Ecosystems and Relationships between Organisms Flashcards
What is the Food Web? What are the various roles in order of what gets the most energy to the least?
Basic inner connections, organisms fulfill various roles within an ecosystem including- 1. Producer 2. primary consumer 3. secondary consumer 4. tertiary consumer 5. quaternary consumer (decomposers)
How do Producers get energy? What are examples of producers?
Get their energy from the Sun.
Examples- green plants, grass, trees
How do Primary Consumers get energy?
they eat producers- insect eating grass.
How do secondary consumers get energy? Example of one?
eating primary.
ex: rat eating the insect.
How does the tertiary consumer get energy?
teritary= 3rd. eats second consumer. snake eating rat.
What is a decomposer?
Breaks down dead organisms. Ex: fungi and bacteria.
Why is considered a food web and not a food chain. (well actually it is, but why is web the better word)
It doesn’t fully describe the 2nd and 3rd consumers, and the interconnectedness. So the better term is web.
The type of organisms a ecosystem can support is determined by what?
the types of organisms an ecosystem can support is primarily determined by the amount of water, which is the most important factor in determining the distribution of plant life.
What is the energy pyramid?
Describing how much energy is given to each thing. The bottom gets the most energy because its directly to the sun. As you go up, the less and less you get.
What is a symbiotic relationship? What are three different types?
In a symbiotic relationship, organisms live in close interaction with one another.
- Mutualism
- Parasitism
- Commensalism
What is Mutalism?
Both members benefit (mutual benefit) ex: tree has a stinging insect on it. The stinging insect stings bugs that would harm the tree and the tree provides it.
What is parasitism?
One member benefits, the other is harmed. Parasite feeding on a host. Ex: tapeworm inside an animal, eating and benefiting.
What is commensalism in a symbiotic relationship?
One member benefits, the other is unaffected. Ex: Whale, little fish rides behind them, they eat scrapes that the whale leaves behind. Doesn’t really affect whale, he eats the same.
What is Predation?
a non-symbiotic relationship in which a predator hunts prey. Prey animal tries to avoid predator.
Why is the Food/ecosystem diagram considered a “delicate balance”?
its very complex. dead plants are a food source for mites. Birds eat the mites, artic fox can eat the birds. If you change the mineral salts you could cause the plants to die. Or you could clean the dung, the plants could be affected and you wonder why the foxes are dying. You could change everything.
