Ecosystems Flashcards
(13 cards)
What is an ecosystem?
A community of organisms and the abiotic environment they interact with
What is a niche?
The role and position a species has in its environment.
What is the flow of energy through ecosystems?
Sunlight → producers → consumers → decomposers.
What is biomass?
Total mass of living material at each trophic level.
What is primary productivity?
Rate at which producers convert light energy to biomass.
What is succession?
The directional change in a community over time.
What is a climax community?
Final stable community in succession.
What are decomposers?
Break down dead matter into simpler compounds.
What is the role of nitrogen-fixing bacteria?
Convert nitrogen gas into ammonia.
What is ammonification?
Conversion of organic nitrogen to ammonia by decomposers.
What is nitrification?
Ammonia to nitrites then to nitrates by nitrifying bacteria.
What is denitrification?
Conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas by anaerobic bacteria.
What is the carbon cycle?
Cycle by which carbon moves through biotic and abiotic systems.
