Ecology Flashcards
(33 cards)
Community
a group of different species that live together in one area.
Ecosystem
includes all of the organisms as well as the climate, soil, water, rocks, and other nonliving things in a given area.
Ecosystems can vary in size.
Biome
A major regional or global community of organisms.
-usually characterized by the climate candidations and plant communities that thrive there
Organism
An organism is an individual living thing.
Population
A group of the same species that lives in one area.
Ecology
The study of the interactions among living things, and between living things and their surroundings.
Producers
Organisms that get their energy from non,iving resources, meaning they make their own food.
-also known as autotrophs
Consumers
Organisms that get their energy by eating other living or once-living resources, such as plants and animals.
-also called heterotrophs
Chemosynthesis
The process by which an organism forms carbohydrates using chemicals, rather than light, as an energy source.
Food chain
A sequence that links species by their feeding relationships. Rather than describe every potential relationship, this model chain only follows the connection between one producer and a single chain of consumers within an ecosystem.
Herbivores
Organisms that only eat plants.
Carnivores
Organisms that eat only animals.
Omnivores
Organisms that eat both plants and animals.
Détritivores
Organism that eat détruis, or dead organic matter.
Decomposers
Détritivores that break down organic matter into simpler compounds.
-important to the stability of an ecosystem because they return vital nutrients back into the environment.
Specialist
A consumer that primarily eats one specific organism or feeds on a very small number of organisms
-very sensitive to changes in the availability of prey
Generalist
Consumers that have a varying diet.
Trophic levels
The levels of nourishment in a food chain.
- Primary consumers are herbivores because they are the first consumer above the producer trophic level.
- Secondary consumers are carnivores that eat herbivores.
- Tertiary consumers are carnivores that eat secondary consumers.
Food web
A model that shows the complex network of feeding relationships and the flow of energy within and sometimes beyond an ecosystem.
Nitrogen fixation
The process when certain types of bacteria convert gaseous nitrogen into ammonia (NH3)
Biomass
Is a measure of the total dry mass of organisms in a given area.
Energy pyramid
A diagram that compares energy used by producers, primary consumers, and other trophic levels.
-illustrates how available energy is distributed among trophic levels in an ecosystem
Biotic
Factors are living things, such a as plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria. Each organism plays a particular role in enriching the soil
Abiotic
Factors are nonliving things such as moisture, temperature, wind, sunlight, and soil. The balance of these these factors determines which living things can survive in a particular environment.
