Ecology Flashcards
Ecology
The study of how organisms interact with their environment and eachother
Habitat
The place which an organism lives
Ecosystems
The interacting living and non living components of an environment
Biosphere
The part of the earth inhabited by living organisms
Environmental factors affecting living things
Biotic and abiotic
Biotic factors
The external influences on an organism by other living organisms
Abiotic factors
The external influences on an organism by the non living components of it’s environment
Examples of biotic factors
Food organisms, parasites, competition
Examples of abiotic factors
Edaphic ,climatic ,aquatic
Producer
An organism that makes its own food from inorganic material using photosynthesis or chemosynthesis
Consumer
An organism that cannot make its own food , but instead eats it ,heterotrophs
Energy flow and food(food chain)
Comes from the sun , photosynthesis , consumers eat and then get eaten by next
Food Chain
A series of species in which each one is food for the next
Trophic level
The position of an organism in the food chain
Pyramid of numbers
A chart showing the number of organisms at each tropic level in a food chain
Disadvantages of a pyramid of numbers
Don’t take size into account , amount of the organism isn’t taken accurately
Ecological niche
The functional role of the organism in the habitat or community
Ecological relationships
Competition , predation , symbiosis
Competition
When two organisms fight for a resource in scarce supply
Predation
Predator feeds on prey
Examples of symbiosis
Parasitism , commensalism ,mutualism
Ecological relationships
Factors that control population
Symbiosis
2 different species living together when at least one benefits
Parasitism
One organism benefits but one is harmed
