VOCABULARY Wk 21 Flashcards
abiotic factors
Nonliving components of environment.
biotic factors
All the living organisms that inhabit an environment
Ecosystem
A bioloterm-8gical community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.
habitat
the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.
coral reef
Important community of calcite skeletons built up by coral animals in warm, shallow ocean water.
kelp forest
Important coastal ocean community named for its dominant organism-kelp, a giant brown alga
Estuary
Important coastal habitat in which the fresh water of a river meets tterm-8he salt water of the ocean.
brackish
A mix of freshwater and seawater which commonly occurs in estuaries where a river enters the ocean
salt marshes
coastal ecosystems containing salt tolerant grasses and shrubs, that act like a filter for pollutants
Mangroves
coastal ecosystems inhabited by salt-tolerant trees and shrubs, that provides a coastal barrier for pollutants
Producer
An organism that can make its own food.
Consumer
An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms, plant or animal
Autotroph
An organism that makes its own food
Heterotroph
organism that obtains energy from the foods it consumes; also called a consumer
food chain
A series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten
