ap environmental science unit 9 test review

Metapopulations

Isolated, subpopulations connected by habitat corridors; this can allow some gene flow (mating between populations) and improve genetic diversity.

Hypoxia

Lack of oxygen.

✰ rising temperatures ✰ melting permafrost and sea ice ✰ rising sea levels ✰ displacement of coastal populations

List some of the effects of climate change.

CO2 (1), METHANE, N2O, then CFCS.

List the GWP of each of the greenhouse gases from least to greatest.

✰ carbon dioxide ✰ methane (CH4) ✰ nitrous oxide (N2O) ✰ CFCs/HCFCs/HFCs

List the greenhouse gases.

Vectors (malaria, zika, etc.)

Living organisms (usually mosquitoes, ticks, fleas) that can transmit diseases from human to human or animal to human

✰ FF combustion (CO2) ✰ deforestation (CO2) ✰ coal/gas combustion > acid rain

What are some anthropogenic causes for ocean acidification?

✰ laws preventing transport of invasives ✰ introduction of natural predator (biological control) ✰ physical removal

What are some control/removal methods for invasive species?

Lost ag. productivity, tourism, property value decline, fishery decline, control and removal costs.

What are some effects of invasive species?

Zebra mussels, kudzu vine, asian carp, emerald ash borer, cane toad, pythons.

What are some examples of invasive species?

CITES and Endangered Species Act

What are some examples of legislation that protect endangered species?

✰ connecting/protecting habitats ✰ sustainable land use (green roofs, parks) ✰ restoring lost habitats (replanting forests)

What are some ways to mitigate biodiversity loss?

✰ poaching prevention (laws) ✰ legislation ✰ protecting wildlife habitats (national parks, preserves, sanctuaries etc.)

What are some ways to protect endangered species?

Prevention of skin cancer (UV radiation) & cataracts (oxidative stress in the eyes).

What are the benefits of stratospheric ozone?

✰ widening & weakening of hadley cell ✰ weakened, destabilized Jet Stream

What are the effects of climate change on atmospheric currents?

✰ property loss, damage, potential relocation (can be prevented through seawalls) ✰ loss of barrier islands

What are the effects of climate change on coastal communities?

Suppression of thermohaline circulation

What are the effects of climate change on marine ecosystems?

✰ altered range of marine ecosystems ✰ altered ranges for organisms

What are the effects of climate change on marine ecosystems?

✰ disrupted migrator routes & reproductive timing ✰ habitat loss (shallow waters are deeper now) ✰ toxic algal blooms

What are the effects of climate change on marine species?

Arctic sea ice loss = habitat loss

What are the effects of climate change on polar ecosystems?

✰ flooding of coastal ecosystems like estuaries ✰ loss of species that depend on arctic and tundra ecosystems ✰ loss of thaw-freeze cycle (depriving organisms of water source)

What are the environmental impacts of sea levels rising?

✰ relocation of coastal human populations ✰ increase flooding causes repair costs ✰ saltwater intrusion ✰ refugees force to move inland

What are the human impacts of sea levels rising?

Respiratory irritant, damages plant tissues, precursor to photochemical smog.

What are the negative effects of tropospheric ozone?

✰ refrigerants ✰ blowing agents in aerosol products

What are the sources of CFCs/HCFCs/HFCs?

✰ fossil fuel combustion ✰ decomposition ✰ deforestation

What are the sources of carbon dioxide?

✰ natural gas extraction & combustion ✰ animal agriculture ✰ anaerobic decomposition (permafrost thaw)

What are the sources of methane?

Agriculture soils; (denitrification of nitrate, especially in overwatered, over fertilized soils)

What are the sources of nitrous oxides?

✰ evaporation ✰ transpiration from plants

What are the sources of water vapor?

RESIDENCE TIME [how long molecule stays in the atmosphere] INFRARED ABSORPTION [how well the gas absorbs and radiates infrared radiation]

What are the two factors that global warming potential is based off of?

Sea levels rising & disease vectors.

What are two environmental or human threats, according to the curriculum, from increasing GHGs?

Habitat destruction, invasive species, population growth, pollution, climate change, and over exploitation.

What is the meaning of HIPPCO?

Marine shells breakdown (weaker shells from less carbonate ions)

What is the result of decreased pH in ocean waters?

Water Vapor

While _____________ ___________ is a greenhouse gas, it doesn't contribute significantly to global climate change because it has a short residence time in the atmosphere.

Warmer (allows for expanded range)

___________ (warmer/colder) temperatures allow insect-transmitted diseases to spread to parts of the world previously too cold.

Specialist

_____________ species are more likely to be endangered or become extinct.

Invasive Species

________________ _______________ are species that can live, and sometimes thrive, outside of their normal habitat; can sometimes be beneficial, but they are considered invasive when they threaten native species.

Generalist, R-Selected Species

Invasive species are often ____________, ____________ species and therefore may outcompete native species for resources

Edge Effect

"Edge habitat" where two ecosystems such as forest-grassland or ocean-river (estuaries) meet have diff. characteristics than the middle of each ecosystem.

Montreal Protocol (1987)

A global agreement to phase CFCs out of production in refrigerators, aerosols and other uses.

CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)

A primary anthropogenic (human) cause of O3 breakdown

Endangered Species

A species whose numbers are so small that the species is at risk of extinction.

Low Albedo (darker surfaces)

Absorb sunlight & release infrared radiation (which we feel as warmth)

CITES

Agreement to ban/limit trade in endangered species

Narrow (pollutants from runoff (sediment, pesticides, sunscreen) can also force algae from reef)

Algae have ___________ temp. tolerance and leave the reef when temp. rises.

HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons)

An alternative refrigerant which are less harmful to the ozone layer, but still have very high greenhouse warming potentials

Greenhouse Effect

An effect where gases in earth's atmosphere trap heat from the sun & radiate it back down to earth.

Selective Pressures

Any factors that change the behaviors and fitness of organisms within an environment.

Ocean

As the atmosphere warms, heat is transferred to the ___________.

Coral Reef

Biome of a mutualistic relationship between coral & photosynthetic algae called zooxanthellae.

Toxic Algal Blooms (can also block sunlight & lead to hypoxia)

Blue-green algae release toxins into the water that can kill marine species

Habitat Fragmentation (roads, pipelines, urban land use, logging)

Breaking of larger, continuous habitats into smaller, isolated patches; disrupts breeding, hunting, migration

Weakened, destabilized Jet Stream

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: as arctic warms faster than other areas of earth, temp. difference between equator & poles weakens.

Widening & weakening of hadley cell

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: as temp. diff. between equator and poles decreases, air ascending and expanding from equator travels further before sinking.

Rising Sea Level

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: due to glacial, continental ice sheet melt + thermal expansion

Suppression of thermohaline circulation

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: global ocean current that redistributes heat from the equator, salt, and nutrients by mixing ocean waters could slow or stop altogether

Rising Temperature

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: habitat/species loss, drought, soil desiccation, heat waves, increased precipitation in some regions

Loss of Barrier Islands

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: islands that buffer coastal communities/ecosystems from wind & waves may be lost as sea level rises

Melting of Permafrost

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: permanently frozen tundra soils that begin to thaw & release methane & CO2 from anaerobic decomposition

Altered range of marine ecosystems (shift in photic zones)

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: some new marine habitats will be formed by rising sea level flooding coastline

Altered ranges for organisms

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT: warm water holds less O2, so many fish populations have declined, or migrated to cooler waters

Carbonic Acid

CO2 combines with ocean water to form ___________ ________.

Directly

CO2 increase ___________ (direct/indirectly) correlated with ocean acidification

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)

Chemicals that replaced CFC's role in society, that actually is a greenhouse gas.

Temperature & Rainfall

Climate change can affect soil through changes in __________ and ___________, which can impact soil's viability and potentially increase erosion.

Intraspecific Competition

Competition between members of the same species

Interspecific Competition

Competition for resources (food, nest sites, water) amongst members of different species

Wildlife Corridors

Connect habitat fragments enabling once-isolated populations to interbreed.

Polar Stratospheric Clouds (PSCs)

Consolidation of greenhouse gases in these clouds helps drive ozone depletion reactions.

Coral Bleaching

Coral lose color & become stressed and vulnerable to disease without algae (main food source)

Solar radiation heats earth's surface, releasing infrared radiation, GHGs absorb infrared and radiate it in space and back on earth.

Describe how the greenhouse effect works.

Some species thrive in the edge habitat & biodiversity is often higher in edge habitats due to diversity of food, shelter, and nutrient resources

Describe the conditions of an edge habitat.

Large predators needing hunting space & small populations of k-selected species struggle finding mates.

Describe the negative impacts of animals from habitat fragmentation.

Genetic and species biodiversity (in crops and livestock).

Domestication of species for agriculture generally decreases what two things?

Faster

Earth's polar regions are showing ___________ (faster/slower) response times to global climate change because ice and snow in these regions reflect the most energy back out to space, leading to a positive feedback loop.

Thermal expansion of water molecules and melting ice sheets and glacier ice.

For what two reasons are sea levels rising?

Temperature, precipitation, and sea level rise.

Global climate change can cause habitat loss via changes in what three things?

Over Exploitation

HIPPCO Excessive hunting or poaching (faster than reproductive rate) leads to pop. decline & potential extinction

Invasive Species

HIPPCO Invasives such as z. mussel and kudzu vine outcompete native species for food/space, lowering populations

Climate Change

HIPPCO Shifts biomes & therefore species habitat ranges, can change temp. & precip. patterns too rapidly for a species to adapt or migrate, causing pop. decline or extinction.

Habitat Fragmentation/Loss

HIPPCO ✰ Deforestation (lumber, cities, roads) ✰ Wetland draining (ag, urbanization) ✰ River water level decreased by dams

Population Growth

HIPPCO ✰ Human pop. growth drives hab. loss ✰ Urbanization, ag. expansion to feed more people remove/fragment hab.

Pollution

HIPPCO ✰ Oil spills reduce marine org. pop. sizes ✰ Pesticides (glyphosate, atrazine) kill non-target species

Obliquity (tilt) and Eccentricity (deviations of earth's orbit)

Historical climate change, due to variations of earth's orbit around the sun, is based on ____________ and ______________.

Endangered Species Act

Identifies threatened and endangered species in the US, and puts their protection ahead of economic considerations.

HIPPCO

Identify the acronym used to describe human threats to biodiversity.

✰ poaching ✰ special food/habitat needs ✰ invasive species ✰ climate change

In what ways do species become endangered?

Increased ocean CO2 (direct exchange).

Increased CO2 in atmosphere leads to ______________.

Decreased

Increased atm. CO2 leads to ____________ ocean pH.

Calcium Carbonate Shells (calcification)

Marine org. that make shells use calcium (Ca+) and carbonate (CO32-) ions to build their ___________ ______________ ______________.

Global Warming Potential (GWP)

Measure of how much a given molecule of gas can contribute to the warming of the atmosphere over a 100 year period, relative to CO2

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)

Ozone depletion can be mitigated by replacing ozone-depleting chemicals with substitutes that do not deplete the ozone layer. ______________________ are one such replacement, but some are strong greenhouse gases.

Stratosphere

Ozone in the ____________ absorbs UV-C and much of UV-B radiation.

Unequal Global Warming

Polar regions of earth are warming faster than other regions (polar amplification)

Soil desiccation and desertification (decrease precipitation in some areas but can increase in some areas and expand tropical ecosystems).

Precipitation changes from climate change result in what?

Higher Albedo (lighter surfaces)

Reflect sunlight, directly back out into space, or into clouds/GHGs that absorb it.

The melting of ice crystals in the atmosphere at the beginning of the Antarctic spring.

Stratospheric ozone depletion is caused by anthropogenic factors, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and natural factors, such as ____________________.

CO2 data and ice cores.

The Earth has undergone climate change throughout geologic time, with major shifts in global temperatures causing periods of warming and cooling as recorded with what two things?

CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)

Used as refrigerant chemicals and propellants in aerosol containers (hair spray, febreeze, etc.)