Bio 250 Ecology Cooper Exam 1

Ecology (1) - - interaction between organisms and their environment - typically describe the relationship between living organisms and their specific biome Ecology (2) - study of interactions that govern the distribution and abundance of organisms Ecology (3) - the scientific study of the interactions that determine the distribution and abundance of organisms 3 Important biological organizations - Ecosystems Communities Populations Environmental Science - focuses on human impacts on the biosphere Why study Ecology and Evolution? - 1. It enhances your life 2. It's not necessary for human survival 3. It's the major unifying theory in biology and has practical implications Ecosystems provide - food, water, air Threats to ecosystems - - disruption of biogeochemical cycles - species extinction - global warming, climate change - depletion of ozone layer - toxins practical implications of ecology and evolution - - conservation genetics - selective breeding and genetic modifications - rapid evolution of traits, such as antibiotic resistance Subdivisions of ecology - - Applied Ecology - Environmental Science applied ecology - application of ecology to management questions environmental science - - focuses on human impact made on the environment - describes the environment, interprets the impact of human actions on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and develops strategies for restoring ecosystems Ways humans impact cycles - - exotics - over harvesting - habitat loss - climate change antibiotic resistance - widespread resistance to pesticides among insects; the evolution of drug resistance in the agents of disease, from malaria to tuberculosis; the possibility that, say, the virus that causes bird flu will evolve into a form that spreads easily from person to person