Organisms and their environment Flashcards
Abiotic
physical rather than biological; not derived from living organisms.
Biotic
relating to or resulting from living things, especially in their ecological relations.
Biodiversity
a variety of organisms in an ecosystem or biome
Climax community
a dominant community of plants and animals that come to live in an area
Ecological succession
the changing sequence of communities that live in an ecosystem during a given time period
Limiting factor
a condition or resource that keeps a population at a certain size
Microhabitat
a small or specialized habitat within a larger habitat
Pioneer species
first organisms to live in an area
Primary succession
a process that develops a biotic community in a previously uninhabited and barren habitat with little or no soil
Secondary succession
a process started by an event that reduces an already established ecosystem to a smaller population of species
Sustainability
ability to maintain ecological processes over long periods of time; ability of an ecosystem to maintain its structure and function over time
Biome
a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat, e.g. forest or tundra.
Invasive Species
an introduced organism that negatively alters its new environment
