ecology

Classification

An organization of living things (organisms) into groups according to their similarities.

Organism

A living thing.

Unicellular

A living thing that consists of a simple cell.

Multicellular

A living thing made up of many cells.

Archaea

Microscopic, unicellular organisms that often live in extreme environments.

Bacteria

Microscopic, unicellular organisms that do not have a separate nucleus.

Animalia

Multicellular organisms with cells that have a nucleus, move freely, and get energy from consuming other organisms.

Plantae

Multicellular organisms with cells that have a nucleus, cannot move freely, and use energy from the sun to make sugars.

Fungi

Multicellular organisms that cannot move freely and absorb nutrients from other organisms.

Protista

Most are unicellular organisms with cells that have a nucleus, such as amoeba and algae.

Reptiles

Animals that lay leathery eggs and have dry scales.

Fish

Animals that lay eggs in water, have wet scales, and breathe through gills.

Amphibians

Animals with moist skin that lay jelly-coated eggs in water.

Birds

Animals that lay hard-shelled eggs and have feathers.

Mammals

Animals that give birth to live young, produce milk (mammary glands), and have hair.

Ecology

The study of the interactions of living organisms with each other and their environment.

Population

A group of interbreeding organisms living in the same area.

Community

All the organisms, of all types, living in the same area.

Ecosystem

All the organisms living in the same area and their non-living environment.

Habitat

The place where an organism lives, having all the things an organism needs to survive.

Producers

Organisms that make their own food through photosynthesis, such as trees and algae.

Consumers

Organisms that eat producers or other consumers, such as grasshoppers and rabbits.

Herbivores

Animals that only eat plants, such as cows and elephants.

Carnivores

Animals that only eat other animals such as wolves and lions

omnivores

animals that eat both plants and animals eg. chimpanzees and raccoons

decomposers

organisms that feed off other dead organisms eg. slugs and beetles

food chain

diagram that shows what an organism eats

food webs

a combination of all the food chains in a particular community

each step in a food chain

trophic level

first four organisms in a food chain/web

producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer

biomass

mass of living organisms found in each level of the food chain, calculated by multiplying average mass of organism by total number of organisms

pyramid of numbers

length of each bar represents the number of organisms at each level in the food chain

pyramid of biomass

length of each bar represents the biomass at each level of the food chain

at each level, the amount of biomass and energy available is reduced, giving us a pyramid shape

why are most food chains short

• too much energy loss

• not enough food for higher levels

• energy’s released through keeping warm and waste

• small amount used for growth and biomass

limiting factor

anything that reduces the size of a population

animals main limiting factors

esources

• food

• space

• water

• mates

other factors

• being eaten (preditation)

• competition

  • disease

competition

occurs when two organisms are in need of the same resources

plants main limiting factors

resources

• light

• space

• water

• soil minerals

other factors

• being eaten (grazing)

• competition

  • disease

interspecific competition

between members of different species

intraspecific competition

between members of the same species

two types of animal adaptations

behavioural and physical

pest

any destructive organism that attacks crops, food, livestock, etc.

indicator species

used to assess the overall health of an ecosystem by looking at their presence, absence or abundance. it can reflect the levels of pollution