Module 6 Vocab

Question 1

Biosphere

Answer 1

The region of our planet where life resides, the combination of all ecosystems on Earth.

Question 2

Producer

Answer 2

An organism that uses the energy of the

Sun to produce usable forms of energy (Autotroph).

Question 3

Photosynthesis

Answer 3

The process by which producers use solar energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose.

Question 4

Cellular respiration

Answer 4

The process by which cells unlock the energy of chemical compounds.

Question 5

Aerobic respiration

Answer 5

The process by which cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy, carbon dioxide, and water.

Question 6

Anaerobic respiration

Answer 6

The process by which cells convert glucose into energy in the absence of oxygen.

Question 7

Consumer

Answer 7

An organism that is incapable of photosynthesis and must obtain its energy by consuming other organisms (Heterotroph).

Question 8

Herbivore

Answer 8

A consumer that eats producers (Primary consumer).

Question 9

Carnivore

Answer 9

A consumer that eats other consumers.

Question 10

Secondary consumer

Answer 10

A carnivore that eats secondary consumers.

Question 11

Tertiary consumer

Answer 11

A carnivore that eats secondary consumers.

Question 12

Trophic levels

Answer 12

The successive levels of organisms consuming one another.

Question 13

Food chain

Answer 13

The sequence of consumption from producers through tertiary consumers.

Question 14

Food web

Answer 14

A complex model of how energy and matter move between trophic levels.

Question 15

Scavenger

Answer 15

An organism that consumes dead animals.

Question 16

Detritivore

Answer 16

An organism that specializes in breaking down dead tissues and waste products into smaller particles.

Question 17

Decomposers

Answer 17

Fungi and bacteria that convert organic matter into small elements and molecules that can be recycled back into the ecosystem.

Question 18

Gross primary productivity (GPP)

Answer 18

The total amount of solar energy that producers in an ecosystem capture via photosynthesis over a given amount of time.

Question 19

Net primary productivity (NPP)

Answer 19

The energy captured by producers in an ecosystem minus the energy producers respire.

Question 20

Biomass

Answer 20

The total mass of all living matter in a specific area.

Question 21

Standing crop

Answer 21

The amount of biomass present in an ecosystem at a particular time.

Question 22

Ecological efficiency

Answer 22

The proportion of consumed energy that can be passed from one trophic level to another.

Question 23

Trophic pyramid

Answer 23

A representation of the distribution of biomass, numbers, or energy among trophic levels.