Chapter 2,3 &4 Flashcards
The portion of the earth that supports life
Biosphere
The scientific study of interactions among organisms and their environments
Ecology
Non living part of an organisms environment
Abiotic factors
All the living organisms that inhabit an environment
Biotic factors
A group of organisms of one species that interbreed and live in the same place at the same time
Population
A collection of interacting populations
Community
Made up of the interactions among the populations in a community
Ecosystem
The place where an organism lives out its life
Habitat
The role and position a species has in it’s environment - how it meets its needs for food and shelter, how it survives, and how it reproduces
Niche
The relationship in which there is a close and permanent association among organisms of different species
Symbiosis
A symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other species is neither harmed not benefited
Commensalism
A symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit
Mutualism
A symbiotic relationship in which one organism derives benefit at the expense of the other
Parasitism
Organisms that use energy from the sun or energy stored in chemical compounds to manufacture their own nutrients
Autotrophs
Some animals do not kill for food; instead, they eat animals that have already died
Scavengers
Organisms that cannot make their own food and must feed on other organisms
Heterotrophs
Some organisms break down and absorb nutrients from dead organisms
Decomposers
A simple model that scientists use to show how matter and energy move through an ecosystem
Food chain
Each organism in a food chain represents a feeding step called a
Trophic level
The model they create expresses all the possible feeding relationships at each trophic level in a community
Food web
Environmental factors that affect an organisms ability to survive in it’s environment, such as food availability, predators, and temperature
Limiting factors
Orderly natural changes and species replacements that take place in the communities of an ecosystem
Succession
The colonization of new sites like these by communities of organisms
Primary succession
A stable, mature community that undergoes little or no change in species
Climax community
Refers to the sequence of community changes that takes place after a community is disrupted by natural disasters or human actions
Secondary succession
A large group of ecosystems that share the same type of climax community
Biome
The portion of the marine biome that is shallow enough for sunlight to penetrate
Photic Zone
Deeper water that never receives sunlight makes up the
Aphotic zone
A coastal body of water, partially surrounded by land, in which freshwater and saltwater mix
Estuary
The portion of the shoreline that lies between the high and low tide lines
Intertidal zone
Small organisms that live in waters of the photic zone
Plankton
A treeless land with long summer days and short periods of winter sunlight
Tundra
Underneath this topsoil is permanently frozen ground
Permafrost
Also called the northern coniferous forest, is a land of larch, fir, hemlock, and spruce trees
Taiga
Is an arid region with sparse to almost nonexistent plant life
Desert
Are large communities covered with grasses and similar small plants
Grasslands
Are dominated by broad leaves hard wood trees that lose their foliage annually
Temperate forests
Warm temperatures, wet weather, and lush plant growth
Tropical rain forests
Means that as a population gets larger, it also grows faster
Exponential growth
The number of organisms of one species that an environment can support
Carrying capacity
Include disease, competition, parasites, and food
Density dependent factors
Affect all populations, regardless of their density
Density independent factors
The study of human population growth characteristics
Demography
Can be visualized by the use of graphs and can help predict if a population is growing rapidly, growing slowly, or not growing at all
Age structure
Movement of individuals into a population
Immigration
Movement from a population
Emigration
