{"id":20014,"date":"2018-06-08T15:08:24","date_gmt":"2018-06-08T20:08:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/blog\/prep\/?p=20014"},"modified":"2024-04-19T22:23:31","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T22:23:31","slug":"ap-biology-notes-biodiversity-behavior-and-ecology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/ap-biology\/ap-biology-notes-biodiversity-behavior-and-ecology\/","title":{"rendered":"AP Biology Notes: Biodiversity, Behavior, and Ecology"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nThree Things to Know about Biodiversity: <\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. A phylogenetic tree is a diagram indicating evolutionary relationships between taxa of organisms. It depicts an ancestral species with other species branching off from it. More closely related taxa are nearer to one another in the diagram. Phylogenetic trees are intended to show ancestral connections between species and some include information about the timescale of species divergences.<\/li>\n
  2. A cladogram is typically a simplified version of a phylogenetic tree, which shows degrees of relatedness without necessarily offering information about the ancestral relationships between species or the timescale of divergences.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Phylogenetic trees and cladograms can show anagenetic evolutionary changes (which do not lead to speciation), as well as cladogenetic evolutionary changes (which do).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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    \nFive Things to Know about Behavior: <\/strong><\/p>\n

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    1. Behaviors in organisms are responses that are triggered by stimuli (internal and external), and the behaviors that promote reproduction and survival are favored by natural selection.<\/li>\n
    2. Innate behaviors are inherited and instinctive, whereas learned behaviors are acquired through interactions with the environment. The behaviors are not mutually exclusive.<\/span><\/li>\n
    3. Cooperation involves organisms working together for mutual benefits, while competition involves organisms contending with each other for limited resources.<\/span><\/li>\n
    4. Both environmental changes (such as deforestation and earthquakes) and invasive species (nonnative species introduced into an ecosystem) disrupt the balance of an ecosystem and affect the behavior of native populations.<\/span><\/li>\n
    5. Communication among organisms involves the transmission of signals to produce changes in behavior that are vital to reproductive success, natural selection, and evolution.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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      \nSix Things to Know about Ecology: <\/strong><\/p>\n

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      1. Populations with infinite resources increase exponentially in a J-shaped curve. Usually, the environment has a carrying capacity, the maximum number of individuals it will support. Factors affecting population size can be density-dependent (overcrowding) or density-independent (a storm wipes out part of a population).<\/li>\n
      2. Species that are r-selected have many offspring and provide almost no parental care (fish, insects). They succeed best in new habitats with many resources. K-selected species have few offspring and care for them for an extended period (elephants, humans). Those species do best in stable environments near carrying capacity.<\/span><\/li>\n
      3. A biome is a climatic zone with associated animals and vegetation (tundra, desert, etc.). An ecosystem comprises a community of living organisms and its habitat. Different populations of organisms make up the community. Each organism is adapted to a specific niche or role.<\/span><\/li>\n
      4. Food webs trace energy flow in a community. Different trophic levels consist of primary producers (plants), primary consumers (herbivores), secondary consumers (carnivores), and decomposers (bacteria).<\/span><\/li>\n
      5. Materials such as water, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus travel through the environment and are recycled in biogeochemical cycles involving different life forms.<\/span><\/li>\n
      6. Human activity has affected the environment significantly (e.g., ozone depletion, habitat destruction, and global warming).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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        Key Topics–Biodiversity, Behavior, and Ecology<\/h3>
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        \nRemember that the AP Biology exam tests you on the depth of your knowledge, not just your ability to recall facts. While we have provided brief definitions here, you will need to know these terms in even more depth for the AP Biology exam.
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        Biodiversity: Phylogenetic Trees<\/h4>
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