Unit 1B - Ecosystems - Ecosystems and global ecosystems Flashcards
Ecosystem definition?
A community of plants and animals that interact with each other and their physical environment
Difference between biotic and abiotic?
Abiotic - Non living
Biotic - Living
In freshwater food web what are following an example of: - algae
- mayfly
- great diving beetle
- heron
Algae - producer
Mayfly - primary consumer (herbivore)
Great diving beetle - (secondary consumer)
Heron - ultimate predator
Two reasons why biomass decreases in food chain?
Not all of animal/plant eaten
Animals use energy for hunting (kinetic energy), for respiration and keeping warm
Nutrient cycling definition?
Process when decomposers break down organic matter into nutrients and return them to soil, which are then reused/recycled
What are global ecosystems (biomes)?
Large-scale ecosystems
Where are tropical rainforests located?
Found either side of equator between Tropics of Capricorn and Cancer
Where are majority of hot deserts found?
30 degrees north and south of equator but not on equator
Producer definition?
An organism or plant able to absorb energy from sun through photosynthesis
Decomposer definition?
An organism that breaks down dead tissue e.g. bacterium or fungus
Consumer definition?
Creature that eats herbivores and/or plant matter, obtaining energy from what they eat
Scavengers definition?
Organisms that consume dead animals or plants
Difference between food chain and food web?
Chain - connections between different organisms that rely upon one another as their source of food
Web - complex hierarchy of organisms relying on each other for food
In a food chain/web, where the arrows point towards?
Point to what is being eaten. Towards ultimate predator eventually
