Key Terms Flashcards
(21 cards)
Photosynthesis
How plants make food
Cell Respiration
How cells get energy from food
Sustainable
Maintaining balance and characteristics through natural processes over a long period of time
Trophic Levels
The position an organism is on a food chain.
- producer, primary consumer, secondary, tertiary
- plants, herbivores, carnivores, top carnivores
- autotroph, 1st order heterotroph, 2nd order, 3rd order
Ecological Pyramid
Shows the relationship between trophic levels in an ecosystem
Energy Pyramid
Shows the total energy (in J) that is available at each trophic level
Number Pyramid
Indicates how much food is needed to support the top carnivore in a food chain
Biomass Pyramid
Shows the total mass (in kg) of organisms at each trophic level
Competition
When 2 organisms compete for the same resource
Predation
When an predator kills and eats its prey
Mutualism
When 2 organisms interact and both benefit
Parasitism
When a parasite lives on or in a host and feeds on it
Commensalism
When one organism benefits and the other neither benefits or is harmed
Carrying Capacity
The maximum population size of a particular species that an ecosystem can sustain
- carrying capacity can be changed
Tolerance Range
The abiotic conditions that a species can survive in
Heterotroph
An organism that relies on other organisms as a source of food
Limiting Factor
A factor that could restrict the size of a population (biotic, abiotic or by human influences)
Invasive Species
An non-native species that is introduced into a different region accidentally or intentionally
The Water Cycle
The process of cycling water through the environment
The Carbon Cycle
Shows how carbon moves through abiotic and biotic parts of an ecosystem
Nitrogen
Shows how nitrogen is converted to forms that are accessible to organisms
