ecology vocab Flashcards
Abiotic Factors
a nonliving condition or thing, as climate or habitat
Autotrophs
an organism that is able to form nutritional organic substances from simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide.
Biotic Factors
he living components (organisms) that shape up the environment.
Bioaccumulation
an increase in the concentration of a chemical over time in a biological organism compared to the chemical’s concentration in the environment.
Carbon Sink
anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases
Carnivore
an animal that feeds on flesh.
Commensalism
two organisms in which one benefits and the other derives neither benefit nor harm.
Competition
the activity or condition of competing.
Consumer
an organism that cannot produce its own food and must eat other plants and/or animals to get energy.
Decomposer
feeds on and breaks down dead plant or animal matter
Ecosystem
a community of living organisms (plants, animals and microbes) in a particular area.
Energy Pyramid
a model that shows the flow of energy from one trophic to the next in an ecosystem
Food Chain
a series of organisms that eat one another so that energy and nutrients flow from one to the next.
Food Web
consists of all the food chains in a single ecosystem.
Habitat
the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.
Herbivore
an animal that feeds on plants.
Heterotrophs
an organism that eats other plants or animals
Leaching
a natural process where substances are dissolved and removed from a solid by a solution, which is later extracted or deposited.
Limiting Factor
nything that constrains a population’s size and slows or stops it from growing.
Mutualism
two different species in which each benefits.
Niche
the role an organism plays in a community
Ocean Acidification
a change in the properties of ocean water that can be harmful for plants and animals.
Omnivore
an animal that eats both plant and animals
Parasitism
one organism is harmed while the other benefits
