Ch 23 Practice Flashcards
Organisms that undergo photosynthesis make food which other organisms consume; a photosynthetic organism is a _____.
Producer
In the carbon cycle, organisms return carbon dioxide to the atmosphere through the process of cellular ______.
Respiration
Food chains generally consist of only three or four steps due to the loss of ______ between trophic levels.
Energy
A heterotroph that breaks down organic matter into inorganic nutrients that are recycled in the environment is called a ______.
Decomposer
Nitrogen can be a nutrient that limits growth in an ecosystem because the plentiful nitrogen in the atmosphere is:
In a form that is unusable to most organisms
An organism that cannot synthesize organic compounds from inorganic substances and therefore must consume organic food is called a(n) ______, or consumer.
Heterotrophs
______ are underground rock layers that hold water and are recharged by seepage from rain or melting snow.
Aquifers
What factors determine an organism’s niche in an ecosystem?
- How an organism gets its food
- What an organism eats
- How the organism interacts with other populations in the same community
A(n) ______ is an organism that can use energy and inorganic nutrients to produce organic nutrients.
Autotroph
Phosphates are required by organisms to build which of the following molecules?
- ATP
- Phospholipids
- Nucleic acids
The air, land, and water that contains living organisms on Earth is called the
Biosphere
IN aquatic ecosystems, the exchange of carbon dioxide with the atmosphere is indirect because carbon dioxide from the atmosphere enters the water as ______ ions.
Bicarbonate
Tertiary consumers can also be called top
Predators
1st trophic level
Trees
2nd trophic level
Herbivores/primary consumers
