Ecology Flashcards
Ecology
Is the scientific study of the interactions of organisms in the environment
Ecosystem
Community of organisms and their environment e.g. seashore ecosystem
Biosphere
The part of the Earth where organisms can live
Habitat
Part of an ecosystem where organisms can live
Population
All the members of the same species living in an area
Community
The different groups of organisms living in an ecosystem
Niche
The role of an organism in an ecosystem
Abiotic factors
Non-living features of the environment that affect the community e.g. aspect
Biotic factors
Living factors of the environment that affect the community e.g. food
Climatic factors
Refers to weather over a long period of time
Edaphic factors
Aspects of the soil that influence an ecosystem such as the soil pH
Producers
Autotroph’s that carry out photosynthesis
Consumers
Organisms that take in food from another organism
Herbivores
Animals that eat plants only
Carnivores
Animals that mainly eat other animals (meat eater)
Primary consumers
Organisms which feed directly on producers e.g. rabbits
Secondary consumer
Carnivores that feed on primary consumers e.g. fox
Tertiary consumers
Turn the forest of feed and secondary consumers e.g. badger
Food chain
Pathway along which energy is passed from one organism to another
Food web
The interconnection between two or more food chains
Trophic level
Feeding stage in a food chain
Pyramid of numbers
Diagram that shows the number of organisms at each trophic level
Inverted pyramid of numbers
A pyramid starting with a very small number of producers
Distorted pyramid of numbers
A pyramid skewed by large numbers of parasites as consumers
Distorted pyramid of numbers
A pyramid skewed by large numbers of parasites as consumers
Nutrient recycling
The way in which elements are exchanged between the living and nonliving components of an ecosystem
Nitrogen fixation
Conversion of nitrogen gas into ammonia or nitrate
Nitrification
Converting an ammonia into nitrates and then nitrates by nitrifying bacteria
Denitrification
Conversion of nitrates to nitrogen gas (carried out by denitrifying bacteria in the soil)
Pollution
The addition of anything harmful to the environment e.g. burning fossil fuels
Pollutants
Substances that cause the undesirable change to the environment
Conversion
The wise management of the environment and its resources
Competition
When organisms in an ecosystem struggle for a resource that is in short supply
Intra-specific competition
This takes place when members of the same species e.g. butter cups compete with each other for light
Contest competition
A physical confrontation between two organisms and only one can win the resources e.g. Robbins actively defend the territory for feeding
Scramble competition
A struggle for a resource in an ecosystem with all the organisms obtaining a small amount of resources e.g. seedlings competing for space around parent plants
Adaptions
Ways in which organisms are specialised either in structure or behaviour to survive competition
Predation
The killing, catching and eating of another animal
Parasite
Living organisms that feed on another living organism of a different species known as the host
Ectoparasites
Live on the body of the host
Symbiosis
When two organisms from different species live together at least one benefits
Mutualism
When two organisms from different species live together and both benefit e.g. clover and rhizobium
Saprophyte
Organism that feeds on dead for organisms called decomposers
Fauna
The animals in an Ecosystem
Flora
The plants in an ecosystem
Qualitative study
A study to find out the presence or absence of organisms in an ecosystem
Quantitative study
A study to find out the number of organisms that exist in an ecosystem
Quadrat
A square frame used in and quantitative study of plants
Transect
A line or path across a habitat along which plant species numbers are counted
Anemometer
A device used to measure wind speed
Decomposer
Microorganisms and other organisms that returned nutrients to the environment by death and decay
Eutrophication
When nutrients runs off from the land into a lake/river which causes the dense ground of plants in the water and the death of fish and other organisms
