Chapter 14 Vocabulary Flashcards
Biotic
A living thing in an ecosystem
Abiotic
A non living physical or chemical part of an ecosystem
Condensation
The changing of gas into liquid or solid
Precipitation
Water that falls to Earths surface
Evaporation
Water that returns to the atmosphere when heated, changing back into vapor
Respiration
Animals release water vapor when they breathe
Transpiration
Plants release water vapor
Photosynthesis
The process by which green plants and other producers use simple compounds and energy from light to make sugar, an energy-rich compound
Carbon Cycle
The continuous movement of carbon through Earth, its atmosphere, and the living things on Earth
Fossil Fuels
Only combustible organic material in oil, coal, or natural gas, derived from the remains of former life
Nitrogen cycle
The continuous movement of nitrogen through Earth, its atmosphere, and living things on earth
Comes down to Earth as lightning
Producer
An organism that captures energy from sunlight and transforms it into chemical energy that is stored in energy-rich carbon compounds. Producers are a source of food other organisms
Consumer
A living thing that gets its energy by eating other living things in a food chain; consumers are also called heterotrophs
Decomposer
An organism that feeds on and breaks down dead plant or animal matter
Food web
A model to show a feeding relationship in which many food chains overlap in an ecosystem
Food chain
A model used to show the feeding relationships between a single producer and a chain of consumers in an ecosystem. In a typical food chain, a plant is eaten by a consumer, which can be an insect, then the insect is eaten by the second consumer which can be a bird
Energy pyramid
A model used to show the amount of energy available to living things in ecosystem
Biomes
A region of Earth that has a particular climate and certain types of plants and animals
Ex. Tundra, taiga, temperate, tropical forest, dessert, grassland
Deciduous
A term used to describe trees and shrubs that drop their leaves when winter comes
Coniferous
A term used to describe cone-bearing trees and shrubs that usually keep their leaves or needles during all the seasons of the year
Estuary
The lower end of a river where it meets the ocean and fresh and salt water mix
