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Principles of Ecology and the Scientific Method Study Guide

Explore the fundamental principles of ecology, including the scientific method, hypothesis testing, experimental design (laboratory, field, and natural experiments), and statistical analysis. Learn about population dynamics, factors influencing population size (births, deaths, immigration, emigration), and the application of mathematical models in ecological studies. Understand concepts like habitat, niche, and the biosphere.

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Introduction to Ecological Principles and Perspectives

Introduction to Ecological Principles and Interactions

Ecology is the science by which we study how organisms interact in and with the natural world and their environments.

  • Biodiversity
  • Patterns of abundance and distribution
  • Organism interactions
  • Competition
  • Predation
  • Parasitism
  • Mutualism
  • Commensalism
  • Amensalism
  • Neutralism
  • Sub-disciplines of ecology
  • Spatial scale
  • Temporal scale
  • Nested hierarchy

Levels and Perspectives of Ecological Systems

Ecological systems range from the organism to the biosphere, involving different scales of approach and perspectives of ecologists.

  • Organism
  • Population
  • Community
  • Ecosystem
  • Biosphere
  • Scale of approach
  • Organism approach
  • Population approach
  • Community approach
  • Ecosystem approach
  • Biosphere approach
  • Energy and materials movements
  • Global circulation of matter and energy

Kinds of Organisms and Ecological Roles

Characteristics of ecosystems depend on varied forms of life including plants, animals, fungi, protists, and bacteria.

  • plants
  • animals
  • fungi
  • protists
  • bacteria
  • decomposers
  • photosynthetic organisms
  • symbioses
  • nitrogen fixation
  • chemoautotrophic production
  • metabolism under anaerobic conditions

Defining and Identifying Various Habitats

Defining Organism Habitats and Physical Settings

A habitat is a place or physical setting in which an organism lives, characterized by conspicuous physical features and dominant plant or animal life.

  • Habitat
  • Physical features
  • Dominant plant life
  • Dominant animal life
  • Sand dune habitat
  • Hot desert
  • Cold desert
  • Alpine tundra
  • Moorland
  • Beech–Maple Forest
  • Ancient Oak Forest
  • Treefall gap microhabitat
  • Freshwater Marsh

Ecological Principles, Variation, and Scientific Methods

Ecological Niches and Spatiotemporal Variation

An exploration of the ecological role of an organism and the temporal and spatial components of variation in nature.

  • Niche
  • Ecological role
  • Temporal variation
  • Spatial variation
  • Predictable cyclic variations
  • Unpredictable irregular variations
  • Scale of variation

Physical and Biological Principles of Ecology

Ecological systems are physical entities in dynamic steady states that undergo evolutionary change and require expenditure of energy.

  • Ecological systems
  • Dynamic steady states
  • Scientific method
  • Hypothesis
  • Prediction
  • Observation
  • Experiment
  • Induction
  • Deduction
  • Variables
  • Controls

Ecological Experiments and Population Models

Ecologists employ the scientific method to study relationships of organisms to one another and their surroundings through experiments and mathematical models.

  • Hypothesis testing
  • Null hypothesis
  • Control treatment
  • Replication
  • Randomization
  • Probability theory
  • Statistical significance
  • Laboratory experiments
  • Field experiments
  • Natural experiments
  • Microcosms
  • Mathematical models
  • Population size
  • Births
  • Deaths
  • Immigration
  • Emigration
  • Niche
  • Biosphere

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