Ecosystems Flashcards
Ecosystem
all of the living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem as well as the interactions among them
Biotic factor
the living parts of an ecosystem
Abiotic factors
the nonliving parts of an ecosystem
Habitat
the place where an organism lives
Niche
an organism’s role in it’s environment
Species
a group of organisms that share most characteristics and can breed
with one another
Population
all the organisms of a species that live in the same place at the same time
Community
all the populations of organisms in an ecosystem
Photosynthesis
the process by which plants use the energy of sunlight to make their own food
Chemosynthesis
the process by which some marine organisms use the
energy stored in chemicals to make their own food
Consumer
An organism that cannot make its own food
Decomposer
an organism that gets its energy by breaking down the remains
of dead organisms and the wastes of living things
Tropic level
each feeding level in an ecosystem
Food chain
a series of organisms in which each feeds on the one at the next
lower level
Food web
a network of interconnected food chains in an ecosystem
