Ecosystem Services (College Board AP® Environmental Science): Flashcards
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Define ecosystem services.
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Cards in this collection (14)
Define ecosystem services.
Ecosystem services are the benefits that ecosystems provide to humans and the environment.
What are the four main categories of ecosystem services?
The four main categories of ecosystem services are supporting, regulating, provisioning, and cultural services.
Define provisioning services.
Provisioning services are the products or goods that humans obtain directly from ecosystems, such as food, fibers, fuel, fresh water, timber, and medicinal resources.
Cultural services are the benefits that come from humans interacting with nature, such as recreation, education, and spiritual significance.
Cultural services are the non-material benefits that come from humans interacting with nature, such as recreation, education, and spiritual significance.
Define regulating services.
Regulating services are the natural processes that regulate the environment, shaping and stabilizing ecosystems.
True or False?
Pollination is an example of a provisioning service.
False.
Pollination is a regulating service, like climate regulation, flood regulation, and erosion control.
Which category of ecosystem services includes soil formation and nutrient cycling?
Soil formation and nutrient cycling are supporting services, the fundamental processes that sustain ecosystems.
How does deforestation contribute to climate change?
Deforestation reduces carbon sequestration, which increases greenhouse gas levels and contributes to climate change.
How does urbanization reduce habitat diversity?
Urbanization reduces habitat diversity because expanding cities replace natural habitats with human-made infrastructure.
Runoff of fertilizers from intensive farms causes in water bodies, disrupting aquatic ecosystems.
Runoff of fertilizers from intensive farms causes eutrophication in water bodies, disrupting aquatic ecosystems.
True or False?
Disrupting ecosystem services has ecological consequences but no economic consequences.
False.
Loss of provisioning services reduces food, water, and raw materials, which impacts livelihoods and economies, and damaged ecosystems also reduce tourism and recreation.
How does deforestation affect the regulating service of flood control?
Deforestation reduces the natural flood control that forests provide, leading to more severe floods.
Why does removing mangroves make inland ecosystems less able to recover from storm surges?
Mangroves act as natural barriers that protect inland habitats from flooding and erosion, so removing them leaves inland ecosystems exposed.
True or False?
Degraded ecosystems always recover their services within a few years.
False.
Degraded ecosystems may take decades or longer to recover, and some losses of ecosystem services may be irreversible.
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