Chapter 5 Ecosystems Flashcards
What is an eco system
Made up of plants, animals and their surrounding physical environment including soil, rainwater and sunlight
Interrelationships link biotic and abiotic parts of the ecosystem - eg animals eating th plants (physical links) or mild acids in rainwater speeding up the Decay of leaves (chemical links)
What size is an Eco system
Any size ayy
Local - also called a habitat
Regional
Global
Earth
What are primary producers
Plants that use photosynthesis and take nutrients from the soul using their roots
What are primary consumers
Herbivores - cows or rabbits
What are secondary consumers
Carnivores- they feed on herbivores eg fox
What are tertiary consumers
Top carnivore - eat herbivores and carnivores
How are interrelationships shows between feeding groups
In a food chain - shows the weight of biomass getting smaller at each level
Have trophic levels - producers, primary consumers ….
What are decomposers
Organisms that over time break down dear organic matter
Include; scavengers such as insects that eat dead wood, detritivores such as bacteria
They help return nutrients to the soil by an organic substance called humus
What’s a nutrient cycle
Shows the energy transfers between litter, biomass and soil