Chapter 55 Vocabulary Flashcards
Law of conservation of mass
Matter, like energy, cannot be created or destroyed
Ecosystem
The sum of all the organisms in a given area and the abiotic factors with which they interact
Primary producers
The trophic level that ultimately supports all others consists of the autotrophs
Primary consumers
Herbivores, which war plants and other primary producers
Secondary consumers
Carnivores that eat herbivores
Tertiary consumers
Carnivores that eat other carnivores and herbivores. Called omnivores too
Detritivores
A group of heterotrophs also known as decomposers, get their nutrients from detritus
Decomposes
Get their energy from detritus
Detritus
Nonliving organic material, such as the remains of dead organisms, feces, fallen leaves, and wood
Primary production
In most ecosystems, the amount of light energy converted to chemical energy-in the form of organic compounds - by autotrophs during a given time period
1 Joule
0.293cal
Gross primary productions (GPP)
The amount of energy from light (or chemicals, in chemoautotrophic systems) converted to chemical energy of organic molecules per unit time
Net primary production (NPP)
Equal to gross primary production minus the energy used by the primary producers for their “autotrophic respiration”
Standing crop
Total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs present
Net ecosystem production (NEP)
A measure of total biomass accumulation during a given period of time
