Community Structure quiz Flashcards

Species richness, relative abundance, species interactions, and physical aspects of the community.

Species richness is the number of different species in a community.

Relative abundance measures the number of individuals of a particular species relative to others in the community.

Species diversity is a measure that takes into account both species richness and relative abundance, and it leads to greater biomass production and resistance to invasive species.

Trophic structure is the transfer of energy through trophic levels, often expressed in a food chain or food web.

The 10% rule states that only about 10% of the energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next.

A food chain is a linear network of organisms showing who eats whom, while a food web is a more complex network of interconnections between organisms.

Bottom-up models focus on the influence of lower trophic levels on higher levels, while top-down models show how predators control community structure by limiting herbivores.

A keystone species has a significant effect on its community despite not being the most abundant.

Ecosystem engineers significantly modify or maintain their habitat, like beavers creating dams.

A disturbance regime is a recurring pattern of disturbances that a community experiences.

The intermediate disturbance hypothesis states that moderate levels of disturbance lead to greater species diversity.

Primary succession is the colonization of new or barren areas by pioneer species, leading to soil development and subsequent species.

Latitude affects species diversity through differences in climate, sunlight, and precipitation, with the tropics having high species diversity due to ample sunlight and precipitation.

The island equilibrium model looks at the balance between species immigration and extinction rates to maintain stable species counts on an island.