Semester exam vocabulary Flashcards
(35 cards)
Biomass
Renewable organic materials, such as wood, agricultural crops or wastes, and municipal wastes, especially when used as a source of fuel or energy
Logistic model
A statistical model, in epidemiology, a model of risk as a function of exposure to a risk factor
Pioneer species
Species which recolonize an area after there has been damage or disruption to the ecosystem. Usually hardy plants that need very little to survive
Carrying capacity
Greatest number of individuals a given environment can sustain
Secondary succession
A process started by an event example forest fire, that reduces an already established ecosystem to a smaller population of species, it occurs on pre-existing soil
The fire leaves behind empty but not destroyed soil
Commensalism
One organism benefits and there is no effect on the other
Mutualism
Both organisms benefit from the relationship
Parasitism
One organism benefits and the other is harmed
Producer
Any plant that manufactures food by photosynthesis
Green plants are producers
Biotic factor
All the living things that directly or indirectly affect the ecosystem
Abiotic factor
The nonliving parts of the environment such as rocks light or climate
What’s the difference between abiotic and biotic factors
Abiotic factors are the nonliving parts of the ecosystem and biotic factors are the living
Population
All the inhabitants of a particular town area or country
Primary succession
The development of plant and animal life in an area without topsoil, the development of biotic communities in a previously uninhabited and barren habitat with little or no soil
Population density
The number of people living per unit of an area example per square mile, the number of people relative to the space occupied by them
Decomposer
Decomposers break down dead organisms and make their materials available to other living things such as bacteria and fungi
Consumer
Consumers eat producers and/or other animals all animals are consumers
Biosphere
The part of the earth’s crust, waters, and atmosphere that supports life
Symbiosis
The living together of two dissimilar organisms, as in mutualism, commensalism, or parasitism
Trophic level
Any class of organisms that occupy the same position in a food chain, as primary consumers, secondary consumers, and tertiary consumers
Genetic diversity
The variety of genes within a species
Each species is made up of individuals that have their own particular genetic composition
Food chain
A series of organisms interrelated in there feeding habits, the smallest being fed upon by a larger one, which in turn feeds a still larger one, etc.
Limiting factors
An environmental factor that tends to limit population size
Migration
Process of moving of organisms from one place to another
