Ecosystems Flashcards
Science and technology contribute to finding solutions to conserving and managing sustainable ecosystems
food chain
a simple representation of the pathway of energy through organisms.
food web
A network of feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem
ecosystem
All the living and nonliving things that interact with one another in an area.
environment
The living and non-living components that surround an organism.
habitat
The part of an ecosystem in which an organism lives.
consumer
An organism that eats other organisms.
producer
An organism that makes its own food
decomposer
An organism that obtains food energy by breaking down the remains of dead plants
and animals
ecology
The study of the relationships of living organisms to their environment.
microorganism
A microorganism is any living organism like bacteria, protozoa, or even fungi that
cannot be seen with the naked eye.
beneficial
Something that is helpful
harmful
causing or likely to cause harm
The term ——— is used to describe a group of organisms of various species interacting with each other and their abiotic environment.
ecosystem
Biotic
the living components
abiotic
the non-living components
Changes to the ———————————-, species diversity and population numbers can disrupt these links, often with cascading effects that affect the whole ecosystem known as the trophic cascade.
environment
The more diversity that exists in an ecosystem, the more — it is.
robust
This is because a consequence of biodiversity is — ——————– in the ecosystem and this means there is a lower chance of one event impacting other links in the ecosystem.
more links
——– ——– ecosystems are more likely to collapse due to major events like extinction or natural disaster as the loss of one link can impact the rest of the ecosystem more significantly.
less complex
A microorganism, also known as a ——, is a tiny, living organism that can only be seen through a microscope.
microbe
Microbes can be ————— or multicellular, and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
unicellular
Examples of microorganisms include ———————————————————————–.
bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, and algae.
Microorganisms——————————————————-, including decomposing dead matter, producing food and oxygen and regulating nutrient cycles.
play important roles in the ecosystem
However, some microorganisms can also ———————- in humans, animals, and plants.
cause disease
