1. the variety of species and life in the world or in a particular ecosystem
2. species
2.1. a group of organisms that are closely related to each other and usually able to breed with each other and produces viable offspring
2.2. population
2.2.1. a collection of the same species living in a given area
2.2.2. they all have similar things in common
2.2.2.1. genetic makeup
2.2.2.2. responses to the enviromnet
2.2.2.3. physical traits
2.2.3. population size control factors
2.2.3.1. exponential growth
2.2.3.1.1. rapid population growth occurs when environmental conditions allow for a constant ratio in the increase of individuals over time, resulting in population growth proportional to population size
2.2.3.1.2. can happen very quickly under the correct circumstances
2.2.3.2. carrying compacity
2.2.3.2.1. the maximum number of individuals of a species that a habitat can sustainably support
2.2.3.2.2. there will be a population crash if the carrying capacity goes too high
2.2.4. biotic potential
2.2.4.1. r-strategists
2.2.4.1.1. rapid reproductive growth rate
2.2.4.1.2. most offspring will not survive very long
2.2.4.1.3. exploit resources for short times in unstable environments
2.2.4.1.4. weedy/opportunistic species
2.2.4.2. k-strategists
2.2.4.2.1. "carrying compacity"
2.2.4.2.2. reproduce in much lower numbers but the offspring survive longer
2.2.4.2.3. large organisms with long life spans
2.2.4.2.4. live in more stable environments
2.3. community
2.3.1. populations of different species living and interacting in a particular place
2.3.2. wolves and bison as predator-prey community interactions
2.4. types of interactions
2.4.1. competition
2.4.1.1. occurs when one individual reduces for others the availability of the resource
2.4.1.1.1. food
2.4.1.1.2. water
2.4.1.1.3. potential mates
2.4.1.1.4. living space
2.4.1.2. mostly scene when there are not enough resources for each individual's needs in the population
2.4.1.3. typically occurs without direct contact
2.4.1.4. exposition contact
2.4.1.4.1. when two species draw from the same total number of resources available
2.4.1.5. interspecific competition
2.4.1.5.1. occurs when individuals of DIFFERENT species are each working to obtain something necessary for survival
2.4.1.6. intraspecific competition
2.4.1.6.1. occurs between individuals of the SAME species to obtain something necessary for survival
2.4.2. predation
2.4.2.1. where one organism, called the predator, feed on another known as the prey
2.4.2.2. wolves preying on moose
2.4.2.3. cows eating grass
2.4.3. parasitic relationship
2.4.3.1. where one organism lives off a host organism without immediately killing it
2.4.3.2. ticks on your family dog
2.4.4. symbiotic relationships
2.4.4.1. commensailism
2.4.4.1.1. one organism benefits from the relationship, while the other is unharmed
2.4.4.1.2. smaller animals that hitch rides with larger animals
2.4.4.2. mulutalism
2.4.4.2.1. a relationship where both organisms benefit from the interaction
2.4.4.2.2. pollinators and flowers
2.4.5. ecological niche
2.4.5.1. the particular role an organism has in its community
2.4.6. coevolution
2.4.6.1. where two species evolve together, and the adaptations of one species cause a second species to adapt as well
2.4.6.2. "evolutionary arms race"
2.5. convergence
2.5.1. when unrelated species resemble one another because of evolution under similar environmental conditions
3. environment
3.1. the multitude of living and nonliving things on Earth that sustain life including our own
3.2. biosphere
3.2.1. the entirety of the regions of Earth occupided by living things
3.2.2. all of the world's ecosystems together
3.3. biomes
3.3.1. a particular region of Earth that has certain distinctive types of climate, organisms, vegetation, and overall ecosystem
3.3.2. same organization principles apply to freshwater and saltwater bodies
3.4. ecosystem
3.4.1. a community of life and the physical environment with which it interacts
3.4.2. ecosystem diversity
3.4.2.1. dominance
3.4.2.1.1. the opposite of diversity
3.4.2.1.2. when a single of small number of species is far more abundant than other species
3.4.2.2. species richness
3.4.2.2.1. the number of the different kinds of species in an area
3.4.2.2.2. tress: pine, oak, birch
3.4.2.3. species evenness
3.4.2.3.1. a measure of the relative abundance of each species in a certain area
3.5. habitat
3.5.1. the place an organism inhabits
4. loss of bioidiversity
4.1. extinction
4.1.1. when the last member of a species dies out
4.2. biodiversity hotspots
4.2.1. places on Earth where a large number of species are particularly vulnerable to extinction
4.2.2. contains a large number of endemic species
4.2.2.1. species that specialize in a particular set of environmental conditions that effectively restrict their location to a single place where these conditions exist
4.3. keystone species
4.3.1. species that exhibit a particularly strong influence over the abundance and diversity of other organisms in their ecosystem
4.3.2. the loss of this species can result in the loss of a lot of other species
5. an organism's basic unit of inheritance between a parent and its offspring
6. evolution
6.1. the process of genetic change in populations over generations
6.2. Charles Darwin
6.2.1. created the theory of evolution
6.3. reproductive isolation
6.3.1. the inability of population to successfully interbreed, due to factors such as geographic isolation, which can lead to an evolutionary divergence into distinct species
6.4. depends on the organism's environment
6.5. traits are passed down through reproduction
6.6. natural selection
6.6.1. gives the organism a better chance of survival
6.6.2. favorable traits will be passed on
6.6.3. non-favorable traits will die out
6.7. adaptive radiation
6.7.1. process where over many generations, the species diversifies, which produces a variety of new species adapted to specific conditions, or niches, of an ecosystem
6.8. misconceptions about evolution
6.8.1. evolution = progress
6.8.2. individuals can evolve
6.8.3. organisms are trying to adapt
6.8.4. only the fittest individuals survive
6.8.5. evolution takes a long time, so humans do not have an impact
6.9. speciation
6.9.1. subsets of a population are apart long enough their DNA is no longer similar and no longer produce fertile offspring when they breed
6.10. extinction
6.10.1. occurs when a species is unable to adapt to its environment
6.10.2. a complete and permanent loss of that particular species
7. genes
7.1. determines the organism's traits
7.2. composed of DNA
7.2.1. deoxyribonucleic acid
7.3. in all cells
7.4. determines performance of the cell's functions
7.5. instructions for building the cell's structure
7.6. genetic info is exchanged through breeding
7.7. alleles
7.7.1. alternate form of a gene
7.7.2. come from each parent
7.8. phenotypes
7.9. mutations
7.9.1. random changes to DNA that can produce an altered trait in an organism
7.9.1.1. fundamental source of new genetic material
7.9.1.2. caused by outside agents
7.9.1.3. can be harmful, neutral, or helpful
7.10. genetic diversity
7.10.1. DNA of any two humans on Earth is about 99.9% identical
7.10.2. the number of different kinds of genetic characteristics present within a population or species
7.10.3. populations with low genetic diversity will have the most share characteristics
7.10.3.1. individuals will differ less
7.11. gene flow
7.11.1. a genetic transfer process where genetic differences between populations decrease
7.11.1.1. increases genetic diversity in the overall population
7.11.1.2. decreases the genetic diversity among individuals
7.12. interbreeding
7.12.1. breeding between closely related individuals, often occurring when populations are small
7.12.1.1. physical traits that come from genes
7.12.1.2. decreases genetic diversity
7.12.1.3. increases reproductive failure
7.12.1.4. increase diseases in offspring
7.13. outbreeding
7.13.1. breeding that among individuals that cause the offspring to be more diverse
7.13.1.1. creates new genetic combonations
7.13.1.2. makes offspring more genetically diverse
7.14. genetic drift
7.14.1. a change in frequency of a trait within the gene pool of a population caused by chance
7.14.2. the impact depends on the population size
7.14.2.1. bigger the population=bigger the impact