Chapter 14 Flashcards
The study of all of nonliving and living things in an environment and their interactions
Ecology
Scientific word to describe a particular environment and all the living things that are supported by it
Ecosystem
A mixture of rocks minerals and decaying organisms
Soil
A series of events that happen over and over again
Cycle
Continuous circling of water from the Earth to the atmosphere and back again
Water Cycle
Cycling of oxygen and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, to the Earth, to the organisms on it
Oxygen / Carbon Cycle
Cycling of Nitrogen from the atmosphere to the soil and the organisms on earth
Nitrogen Cycle
source of food for all things in an ecosystem
Producer
organism that cannot make its own food and must get it from producers or by eating other consumers
Consumer
Consumer that eats plants
Herbivore
Consumer that eats meat
Carnivore
Concumer that eats dead organisms
Scavenger
Consumer that eats both plants and animals
Omnivore
Organism break down dead organisms into simpler substances
Decomposer
describes the feeding relationship between a producer and a single chain of consumers in an ecosystem.
Food Chain
Overlapping food chains for many organisms in an ecosystem
Food Web
Diagram that shows how energy is lost as you move along a food chain
Energy Pyramid
large geographic area that has similar climate and similar types of plants and animals
Biome
Cold and dry biome nearest the Arctic
Tundra
Biome characterized by conifers or cone bearing trees such as firs, spruce, and pines.
Taiga
get their name from the dominant vegetation in the biome, grasses
Grassland
biome is an area that receives less than 25 centimeters of rainfall a year
Desert
Biome found in tropical climates getting at least 200 centimeters of rain a year.
Tropical Rainforest
Biome made of trees that shed their leaves in the fall and grow them back in the spring.
Deciduous Forest
This includes lakes, ponds, streams, and rivers.
Freshwater Biomes
places where freshwater and saltwater meet.
Estuary
(ocean biome)- This is the largest biome covering 70% of the earth’s surface.
Marine Biome
microscopic plants- live near the low tide line. They are the producers in the ocean.
Phytoplankton
