4.1.1 Key Terms in Ecology

Question 1

What is a population defined as?

Answer 1

A population is defined as a group of organisms of the same species living in the same place at the same time

Question 2

What does a community include?

Answer 2

A community includes all of the populations living in the same area at the same time

• Within a community, each species depends on other species for food, shelter, pollination, seed dispersal etc
• If one species is removed it can affect the whole community
• This is called interdependence

Question 3

What is a habitat

Answer 3

A habitat is the place where an organism lives

• E.g. badgers, deer, oak trees and ants are all species that would live in a woodland habitat

Question 4

What is an eco-system defined as

Answer 4

An ecosystem is defined as all the biotic factors and all the abiotic factors that interact within an area at one time

Question 5

Biofactors include, what?

Answer 5

Biotic factors includes all the living components such as plants and animals

Question 6

Abiotic factors includes, what?

Answer 6

Abiotic factors includes all the non-living components such as light intensity, mineral ions, water availability

Question 7

Ecosystems can vary greatly in size and scale, give 2 examples

Answer 7

A small ecosystem might be a garden pond

A large ecosystem might be the whole of Antarctica