Organisation of an Ecosystem Flashcards
Define population
A species that occupy the same habitat.
Define habitat
The place in which an organism lives.
Define community
Populations of different species
interacting.
Define ecosystem
The interactions between the biotic and
abiotic factors in an area.
What do food chains show?
Food chains show the feeding relationships of different organisms and the flow of energy between the organisms.
Define biomass
The total mass of living material.
What are trophic levels?
The stages in a food chain.
What do arrows in a food chain
represent?
The direction of biomass transfer.
Describe a simple food chain
producer → primary consumer →
secondary consumer → tertiary consumer.
What is a producer?
An organism that makes its own food.
What types of organisms are primary
producers?
Photosynthetic organisms like green
plants and algae that trap energy from
the sun.
What is a primary consumer?
An organism that feeds on producers.
What is a secondary consumer?
An organism that feeds on primary
consumers.
What is a tertiary consumer?
An organism that feeds on secondary
consumers.
What is a predator?
A consumer that kills and eats other
animals.
What is prey?
An animal that is killed and eaten by
another animal.
Describe the pattern of predators and
prey in a stable community
The numbers of predators and prey rise
and fall in cycles.
Why are producers the first trophic level?
● Producers provide all biomass for the food
chain (production of glucose via
photosynthesis).
● The rest of the food chain involves the transfer of this biomass.
Describe how materials cycle through
the living and non-living components of
an ecosystem
● Organisms take in elements from their surroundings e.g. soil, air.
● Elements converted to complex molecules which become biomass.
● Elements transferred along food chains.
● Elements returned to environment during excretion and decomposition of dead organisms.
