Chap 4 Key Terms Flashcards
ecosystem
a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.
biotic factor
A biotic factor is a living organism that shapes its environment. In a freshwater ecosystem, examples might include aquatic plants, fish, amphibians, and algae.
abiotic factor
An abiotic factor is a non-living part of an ecosystem that shapes its environment.
organism
an individual animal, plant, or single-celled life form.
species
a group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding.
population
The current world population is 7.9 billion as of October 2021 according to the most recent United Nations estimates elaborated by Worldometer.
community
a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.
habitat
the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.
natural selection
the process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.
evolution
the process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the earth.
adaptation
the action or process of adapting or being adapted.
artificial selection
Selective breeding is the process by which humans use animal breeding and plant breeding to selectively develop particular phenotypic traits by choosing which typically animal or plant males and females will sexually reproduce and have offspring together.
resistance
the refusal to accept or comply with something; the attempt to prevent something by action or argument.
archaea
Archaea constitute a domain of single-celled organisms. These microorganisms lack cell nuclei and are therefore prokaryotes. Archaea were initially classified as bacteria, receiving the name archaebacteria, but this term has fallen out of use.
bacteria
a member of a large group of unicellular microorganisms which have cell walls but lack organelles and an organized nucleus, including some that can cause disease.
fungus
A fungus is a primitive organism. Mushrooms, mold and mildew are examples. Fungi live in air, in soil, on plants and in water. … Some fungi reproduce through tiny spores in the air. You can inhale the spores or they can land on you.
protists
a single-celled organism of the kingdom Protista, such as a protozoan or simple alga.
gymnosperm
a plant that has seeds unprotected by an ovary or fruit. Gymnosperms include the conifers, cycads, and ginkgo.
angiosperm
a plant that has flowers and produces seeds enclosed within a carpel. The angiosperms are a large group and include herbaceous plants, shrubs, grasses, and most trees.
invertebrate
an animal lacking a backbone, such as an arthropod, mollusk, annelid, coelenterate, etc. The invertebrates constitute an artificial division of the animal kingdom, comprising 95 percent of animal species and about 30 different phyla.
vertebrate
an animal of a large group distinguished by the possession of a backbone or spinal column, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fishes.
