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Ecology Core Concepts
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1
Question
What is mutualism?
Page 3
Answer
A symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the interaction.
2
Question
What is commensalism?
Page 3
Answer
A symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed.
3
Question
What is amensalism?
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Answer
A symbiotic relationship in which one species is harmed and the other is unaffected.
4
Question
What is facultative mutualism?
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Answer
A mutualistic relationship that is beneficial but not required for the survival or reproduction of either species.
5
Question
What is obligate mutualism?
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Answer
A mutualistic relationship in which at least one species depends on the other for survival or reproduction.
6
Question
How does mutualism differ from commensalism?
Page 3
Answer
Mutualism benefits both species (+/+), while commensalism benefits one with no effect on the other (+/0).
7
Question
Give an example of mutualism.
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Answer
Bee pollination of flowers: bees get nectar, flowers get pollinated.
8
Question
Give an example of commensalism.
Page 3
Answer
Barnacles on whales: barnacles gain mobility and feeding opportunities, whales unaffected.
9
Question
How does obligate mutualism differ from facultative mutualism?
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Answer
Obligate requires the partner for survival; facultative is beneficial but not essential.
10
Question
Give an example of obligate mutualism.
Page 3
Answer
Lichens: fungi provide structure and nutrients, algae provide photosynthesis; neither survives alone.
11
Question
What is an autotroph?
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Answer
An organism that produces its own food from inorganic substances, typically via photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.
12
Question
What is a heterotroph?
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Answer
An organism that obtains energy by consuming organic matter produced by autotrophs or other heterotrophs.
13
Question
What is a food web?
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Answer
A complex network of feeding interactions among species in an ecosystem.
14
Question
What is a food chain?
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Answer
A linear sequence of organisms where each is consumed by the next.
15
Question
What is a trophic level?
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Answer
A functional classification of organisms based on their primary energy source in the food web.
16
Question
What is top-down control?
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Answer
Regulation of community structure by consumers at higher trophic levels affecting lower levels.
17
Question
What is bottom-up control?
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Answer
Regulation where resource availability at lower trophic levels limits higher levels.
18
Question
What is an ecosystem engineer?
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Answer
A species that creates, modifies, or maintains habitats, affecting other species.
19
Question
What is a guild?
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Answer
A group of species that exploit the same class of environmental resources in a similar way.
20
Question
What is a keystone species?
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Answer
A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its community relative to its abundance.
21
Question
What are indirect effects in food webs?
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Answer
Impacts on one species mediated through effects on intermediate species.
22
Question
What is interaction strength?
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Answer
The magnitude of the effect that one species has on the population growth rate of another.
23
Question
What is resilience in ecosystems?
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Answer
The capacity of an ecosystem to absorb disturbances and maintain its structure and function.
24
Question
What is apparent competition?
Page 3
Answer
An indirect negative interaction between two prey species caused by a shared predator.
25
Question
Why are food webs central to ecology?
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Answer
Food webs reveal complex interactions, indirect effects, stability, and dynamics not captured by simple food chains.
26
Question
What occupies the producer level in an energy pyramid?
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Answer
Autotrophs such as plants and algae that convert solar energy into biomass.
27
Question
What are primary consumers in an energy pyramid?
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Answer
Herbivores that feed directly on producers.
28
Question
What are secondary consumers in an energy pyramid?
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Answer
Carnivores that feed on primary consumers.
29
Question
What are apex predators in an energy pyramid?
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Answer
Top-level carnivores with no predators of their own.
30
Question
How is interaction strength measured?
Page 3
Answer
Through experiments like species removals or additions, observing changes in the affected species' population.