APES UNIT 1 - community ecology

• What is a community in ecology?

  Interactions between populations within a specific location
• What type of factors do community ecology focus on?

  Only biotic (living) factors and how they interact
• What are all living things made of?

  One or more cells
• Why do cells require energy?

  To function properly
• What is the currency of usable energy in all cells?

  ATP
• What would happen without solar energy?

  No cell would be able to do "work," and therefore, there would be no life on Earth
• Is solar energy the same as chemical energy (ATP)?

  No, solar energy is not chemical energy
• What are the two biochemical reactions needed to connect solar energy to cellular energy?

  1. Photosynthesis
  2. Cellular Respiration
• What is photosynthesis?


  Using the energy of the sun, gaseous carbon is taken out of the atmosphere and "fixed" into a solid as sugar
• What is the equation for photosynthesis?


  H₂O + CO₂ + light → O₂ + glucose
• What is an organism that can perform photosynthesis called?

  A producer or an autotroph
• Can you name some types of producers?

  Plants and protists
• Why can't cells use glucose directly to do work?

  Glucose stores potential energy like an unused battery
• How can we unlock the energy stored in glucose for cellular work?

  Through cellular respiration
• What is cellular respiration?


  A multistep process in which the stored energy in glucose is released in the form of ATP
• What gas is released during cellular respiration?

  Carbon dioxide
• What are organisms that are not producers called?

  Consumers or heterotrophs
• Do plants perform cellular respiration?

  Yes, they must also do cellular respiration
• How do the equations for photosynthesis and cellular respiration compare?

  They are almost the same except for energy, but backward
• What is the definition of a consumer?

  Any organism that is not a producer
• What do herbivores eat?

  Plants
• What do omnivores eat?

  Plants and animals
• What do carnivores eat?

  Animals
• What do detritivores feed on?

  Detritus or dead material
• What do decomposers do?

  Chemically break down dead material
• What are examples of decomposers?

  Bacteria and fungi
• What is the role of decomposers in an ecosystem?

  • Recycle matter and nutrients
  • Obtain energy from all trophic levels upon death
• What is the role of producers in a food chain?

  Producers are always the first organisms in a food chain
• Why do producers have the most energy in a food chain?

  They are the first organisms to store and use the sun's energy
• What do decomposers obtain energy from?

  All trophic levels upon death
• What do food chains represent?

  • Linear energy transfer from producer to apex predator
  • Direction of arrows indicates "who gives energy to who"
• Why are food chains typically not longer than 4-5 organisms?

  Energy runs out fast from trophic level to trophic level
• What is the 10% Rule in ecology?

  There is only a 10% gain from trophic level to trophic level
• How can you estimate the energy transfer between trophic levels?

  By moving the decimal to the left
• If the grass contains 849.3 kJ of energy, how much energy will the hawk have?

  84.93 kJ
• What is the exception regarding phytoplankton in marine food webs?

  • Fewer phytoplankton can still provide sufficient energy for the marine ecosystem
  • Due to higher reproductivity and shorter lifespan of phytoplankton
• What is a food web?

  • A more realistic interlinked set of food chains
  • More complex than a food chain
  • Animals can fill more than one trophic level
• What happens if an animal is removed from a food web?


  There will always be effects in the community
• Why is biodiversity important in an ecosystem?

  • Supports ecosystem resilience
  • Enhances productivity
  • Provides a wider range of resources
• What is the definition of the atmosphere?

  Layer of gasses surrounding the earth