Unit 2- Chapters 13, 14, 15, and 16 Flashcards
vocab and key ideas (104 cards)
ecology
the study of interactions among living things and between living things and their surroundings
levels of organization
organism, population, community, ecosystem, biome
community
a group of different species that live together in on area
ecosystem
includes all of the organisms as well as climate, soil, water, rocks, and other nonliving things in a given area
biome
a major regional or global community of organisms
biotic factors
living things (plants, animals, fungi, bacteria
abiotic
nonliving things (soil, temperature, moisture, wind, sunlight)
biodiversity
the assortment of living things in an ecosystem
keystone species
a species that has an unusually large effect on its ecosystem
producer
organisms that get their energy from nonliving resources
same as autotrophs
autotrophs
organisms that get their energy from nonliving resources
same as producers
consumers
organisms that get their energy by eating other living or once-living resources
same as heterotrophs
heterotrophs
organisms that get their energy by eating other living or once-living resources
same as consumers
chemosynthesis
process by which an organism forms carbohydrates using chemicals, rather than light, as an energy source
food chain
a sequence that links species by their feeding relationships
herbivores
eat only plants
carnivores
eat only animals
omnivores
eat plants and animals
detritivores
organisms that eat dead organic matter
decomposers
detritivores that break down organic matter into simpler compounds
five types of consumers
herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, detritivores, decomposers
specialist
is a consumer that primarily eats one specific organism or a very small number
generalist
consumers that have a varying diet
trophic levels
levels of nourishment in a food chain
show energy flow