ecology and the environment Flashcards
population
all the organisms of one species living in a particular habitat at a certain time
community
all organisms of all species found in a particular area at a certain time
habitat
the place where an organism lives
ecosystem
community of living organisms together with their non-living environment
biotic factors
biological
- availability of food + competition
- predation
- parasitism
- disease
abiotic factors
physical and chemical
- climate e.g light intensity, temp, water availability
- hours of daylight
- soil conditions
- pollution
producers
organism that makes its own food
primary consumer
organism that feeds on producer
secondary consumer
organism that feeds on primary consumer
tertiary consumer
organism that feeds on secondary consumer
decomposers
organism that feeds by breaking down the dead remains of other organisms
why only 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to another
90% of the energy is lost because:
- some parts of the food are not eaten
- some parts are not digested and therefore not absorbed
- some of the materials absorbed form excretory products
- many of the materials are respired to release energy