General Flashcards
Define the term ecosystem
a community of plants and animals which interact with each other and the non-living environment
Consumer/heterotroph definition
an organism that cannot make its own food and must instead obtain it from other organisms
Biome definition
a large ecosystem
what does abiotic mean?
non-living factors of an ecosystem eg. water, soil
what are decomposers?
organisms that break down other organsisms eg. bacteria
what is biomass?
the amount of living matter in an ecosystem at any one time. it is measured in dry weight per area
how much energy is lost from each trophic level? how is it lost?
90% of energy is lost through heat, dead organic matter, evapotranspiration and other life processes
how can people positively affect the nutrient cycle?
add fertiliser to plants or by planting new trees
how can people negatively affect the nutrient cycle?
deforestation, over farming and irrigation (can cause leaching)
what does soil humus mean?
the organic matter that has decomposed
what is a liana?
a woody climbing plant that hangs from trees
what is an epiphyte?
a plant that grows on another plant, especially one that is not parasitic, instead, they obtain nutrients from water or air
what is leaching?
the downward movement of minerals and nutrients through the soil
