Unit 2 List 1 Ecology

Question 1

Abiotic Factors

Answer 1

A non-living part of an ecosystem that shapes its environment.

Question 2

Autotrophs

Answer 2

An organism that can convert abiotic sources of energy into energy stored in organic compounds.

Question 3

Carnivore

Answer 3

An organism that mostly eats meat, or the flesh of animals.

Question 3

Biotic Factors

Answer 3

Living things within an ecosystem.

Question 4

Bioaccumulation

Answer 4

An increase in the concentration of a chemical in a biological organism over time.

Question 5

Competition

Answer 5

A set of interactions between organisms and species to get a limited resource.

Question 5

Carbon Sink

Answer 5

Anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases.

Question 6

Commensalism

Answer 6

An association between two organisms from which one benefits and the other does not receive any benefits or harm.

Question 7

Consumer

Answer 7

An organism that gets its energy by eating plants or animals.

Question 7

Decomposer

Answer 7

Any organism that breaks down or eats decaying material for its energy source.

Question 8

Ecosystem

Answer 8

A community of organisms and their physical environment interacting together.

Question 8

Energy Pyramid

Answer 8

A model that shows the flow of energy from one trophic, or feeding, level to the next in an ecosystem.

Question 9

Food Chain

Answer 9

A linear sequence of organisms through which nutrients and energy pass as one organism eats another.

Question 10

Food Web

Answer 10

All of the food chains in an ecosystem.

Question 11

Habitat

Answer 11

The natural home or environment of a plant, animal, or other organism.

Question 11

Herbivore

Answer 11

An animal that mainly eats plants.

Question 12

Leaching

Answer 12

A process in which water-soluble substances are washed out from the soil.

Question 12

Limiting Factor

Answer 12

Anything that constrains a population’s size and slows or stops it from growing.

Question 12

Heterotrophs

Answer 12

An organism that eats other plants or animals for energy and nutrients.

Question 13

Mutualism

Answer 13

Association between organisms where both organisms benefit.

Question 14

Niche

Answer 14

The role an organism plays in a community.

Question 15

Omnivore

Answer 15

An animal or person that eats food of both plant and animal origin.

Question 16

Ocean Acidification

Answer 16

A reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period of time, caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Question 17

Parasitism

Answer 17

A relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is harmed.

Question 17

Phytoplankton

Answer 17

Microscopic marine algae.

Question 18

Pioneer Species

Answer 18

Organisms that reproduce and grow quickly, enabling them to reproduce and grow quickly, enabling them to take advantage of the resources in a barren environment before larger competitors arrive.

Question 18

Populaton

Answer 18

A group of organisms of the same species living in the same geographic area at the same time.

Question 19

Predation

Answer 19

A biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey.

Question 19

Predator

Answer 19

Organisms that hunt and kill other organisms for food.

Question 20

Prey

Answer 20

Animals that are killed and eaten by other animals.

Question 21

Primary Succession

Answer 21

Type of ecological succession in which plants and animals first colonize a barren, lifeless habitat.

Question 22

Producer

Answer 22

Organisms that make their own food.

Question 23

Secondary Succession

Answer 23

Happens when a climax community or intermediate community is impacted by a disturbance. It restarts the cycle of succession, but not back to the beginning because soil and nutrients are still present in the environment.

Question 23

Species overshoot

Answer 23

Phenomenon in which populations temporarily exceed carrying capacity of the environment.

Question 24

Sustainability

Answer 24

The ability of biological systems to remain healthy, diverse, and productive over time.