Chapter 3 & 4 Vocabulary - Ella Callaci - C. Vu - HADV Bio - 2
Community
A group of different populations that live together in a defined area
Biome
A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms
Population
A group of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area
Species
A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring
Ecosystem
All the organisms that live in a place, together with their nonliving environment
Scavengers
Animals that consume the carcasses of other animals
Biotic factor
Any living part of the environment with which an organism might interact
Habitiat
Area where an organism lives, including the biotic and abiotic factors that affect it
Nutrients
Chemical substances that an organism needs to sustain life
Trophic level
Each step in a food chain or food web
Niche
Full range of physical and biological conditions in which an organism lives and the way in which the organism uses those conditions
Ecological pyramids
Illustration of the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level in a given food chain or food web
Predation
Interaction in which one organism (the predator) captures and feeds on another organism (the prey)
Food web
Network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem
Decomposers
Organisms that break down and obtain energy from dead organic matter
Detritivores
Organisms that feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter
Consumers
Organisms that rely on other organisms for its energy and food supply; also called a heterotroph
Biosphere
Part of Earth in which life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere
Phytoplankton
Photosynthetic algae found near the surface of the ocean
Abiotic factor
Physical, or nonliving, factor that shapes an ecosystem
Competitive exclusion principle
Principle that states that no two species can occupy the same niche in the same habitat at the same time
Denitrification
Process by which bacteria convert nitrates into nitrogen gas
Chemosynthesis
Process in which chemical energy is used to produce carbohydrates
Biogeochemical cycles
Process in which elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another
Nitrogen fixation
Process of converting nitrogen gas into nitrogen compounds that plants can absorb and use
Symbiosis
Relationship in which two species live close together
Ecology
Scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment
Food Chain
Series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten
Limiting nutrient
Single essential nutrient that limits productivity in an ecosystem
Keystone species
Single species that is not usually abundant in a community yet exerts strong control on the structure of a community
Zooplankton
Small free-floating animals that form part of plankton
Mutualism
Symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the relationship
Commensalism
Symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed
Parasitism
Symbiotic relationship in which one organism lives on or inside another organism and harms it
Primary producers
The first producers of energy-rich compounds that are later used by other organisms
Biomass
Total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level