ecosystems Flashcards
ecosystems
biological commnity of interacting and their physical enviroment
Biotic Factor
of, relating to, or resulting from living things, especially in their ecological relations.
“the preservation of biotic diversity”
Abiotic Factor
physical rather than biological; not derived from living organisms
Organisms
an individual animal, plant, or single-celled life form.
species
group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding.
Population
a particular section, group, or type of people or animals living in an area or country.
Community
a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.
Habitat
the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism
Natural Selection
the process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring
Evolution
he process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the earth.
Producer/ Autotrophs
an organism that is able to form nutritional organic substances from simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide.
Consumer/ Heterotrophs
an organism deriving its nutritional requirements from complex organic substances.
Primary Consumers
an example is a rabbit that eats grass. The next link in the chain is animals that eat herbivores
Secondary Consumers
snake eating rabbit
Tertitary Consumers
a carnivore at the topmost level in a food chain that feeds on other carnivores; an animal that feeds only on secondary consumers
Herbivors
an animal that feeds on plants.
Carnivor
animals that eats meat
Omnivors
Animals that eat both plants and animals
Decomposer
Breaks down dead things
Food Chain
a hierarchical series of organisms each dependent on the next as a source of food.
Food Web
food chains connected
Energy Pyramid
Energy flow in a community
Carbon Cycle
Process of Carbon compounds are interconverted in an environment
Nitrogen Cycle
process of nitrogen compounds are inerconverted in an environment and in living organisms
Phosphorus Cycle
the movement of phosphorus through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.
Ecological Succession
observed process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time.
Primary Succession
One out of two successions in plant life
Secondary Succession
observed process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time.
Pioneer Species
first to colonize previously disrupted or damaged ecosystems, beginning a chain of ecological succession that ultimately leads to a more biodiverse steady-state ecosystem.
Climax Community
a stable mature community in a successive series which has reached equilibrium after having evolved through stages and adapted to its environment
Ecosystems
Interacting organisms and their physical environment
