Unit 2 List 1 Ecology(LD)

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 is able to form nutritional organic substances from simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide.

Question 3

Biotic Factors

Answer 3

any living thing that has an effect on an ecosystem

Question 4

Carbon Sink

Answer 4

anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases

Question 4

Bioaccumulation

Answer 4

an increase in the concentration of a chemical over time in a biological organism compared to the chemical’s concentration in the environment

Question 5

Commensalism

Answer 5

an association between two organisms in which one benefits and the other derives neither benefit nor harm.

Question 5

Carnivore

Answer 5

an animal that feeds on flesh

Question 6

Competition

Answer 6

an interaction between organisms or species in which both require a resource that is in limited supply

Question 7

Consumer

Answer 7

an organism that cannot produce its own food and must eat other plants and/or animals to get energy

Question 8

Decomposer

Answer 8

an organism (as a bacterium or a fungus) that feeds on and breaks down dead plant or animal matter

Question 9

Energy Pyramid

Answer 9

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

Question 10

Ecosystem

Answer 10

a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment

Question 11

Food Chain

Answer 11

a hierarchical series of organisms each dependent on the next as a source of food.

Question 12

Food Web

Answer 12

consists of all the food chains in a single ecosystem

Question 13

Herbivore

Answer 13

an animal that feeds on plants.

Question 13

Habitat

Answer 13

the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism

Question 14

Heterotrophs

Answer 14

an organism that eats other plants or animals for energy and nutrients

Question 15

Leaching

Answer 15

the loss of water soluble plant nutrients from the soil due to rain and irrigation

Question 16

Limiting Factor

Answer 16

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

Question 17

Niche

Answer 17

the role an organism plays in a community

Question 18

Mutualism

Answer 18

association between organisms of two different species in which each benefits

Question 19

Ocean acidification

Answer 19

a reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period of time, caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere

Question 20

Omnivore

Answer 20

an organism that eats plants and animals

Question 21

Parasitism

Answer 21

a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life

Question 22

Phytoplankton

Answer 22

microscopic marine algae

Question 23

Pioneer Species

Answer 23

species that are the first to colonize newly created environments or recently disturbed environments during the processes of primary succession and secondary succession

Question 24

Population

Answer 24

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

Question 25

Predation

Answer 25

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

Question 26

Predator

Answer 26

an animal that naturally preys on others

Question 27

Prey

Answer 27

an animal that is caught and killed by another for food

Question 28

Primary Succession

Answer 28

ecological succession that begins in essentially lifeless areas

Question 29

Secondary Succession

Answer 29

happens when a climax community or intermediate community is impacted by a disturbance

Question 30

Producer

Answer 30

organisms that make their own food

Question 31

Species Overshoot

Answer 31

occurs when the population of a species significantly exceeds the carrying capacity of its environment

Question 32

Sustainability

Answer 32

the practice of using natural resources responsibly so that they will be available for many generations.