Ecology Flashcards
ecology
the study of how living things interact with each other and their environment
environment
every living and nonliving thing that surrounds an organism
ecosystem
all the living and nonliving things that interact in a specific area; a subdivision of the environment
biotic
living parts of the environment
abiotic
nonliving parts of the environment
habitat
place where a plant or animal lives
population
all the individuals of a single species that live in a specific area
community
combination of all the different populations that live and interact in the same environment
biosphere
All of Earth’s ecosystems, collectively; the biologically inhabited portions of Earth, including all of the water, land, and air in which organisms survive
competition
the struggle between organisms for the same limited resources in a particular area
limiting factors
any factor in the environment that limits the size of a population
predator
an animal that hunts and kills other animals for food
prey
an animal that is hunted and killed by predators
carrying capacity
the largest population of any single species that an area an support
ecological niche
the specific role played by an organism or a population of organisms on the ecosystem
food chain
a representation that identifies the specific relationships among organisms
autotroph
an organism that produces its own food; the source of energy for all other living things on earth (starts with an A)
producer
an organism that makes its own food from light energy and inorganic materials (starts with p)
heterotroph
an organism that cannot make its own food; a consumer
herbivore
an organism that eats only plants
carnivore
an organism that survives by eating animals
decomposer
an organism, generally a bacteria or fungus, that consumes dead organisms and organic waste
scavenger
a carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms
parasite
an organism that survives by living and feeding on other organisms
host
the organism in a parasitic relationship that provides the home and/ or food for the parasite
food webs
a representation of many interconnected food chains that shows the feeding relationships among producers, consumers, and decomposers
energy pyramid
a diagram showing how food energy moves through the ecosystem
biodiversity
the variety of species in an area
ecological succession
the process by which an existing community is replaced by another community
consumer
an organism that obtains its energy from producers
