Tahiti and the coast of South America. The island was originally forested. Overexploitation of forests, soils and coastal fisheries coupled with population growth on the islands (thought to be several thousand people) lead to collapse of ecosystems causing political and economic conflict on the island that lead to a collapse of the civilization there. • Society fails to care for the environment and sustain it • Population increase beyond carrying capacity • Disparity between rich and poor widens • Civil strife, environmental degradation lead to economic collapse, starvation & population decline (Could this be the fate of our global civilization?) A: Meeting the needs of the present without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs in an equitable way. This is a form of sustainability.
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Describe the main themes of Jared Diamond's book, Collapse.
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Jarred Diamond in Collapse lists eight factors which have historically contributed to the collapse of past societies: Deforestation and habitat destruction Soil problems (erosion, salinization & soil fertility losses) Water management problems Overhunting Overfishing Effects of introduced species on native species Population growth Increased per-capita impact of people The primary cause of collapse is overpopulation relative to the carrying capacity of the environment.
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Describe carrying capacity.
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The maximum population of a given species that an ecosystem can support without being degraded or destroyed in the long run. • The carrying capacity may be exceeded in the short run, but not without lessening the systems ability to support life in the long run.
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What is the number one environmental issue facing mankind?
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Human population growth and economic development -Human population growth is the number one environmental problem
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What is the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) - 2005?
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• Gather information on state of ecosystems across the world in four year program • Linkage between ecosystem goods & services and human wellbeing (at local, regional & global scales) • Finding: Widespread abuse and widespread exploitation of ecosystem goods & services. • Goal: Provide knowledge for sound policy and environmental management.
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What is biodiversity and what are the consequences of loss of biodiversity?
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"the variability among living organisms and the ecologic complexes and genetic variability of which they are a part" • The majority of plant & animal species are declining in their range and/or population size • Loss of biodiversity impacts not only the natural world, but the future stability of our agriculture, forestry and aquaculture economies
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Sustainability
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A system or process is sustainable if it can be continued indefinitely, without depleting any material or energy resources needed to keep it running.
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Sustainable yield
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in agriculture, forestry or aquaculture harvests that does not exceed the carrying capacity of the resource ecosystem.
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Sustainable ecosystems
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ecosystems are natural systems that thrive over time by recycling nutrients, maintain species diversity in balance by using the sun or other sources of sustainable energy.
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Sustainable society:
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A society in balance with the carrying capacity of the natural world.- A society that does not deplete the available resource base (by exceeding sustainable yields)• A society that does not produces pollution (waste products) in excess of nature's ability to absorb them -"Primitive" societies often (but not always) persisted by being sustainable with their environment -"Modern" industrial societies are currently not sustainable in terms of ecosystem degradation
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: What is equity and intergenerational equity?
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A: Meeting the needs of the present without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs in an equitable way. This is a form of sustainability.
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equity
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intergenerational equity
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Describe the scientific method.
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• Purpose of science: Scientific method strives to eliminate bias and provide results that can be tested for reproducibility by other researchers. • Science is very self-policing/adversarial via peer review process & requirement to publish findings. • Scientific method uses inductive reasoning which can not prove anything; only be disproved if wrong. -Science can only disprove a theory. •Must accept the preponderance of evidence until there are more advances and/or findings.
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What does the term theory mean in science?
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Theory, in science, is a rational explanation or testable model that represents how a system or process works. • A scientific theory, to be considered valid, must be verified numerous times by independent researchers through experiment, quantitative analysis and empirical observation. Note: Theory has a very specific meaning in science that tends to be different that its use in everyday English.
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What is junk science?
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Information presented as valid science, but unsupported by peer-reviewed research. Often, politically motivated and biased results are selected to promote a particular point of view. -Presentations of selective results -Public distortions of scientific works -Publication in quasi-scientific journals
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Describe ecosystem capital?
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• Ecosystem capital: The sum total of goods and services provided free of charge and essential to human life and wellbeing. • Ecosystem goods: Products, such as, fresh water, agriculture, aquaculture, forestry products, bio-fuels, etc. extracted from natural ecosystems. • Ecosystem services: Ecosystem functions that essential to human life and economic well being, such as, breakdown of wastes, regulation of climate, erosion control, pest management, maintaining nutrient cycles etc. • Goods + Services = Ecosystem Capital
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Ecosystem capital
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The sum total of goods and services provided free of charge and essential to human life and wellbeing.
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Ecosystem goods:
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Products, such as, fresh water, agriculture, aquaculture, forestry products, bio-fuels, etc. extracted from natural ecosystems.
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Ecosystem services:
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Ecosystem functions that essential to human life and economic well being, such as, breakdown of wastes, regulation of climate, erosion control, pest management, maintaining nutrient cycles etc.
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) What was the finding of the Millennium Assessment (MA) on the status of global ecosystem capital.
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• Immediate exploitation of ecosystem goods and services at the expense of long-term sustainability. • Short-term economic gains at the expense of over long-term environmental (economic and political) stability and viability of future generations. • The Millennium Assessment (MA) found 15 out of 24 ecosystem services are degraded or used unsustainably
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What is the purpose of environmental policy?
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The human decisions that determine what happens in the natural world. • Purpose of environmental public policy is to promote the common good. -Improvement of human welfare -Protection of the environment for future generations
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Describe the process of globalization
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Globalization: The accelerating interconnectedness of human activities, ideas and cultures. • Economic globalization: The integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, and the spread of technology. Jagdish Bhagwati (2004) • Political globalization: Rise of transnational organizations and treaties (trade & environment)
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Globalization
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The accelerating interconnectedness of human activities, ideas and cultures.
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Economic globalization
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The integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, and the spread of technology. Jagdish Bhagwati (2004)
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Political globalization
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Rise of transnational organizations and treaties (trade & environment)
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Which of the following statements about world ecosystems was a conclusion of the United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment?
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they are becoming increasingly overexploited and degraded.
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The earth's atmosphere is changing due to an increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by
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combustion of fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas.
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Which of the following describes theory as used in science?
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a model or description of how a system or process works that has been tested numerous times.
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) A grouping of plants, animals, and other organisms interacting with each other and their environment in such a way as to perpetuate the grouping more or less indefinitely is called a/an
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ecosystem.
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The maximum population density that an ecosystem can support without experiencing long-term degradation or collapse is called
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carrying capacity.
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Organic molecules always contain
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carbon-carbon and/or carbon-hydrogen bonds.
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In nature an oxygen free environment is termed
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anaerobic.
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Energy is the ability to
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move matter, and thus do work.
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In most terrestrial and marine photic zone ecosystems, the producers are
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green plants.
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Which of the following leads to increased inputs of phosphorus into waterways?
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use of chemical fertilizers
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An anthropogenic (human produced) process that returns carbon stored in the lithosphere to the atmosphere is ___________.
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fossil fuel consumption
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A condition that would most likely result in the S-shaped curve is the ____________.
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a stable abiotic and biotic environment
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If natural enemies are removed, herbivore populations will most likely ___________.
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increase, overgraze, and then decline from starvation
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A species that has an essential role in maintaining ecosystem structure is called a __________.
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keystone species
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Prior to the 1800s the human population exhibited a general slow increase in population size. Reasons for this slow population increase included _____________.
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diseases that resulted in high infant mortality and short overall lifespan
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The control of the moose population by wolves on Isle Royale in Lake Superior is an example of which type of population regulation?
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top-down
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According to the theory of natural selection, "survival of the fittest" means the survival of those organisms ________________.
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that can best cope with existing environmental conditions and live (survive) to reproduce
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Which of the following would most likely be a trait of a highly adaptable species?
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short generation time
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Which of the following best describes the J curve of population growth dynamics?
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Exponential population growth, often exceeding the carrying capacity.
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The recognition stage of a policy life cycle is
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an issue is perceived to be a problem requiring some action.
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The implementation stage of a policy life cycle is when
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actions are put into effect.
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The role of Congress in environmental protection is to:
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pass legislation and appropriate funds.
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The control stage of a policy life cycle is when
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actions have been implemented, have proven effective and have been generally accepted by the public as being desirable.
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The region of the world where more living species live than any other place is the
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tropical rain forest.
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If unchecked, the activity or event that will likely lead to the most extinctions (probably many thousands) in the near future is
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the burning and clearing of tropical forests for agriculture.
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Which of the following impacts on wildlife is most directly caused by the economic activities of developed countries?
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trade in products made from endangered species parts.
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A keystone species
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influences the survival of many other species in the community.
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Most game animals in the United States are killed by
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vehicles.
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A species introduced into an area from somewhere else which competes and crowds out native species is called a:
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invasive species.
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A major problem in preserving prominent endangered species such as the black rhino or the Siberian tiger is
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economic value of poaching.
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Which of the following best describes the state of North American songbirds today?
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their populations have been declining for several decades.
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A true measure of the state of biodiversity of a country or region would include:
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both the existence of species and the range of their populations.
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The idea that a species has value for its own sake is called:
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intrinsic value.
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The "tragedy of the commons" is a result of
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unregulated use of a common resource.
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The harvesting of fruits and nuts in a rainforest to meet a family's food needs is an example of:
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consumptive use.
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Maximum sustainable yield refers to the number of:
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maximum number of organisms which can be taken from an ecosystem while allowing the population to renew itself.
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The removal of an entire stand of trees at one time is called:
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clear-cutting.
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The goal of sustainable forestry is:
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management of the forest as an ecosystem.
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What organization is responsible for the regulation of whaling?
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International Whaling Commission.
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Which of the following is the cause of coral bleaching?
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warmer sea temperatures.
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Coral bleaching is a symptom of:
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the loss of symbiotic algae in the coral.
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How does the shrimp aquaculture industry destroy mangrove forests?
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Mangrove forests are cleared to create ponds for raising shrimp.
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Most of the publicly owned land in the United States is located in
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the western states and Alaska.
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Preservation of old growth forests is accomplished by
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not allowing any of the trees to be cut down.
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Land protected through the activitities of the Nature Conservancy is an example of :
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public land trust.
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The Magnuson Act of 1976 extended United States jurisdiction to ________ miles offshore.
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200 miles.
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Public land which is preserved with the greatest protection is
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Wilderness.
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According to the "precautionary principle", how should the total allowable catch (TAC) relate to maximum sustained yield (MSY)?
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to allow for uncertainties, it should be much lower than MSY
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facts
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species
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All the organisms 9plant, animal, or microbe) ofa single kind. The "single kind" is determined by similarity of appearance or by the fact that members do or can mate and produce fertile offspring. Physical, chemical or behavioral differences block breadding between species.
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ecology
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a study of all processes influencing the distrubution and abundance of organisms and the interactions between living things and their enviornment.
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population
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a group of within a single species whose individuals can and do freely interbreed.
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biota
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the sume total of all living organisms. The term usually applied to the setting of natural ecosystems.
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biotic community
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all the living organisms (plants, animals, and microorganisms) that live in a particular area.
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abiotic
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pertaining to factors or things that are separate and independent from living things; nonliving.
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ecosystem
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an interactive complex of communities and the abiotic enviorment affecting them within a particualr area. Ecosystems have characteristics forms, such as deserts, grasslands, tundra, deciduous forests, and tropical rain forests.
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ecotome
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a transitional region between two adjacent ecosystem that contains some of the species and characteristics of each one and also certain species of its own.
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landscape
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a group of interacting ecosystems occupying adjacent geographical areas.
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biomes
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a group of ecoystems that are related by having a similar type of vegetation governed by similar climatic conditions. Examples include prairies, deciduous forest, arctic tundra, deserts, and toprical rain forests.
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biosphere
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The overall ecosystem of Earth. The sum total of all the biomes and smaller ecosystems, which ultimatley are all interconnected and interdependent through global processes such as the water cycle and the atmospheric cycle.
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conditions
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abiotic factos (temperature) that vary in time and space but not used up by organisms.
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resources
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biotic and abiotic factors that are consumed by organisms.
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range of tolerance
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The range of condition within which an organism or population can survive and reproduce - example, the range from the highest to the lowest temperature that can be toleratied. Within the range of tolerance is the optimum.
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omptimum
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the condition or amount of any factor or combination of factors that will produce the best result. For example, the amount of heat, light, moisture, nutrients, and so on that will produce the best plant growth.
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limits of tolerance
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the extremes of any factor (e.g. temperature) that an organism or a population can tolerate and still survive and reproduce.
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zones of stress
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regions where a species finds conditions tolerable but suboptimal. The species survives but is under stress.
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limiting factor
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a factor primarily responsible for determining the growth or reproduction of an organism or a population. The limiting factor in a given enviorment may be a physical factor such as temperature or light, a chemical factor such as a particular nutrient, or a biological such as competing species.
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law of limiting factors
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The law stating that a system may be limited by the absence or minimum amount (in terms of that needed) by the required factor.
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synergistic effects
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synergislm
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the phonomenon whereby two factgors acting together have a greater effect that would be indicated by the sum of their effects separetely - as, for example, the sometimes fatal mexture of modest doses of certain grugs in combination with modest does of alcohol.
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habitat
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the specific enviornment (woods, desert, swamp) in which an organism lives
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matter
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any gas, liquid, or solid that occupies space and has mass.
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elements
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a substance that is made up of one and only one distinct kind of atom.
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atoms
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a fundamental unit of all elements.
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law of conservation of matter
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the law starting that, in chemical reactions, atoms are neither created nor changed nor destroyed; they are only rearranged.
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molecule
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the smallest unit of two or more atoms forming a compound. A molecule has all the characteristics of the compound of which it is a unit.
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compound
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any substance (gas, liquid, or solid) that is made up of two or more different kinds of atoms bonded together.
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atmosphere
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the thin layer of gasses surrounding Earth. Nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor, and carbon dioxide are major gasses, while may minor gasses are also present in trace amounts.
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hydrosphere
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the water on Earth, in all of its liquid and solid compartments; oceans, rivers, lakes, ice, and groundwater.
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lithosphere
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The Earth's crust, made up of rocks and minerals.
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hydrogen bonding
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a weak attrative force that occurs between a hydrogen atom and one molecule and, usually, an oxygen for holding water molecules together to ropduce the liquid and solid states.
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mineral
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any hard, brittle, stonelike material that coccurs naturally in Earth's crust. All mainerals consist of various combinations of positive and negative ions held together by ionic bonds. A pure mineral, or crystal, is one specific combination of elements. Common rocks are coposed of mixes of two or more minerals.
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interactions
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nitrogen gas
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N2
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oxygen gas
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O2
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carbon dioxide
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CO2
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organic compounds
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classical definition" all living things and products that are uniquely produced by living things, such as wood, lather, and sugar. Chemical Definition" all chemical compounds or molecules, natural or synthetic, that contain carbon atoms as an integral part of their molecular structure. The structure of organic compouns is based on bonded carbon atoms with hydrogen atoms attached.
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carbon
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c
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hydrogen
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h
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oxygene
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O
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NITROGEN
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N
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PHOOSPHORUS
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P
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SULFER
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S
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INORGANIC
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NATURAL ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
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SYNTHETIC ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
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KINETIC ENGERGY
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the energy inherent in motion or movement, including molecular movement (heat) and the movement of waves (hence, radiation, and therefore light).
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POTENTICAL ENERGY
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the ability to do work that is stored in some chemical or physical state. For exaple, gasoline is a form because the ability to do work is stored in the chemical state and is released as the fuel is burning in an engine
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CHEMICAL ENERGY
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the potential energy that is contained in a certain chemicals; most importantly, the engery that is contained in organic compounds such as food and feuls and that may be released through respiration or burning.
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CALORIE
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the fundamental unit of energy. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius. All forms of energy can be converted to heat and measured in calories. Calories used in connection with food are kilocalories, or "big calories, the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 liter of water 1 degree Celsius.
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FORMS OF ENGERGY
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ENGERGY CONVERSION
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LAWS OF THERMODYNAMIC
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LAW OF CONSERVATION OF ENGERGY
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see first laws of thermodynamics
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FIRST LAW OF THERMODYNAMIC
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the empirical observation, confirmed innumerable times, that energy is never created or destroyed but may be converted from one form to another (e.g. electricity to light).
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SECOND LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS
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the empirical observation, confirmated innumerable times, that in every energy conversion (e.g., from electricity to light), some of the energy is converted to heat and some heat always moves toward a cooler place. Therefore, in every energy conversion, a portion of energy is lost, and since, by the first law of thermodynamics, energy cannot be created, the fuctioning of any system requires an energy imput.
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ENTROPY
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a degree of disorder; increasing entropy means increasing disorder.
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oxidation
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a chemical reation that gerally involves a breakdown of somesubstance through its combining with oxygen. Burning and cellular resiration are expamples of oxidation. In both cases, organic matter is combined with oxygen and broken down to carbon dioxide and water.
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producers
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in an ecosystem, those organisms (mostley green plants) that use light energy to construct their organic constituents from inorganic compounds.
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consumers
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in an ecosystem, those organisms that derive their energy from deeding on other organisms or their products.
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photosynthesis
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the chemical process carried on by green plans through which light energy is used to produce glucose from carbon dioxide and water. Oxygen is relased as a by-product.
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cell respiration
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the chemical process that occurs in all living cells wherby orgaic comounds are broken down to relase energy required for life processes. For resiration, higher plants and animals require oxygen and release carbon dioxide and water as waste products, but certain microorganisms do not require oxygen.
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enzymes
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protein that promotes the synthesis or breaking of chemical bonds.
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hydrologic
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biogeochemical cycles
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see nutrian cycle.
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carbon cycles
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detritus
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the dead organic matter, such as fallen leaves, twigs, and other plants and animal wastes, that exists in any ecosystem.
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nonreative nitrogen
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the main resrvior of nitrogen as nitrogen gas in the atmosphere.
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reactive nitrogen nr
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all forms of nitrogen in ecosystems that are usable by organisms, as opposed to the nonreative nitrogen in the form of nitrogen gas.
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nitrogen fixation
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the process of chemically converting nigrogen gas (n2) from the air into compounds such as nitrates (no 3) or amonia (nh3) thatcan be used by plants inbuilding amino acids and other nitrogen-containing organic molecules.
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denitrification
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the process of reducing oxidized nitrogen compounds present in soil or water to nitrogen gas to the atmosphere, conducted by certain bacteria and now utilized in the treatment of sewage effuents.
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nitrogen cascade
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population
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a group within a single species whose individuals csan and do greely interbreed.
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community
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population groth
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equilibrium
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population groth rate
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the change in population numbers divided by the time over which that change occurs.
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expoential increase
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the growth producted when a base population increases by a given percentage (as oposed to a given amount) each year. An expontential increase is characterized by doubling again and again, each doubling occuring in the same period of time. It produces a J- shape curve.
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population explosion
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the expotential increase observed to occure in a population when conditions are such that a large percentage of the offspring are able to survive and reproduce in turn. A population explosion frequently leads to overexploitation and eventual collaps of the ecosystem.
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logistic growth
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a pattern of growth of a population that results in a s-shape curve plotted over time, such that the population levels off at the carrying capacity (k).
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carrying capacity
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the masimum population of a given spicies that an ecosystem can support without being degraded or destroyed in the long run. epresented symbolically by K.
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s-curve
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j-curve
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biotic potential
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reproduction capacity. The potential of a species for increasing its population and/or distrubution. The biotic potential of every species is such that, given optimum conditions, its population will increase.
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enviormental resistance
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the totality of factors such as adverse weather conditions, shortages of food or water, predators, and diseases that tend to cut back populations and keep them from growing or speading.
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repoductive strategies
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a life history property of a species that invloves a balance between reproduction and death.
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r-strategist
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a reproductive strategy of a species that invloves producing large numbers of young (a hight reproductive rate) and surival of small numbers over time. Also called opprotunistic species.
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k-strategist
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a reproductive strategy for a speices whereby there is a low reproductive rate but good survival of young due to care and protection by adults.
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life history
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population denisty
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the number of individuals can and do freely interbreed.
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desity-dependent
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an attribute of population-balancing factors, such as predation, that increase and degrease in intensity in proportion to population density. Many lead to population stability.
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density-independent
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morality to a population that occurs regardless of the population density. Tends to be destabilizing to populations.
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critical number
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the minimum number of individuals of a given species that is required to maintain a healthy, viable popluation of the species. If a population fails below its critical number will almost certainly become extinct.
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top-down regulation
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bottom-up regulation
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threatened
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endangered
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a species whose total popluation is declining to relatively low levels such that, if the trend continues, the species will likely become extinct.
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predation
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competition
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interspecific
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mutualism
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compmensalism
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predator
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carnivores
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herbivores
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parasites
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host
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pathogens
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overgrazing
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predator removal
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keystone species
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intraspecific compitition
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teritoriality as an advantage
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impact on the species
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fitness
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natural selection
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interspecific competition
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competitive exculion priciiple
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self-thinning
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heterogeneous
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limnologist
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charactoer displacement
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muturalism
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amensalism
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an interaction between species whereby one species is harmed, while the other is unaffected.
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symbiosis
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selective pressures
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natural selection
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biological evolution
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adaptation
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an ecological or evolutionary change in stature or funtion that enables an organism to adjust better to its enviorment and hence enhances the organism's ability to surivive and reproduce.
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migration
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extintion
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genetic change
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keys to suvivial
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evolution of species
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the limits of change
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two species from one
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reproductive isolation
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darwin's finches
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plate tectonics
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tectonic plates
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tsunami
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biomes
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trophic level
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food chains
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food web
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autotrphs
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an orgainism that can synthesize all its organic substances from inorganic nutrients, using light or certain inorganic chemicals as a source of energy. Green plants are the principle autotrophs.
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heterotrophs
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chlorophyll
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chemosynthesis
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primary production
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consumers
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primary consumers
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secondary consumers
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carnivors
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herbivors
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omnivores
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decomposers
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fermentation
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anaerobic
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lacking in oxygen.
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primary production
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chemosynthesis
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aerobic
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with oxygen
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biomass
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cellulose
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biomes
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temperate deciduous forest biome
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grassland
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prairie biomes
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desert biome
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trobical rain forest
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coniferous forest biome
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permafrost
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tundra biomes
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microclimat
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biome productivity
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disturbance
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ecological sucession
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facilitation
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climax ecosystem
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primary seccession
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secondary succession
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aquatic succession
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fire and succession
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fire climax ecosysytem
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resilience
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resilience mechanism
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incremental value
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ecosystem management
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stakeholders
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biota
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biological welth
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the life-sustaining combination of commercial, scientific, and aesthetic values imparted to a region by its biota.
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biodiveristy
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the diveristy of living things found in the natureal world. The concept usually refers to the different speices but also includes ecoystems and the geretic diveristy within a given species.
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instrumental value
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intrisic value
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genetic bank
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biotourism
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the exponential increase observed to occur in a population when conditions are such that a large percentage of the offspring are
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Endemic
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HIPPO
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habitat
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destruction
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invasive species
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pollution
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population
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overexploitation
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conversion
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fragmentation
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simplification
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intrustion
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edges
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aquaculture
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taxonomy
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Animal Danger Control
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Wildlife Services
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Lacey Act
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Endangered Species Act
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Listing
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Critical Habitat
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Recovery Plains
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North West Forest Plan
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Red List
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International Union for Conservation of Nature
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CITES
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Consvetion on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
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Convention on Biological Diversity
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nutrian cycle
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