Ecology Terms Gr.9 Flashcards
Sustainability
The ability to maintain or support a process continuously over time.
Sustainable
Able to be maintained at a certain rate or level.
Non-sustainable
Not able to be maintained at a certain rate or level.
Ecology
The study of the relationships between living organisms, and their physical environment.
Biotic
The living parts of a habitat.
Examples: Fish, plants, bacteria
Abiotic
The non-living parts of a habitat.
Examples: pH level, oxygen levels, water
Community
Interacting organisms in a habitat.
Niche
The role of a species or organism within its environment.
Organism
Any living thing that functions as an individual.
Ecosystem
A collection of living and non-living things interacting in a specific place.
Ecosystem Ecology
Who’s eating who, and how energy, nutrients, and other materials are getting shuffled around within the system.
Biomass
The total weight of living things in an ecosystem.
Sun
The source of most energy on Earth.
Primary Producers
Organisms that use light energy from the sun and make chemical energy through photosynthesis.
Example: Trees
Primary Consumers
Organisms that eat plants (herbivores.)
Example: Sheep
Bioaccumulation
The gradual accumulation of substances, such as pesticides or other chemicals, in an organism.
Photosynthesis
The process of which green plants and other organisms transform light energy into chemical energy.
Natural Resources
Materials created in nature that are used and usable by humans.
Examples: Soil, water, air
Greenhouse Gases
Gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets such as the Earth because they are trapped.
Fossil Fuels
A natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.
Algae
A nonflowering, aquatic plant that usually grows in large groups. Algae contain chlorophyll but lack stems, roots, and leaves.
Autotroph
Organisms that can produce their own food from sunlight and basic nutrients.
Heterotroph
Organisms that cannot produce their own food and must obtain food from autotrophs or other heterotrophs.
Detritivores
Organisms that decompose dead plant and animal matter.
Example: Worms
