Ecosystems Flashcards
Energy pyramid
A energy pyramid is a ecological pyramid is a graphical representation designed to show the biomass or bioproductivity at each trophic level in a given ecosystem.
Food web
A food web is the natural interconnection of food chains and a graphical representation of what-eats-what in an ecological community. Another name for food web is consumer-resource system.
Decomposer
Decomposers are organisms that break down dead or decaying organisms, and in doing so, they carry out the natural process of decomposition. Like herbivores and predators, decomposers are heterotrophic, meaning that they use organic substrates to get their energy, carbon and nutrients for growth and development.
Food chain
A food chain is a linear network of links in a food web starting from producer organisms and ending at apex predator species, detritivores, or decomposer species. A food chain also shows how the organisms are related with each other by the food they eat. Each level of a food chain represents a different trophic level.
Coniferous
The Pinophyta, also known as Coniferophyta or Coniferae, or commonly as conifers, are a division of vascular land plants containing a single extant class, Pinopsida. They are gymnosperms, cone-bearing seed plants. All extant conifers are perennial woody plants with secondary growth.
Consumer
consumer is a person or organization that uses or consumes economic services or commodities.
Biome
A biome is a community of plants and animals that have common characteristics for the environment they exist in. They can be found over a range of continents. Biomes are distinct biological communities that have formed in response to a shared physical climate.
Deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous means “falling off at maturity” and “tending to fall off”, in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, after flowering; and to the shedding of ripe fruit.
Ecology
Ecology is a branch of biology that studies the interactions among organisms and their biophysical environment, which includes both biotic and abiotic components.
Cycle
In ecology and Earth science, a biogeochemical cycle or substance turnover or cycling of substances is a pathway by which a chemical substance moves through biotic (biosphere) and abiotic (lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere) compartments of Earth.
Nitrogen cycle
DescriptionThe nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into multiple chemical forms as it circulates among atmosphere, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems. The conversion of nitrogen can be carried out through both biological and physical processes.
Biotic factors
DescriptionBiotic components, or biotic factors, can be described as any living component that affects another organism or shapes the ecosystem. This includes both animals that consume other organisms within their ecosystem, and the organism that is being consumed.
Water cycle
DescriptionThe water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle or the hydrological cycle, describes the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth.
Abiotic factor
DescriptionIn biology and ecology, abiotic components or abiotic factors are non-living chemical and physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the functioning of ecosystems. Abiotic factors and the phenomena associated with them underpin all biology.
Producer
Producer: is an organism, either a green plant or bacterium, which is part of the first level of a food chain. Hawaiian Translation: Ho’ohua (to produce) This ‘a’ali’i plant is a producer. It has green leaves enable the plant to take energy from the sun and make its own food.
Carbon cycle
DescriptionThe carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth. Carbon is the main component of biological compounds as well as a major component of many minerals such as limestone.
Predator
Predators are wild animals that hunt, or prey on, other animals. All animals need food to live. Predator animals need the flesh of the animals that they kill to survive. Weasels, hawks, wolves, mountain lions, and grizzly bears are all predators.
Prey
Prey is an animal hunted for food. If you’re a delicious-looking deer during hunting season, watch your back! You’re the prey for all those guys in orange jackets carrying rifles. Prey can also mean the human subject of an attack, or ridicule, by another person.
Succession
Ecological succession is the process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time. The time scale can be decades (for example, after a wildfire), or even millions of years after a mass extinction.
