AP Bio Ecology Review

Front

What is Gross Primary Productivity (GPP)?

Back

Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) is the total amount of energy that producers convert to chemical energy in organic molecules per unit of time.

Front

What is Net Primary Productivity (NPP)?

Back

Net Primary Productivity (NPP) is the organic materials that remain after photosynthetic organisms in the ecosystem have used some of these compounds for their cellular energy needs (cellular respiration).

Front

What types of organisms are considered producers?

Back

Producers are autotrophs, which are organisms that can produce their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.

Front

Why are decomposers important in ecosystems?

Back

Decomposers are necessary because they recycle essential nutrients back to producers, enrich soil with nitrogen, and help keep ecosystems clean.

Front

What is carrying capacity (K) in an ecosystem?

Back

Carrying capacity (K) is the maximum population size of a species that an environment can sustain indefinitely without being degraded.

Front

What is the formula for population growth?

Back

The formula for population growth is: Growth = r * N * (1 - N/K), where r is the growth rate, N is the current population size, and K is the carrying capacity.

Front

Define autotrophs.

Back

Autotrophs are organisms that produce their own food from inorganic substances, typically through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.

Front

What role do heterotrophs play in an ecosystem?

Back

Heterotrophs are organisms that cannot produce their own food and must consume other organisms for energy.

Front

Explain the concept of ecological succession.

Back

Ecological succession is the process by which ecosystems change and develop over time, involving a series of stages from pioneer species to a mature ecosystem.

Front

What is the difference between primary and secondary succession?

Back

Primary succession occurs in lifeless areas where soil has not yet formed, while secondary succession occurs in areas where a disturbance has destroyed an existing ecosystem but soil remains.