BIO Ch. 46

watershed

A _______ is an area from which all precipitation drains into a specific waterway

biomass pyramid; producers; aquatic systems

A _________ depicts dry weight of organisms at each trophic level in an ecosystem Largest tier is usually ______ For some ______, pyramid is inverted

Food chain

A sequence of steps by which some energy captured by primary producers is transferred to organisms at successively higher trophic levels Omnivores feed at several levels

runoff; leaching

Ammonium, nitrite, and nitrate are also lost from land ecosystems in _____ and by _____

energy pyramid; producers

An ________ depicts the energy that enters each trophic level in an ecosystem Largest tier is always _______

Ammonification

Bacteria and fungi make additional ammonium available to plants when they break down nitrogen-rich wastes and remains is called __________

Nitrification

Bacteria convert ammonium to nitrite (NO2-), and then to nitrate, which plants easily take up is called ______

N2O

Chemical fertilizers and manure from livestock increase bacterial production of _____ Burning fossil fuel also releases _____ into the air

sewage, fertilizer run-off, nutrient runoff from the land.

Cultural eutrophication is caused mostly by _____, _____ and increased ______

Denitrification

Denitrifying bacteria convert nitrate or nitrite to gaseous nitrogen (N2) or nitrogen oxide (NO2) is called _______

trophic level

Each _______ is a number of transfers away from the system's original energy input

greatest; aquatic systems

Efficiency of transfers tends to be _____ in ________ (less lignin, more ectotherms)

oxygen; hydrogen; carbon; nitrogen; phosphorus

Elements essential to life (nutrients) include ______, _____, ______, ______, & ________

one way; Producers; photosynthesis; Metabolic; not

Energy flows ______ _____ capture light energy and convert it to bond energy in organic molecules (________) ______ reactions break bonds and give off heat, which is _____ recycled

Detrital food web

Energy in producers flows to decomposers and detritivores, which tend to be small is called _____

Grazing food web

Energy stored in producers flows to herbivores, which tend to be large animals is called ______

shortest; variable; longer; stable

Food chains tend to be _____ in _____ habitats, _____ in ____ habitats

carnivores; fewer; herbivores; more

Food webs with more ______ have _____ connections; _____ have _____ connections

5,000 gigatons

Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas hold an estimated _______ of carbon

Consumers (heterotrophs)

Get energy and carbon from organic sources Carnivores, herbivores, parasites, omnivores

Trophic levels

Hierarchy of feeding relationships in which energy is transferred when one organism eats another Each trophic level is a number of transfers away from the system's original energy input

increase; cultural

Human activity can greatly _______ the input of nutrients into the water This is called _____ eutrophication

biogeochemical cycle

In a ________, an essential element moves from nonliving environmental reservoirs, into living organisms, then back to the reservoirs

detritivores

In aquatic ecosystems, most of the energy in producers flows to grazers rather than ______

detrital food chains

In land ecosystems, most of the energy stored in producers moves through ________

carbon cycle; carbon; food webs

In the ________, _______ moves among Earth's atmosphere, oceans, rocks, and soils, and into and out of ________

nitrate; iodine

Ingested ______ inhibits _____ uptake by the thyroid gland and may increase the risk of thyroid cancer

atmospheric cycle

It is an ________ - the atmosphere holds about 760 gigatons (billion tons) of carbon, mainly in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2)

photosynthesis

Land plants incorporate CO2 from the atmosphere into their tissues through _______ Soil contains more than twice as much carbon as the atmosphere - consisting of humus and living soil organisms

calcium; 65 gigatons

Marine sediments and sedimentary rocks formed from _____ carbonate-rich shells are Earth's largest carbon reservoir, with more than ______

ocean; atmosphere

Most of the annual cycling of carbon occurs between the ______ and the _______

cycled; inorganic; decomposers

Nutrients are ______ Producers take up ______ compounds from the environment; ______ return them

inorganic reservoirs; primary producers

Nutrients move from __________ (rocks, sediments, water, atmosphere) to living systems through ________

Primary producers (autotrophs)

Obtain energy from nonliving sources (sunlight) Build organic compounds from CO2 and water

oceans

Oceans cover about 70% of Earth's surface, so most rainfall returns water directly to the _______

marine carbon cycle

Photosynthesis, aerobic respiration, decomposition, and sediments contribute to the ________

CO2 ; aerobic respiration

Plants and other organisms release _____ into the atmosphere through ________

Primary production

Rate at which producers capture and store energy

twice

Soil contains more than _____ as much carbon as the atmosphere - consisting of humus and living soil organisms

heat; not

Some energy is lost as ____ Some biomass is _____ digested

10

The EPA mandates that public drinking water contain less than ____ ppm nitrate and requires periodic testing

water cycle

The _______ moves water moves from the world ocean (main reservoir) through the atmosphere (by evaporation and transpiration), onto land (by condensation and precipitation), then back to the ocean

algae blooms, cyanobacteria, water hyacinths, duck weed

The added nutrients cause _____, large colonies of ______, _______, and ________.

nitrogen cycle; N2; ammonia; ammonium & nitrate

The nitrogen cycle starts with nitrogen fixation Nitrogen-fixing bacteria convert _____ in the air to ______ (NH3), then to _______ (NH4+) and ______ (NO3-), which plants easily take up

fertilizers; fossil fuels

The use of ______ and burning of _______ has added large amounts of nitrogen-containing compounds to our air and water and altered the nitrogen cycle

phosphorus cycle; phosphorus

The_________ is a sedimentary cycle that moves _______ from its main reservoir (Earth's crust) through soils and sediments, to food webs

depletes, aquatic organisms

When they die their decomposition _____ the dissolved oxygen This oxygen depletion causes the death of ______

Chemical; geologic

_____ and ______ processes move elements to, from, and among environmental reservoirs

Cumulative; length of food chains; four; five

_____ energy losses from energy transfers between trophic levels limits the ________ to _____ or _____ trophic levels

N2O; CO2

_____ is a highly persistent and effective greenhouse gas, with a warming potential 300 times that of _____

Community, Biotic

______ - group of interacting populations that inhabit the same region ______ - living organisms

N2O

______ contributes to destruction of the ozone layer which protects life at Earth's surface from damaging UV radiation

Photosynthetic

______ organisms take up dissolved ions and carbon dioxide; bacteria fix nitrogen gas

5 to 30%

_______ % of energy in tissues of organisms at one trophic level ends up in tissues of those at the next trophic level

Bicarbonate; inorganic carbon

_______ (HCO3-) is the main _______ in seawater

Nitrate (NO3-)

_______ from fertilizers and septic tanks leaches into groundwater and contaminates sources of drinking water

Decomposers

_______ such as bacteria and fungi, feed on organic wastes and remains and break them down into inorganic building blocks

Detritivores

_______ such as earthworms and crabs, eat small particles of organic matter (detritus)

Food webs

_______Multiple interconnecting food chains

Groundwater; soil water; aquifers

________ includes ________ and water in ________ (permeable rock layers that hold water)

Gaseous nitrogen (N2); 80; gaseous nitrogen

________ makes up about _____ percent of the lower atmosphere Most organisms can't use _________

Flowing

________ water carries nutrients from place to place

Greenhouse effect

________Radiant energy from the sun is absorbed by Earth's surface and radiated back as heat Gases in the upper atmosphere trap heat like a greenhouse, and radiate it back to Earth

Ecosystem

_________ - includes all the organisms plus abiotic, or nonliving, environment with a defined area

Atmospheric CO2

_________ fluctuates seasonally with patterns of photosynthesis

Greenhouse gases

_________ include carbon dioxide, water, nitrous oxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Global climate change

_________ is a long-term alteration of Earth's climate - global warming is one aspect of this change

Runoff

_________ is water that flows over saturated ground into streams

Gross primary production; Net primary production

__________ - amount captured by producers ________ - amount used in growth and reproduction

Primary producers

__________ capture energy and take up nutrients, which move to other trophic levels

Phosphorus; phosphate; phosphorus

__________ is a component of all nucleic acids and phospholipids Land plants take up dissolved ______ from the soil water Land animals get _____ by eating the plants or one another In the seas, ____ enters food webs when producers take up phosphate dissolved in seawater

Eutrophication

is the natural nutrient enrichment of lakes