Interactions In The Ecosystem Flashcards
(9 cards)
What is parasitism?
Parasitism is when one organism benefits from the relationship and the other is harmed. Eg: fleas and lice living on the skin of animals and humans, tapeworms living in the digestive system of animals
What is mutualism?
When 2 organisms live closely together and both benefit. Eg: bees and flowers, clownfish and sea anemones
What is commensalism
When one organism benefits from another while another organism is neither harmed nor benefited. Eg: Remora fish and sharks, barnacles on whales, birds nesting on trees.
What is a food chain?
A diagram that shows how food energy moves from one organism to another in a givers environment
What is a food web?
A system on interlocking and independent food chains
What is an example of a food chain?
Carrots->rabbits->foxes
Grass->mouse->owls
Grass->grasshoppers->birds->owls
What is a decomposer?
Organisms that break down dead or decaying matter. In doing so, they carry out the natural process of decomposition. Eg: fungi, worms, bacteria
What is a detrivore?
An organism that feeds on and breaks down dead plant or animal matter, returning essential nutrients back to the ecosystem. Includes micro-organisms such as bacteria as well as larger organisms such as fungi, insects and worms.
Why is nutrient cycling so important?
It is vital for maintaining a balanced and functional ecosystem. It makes sure that essential nutrients(eg:carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus) are continuously available to living organisms.
