Population Ecology

Abiotic

nonliving parts of the environment

Biotic

living parts of the environment

Carrying Capacity

largest number of individuals of a population that a given environment can support

Limiting Factor

any biotic or abiotic factor that restricts the existence of organisms in a specific environment

Range

the area where a population can live; determined by its limiting factors

Predator

animals that are eating other animals

Prey

animals that are being eaten by other animals

Food Web

a diagram that shows how different organisms in an ecosystem are connected through feeding relationships; it illustrates how energy and nutrients flow

Food Chain

a sequence that show how energy and nutrients flow from one organism to another in an ecosystem

Producer

typically a plant that takes solar energy and converts it into chemical energy in a process called photosynthesis

Primary Consumer

Typically smaller animal classified as a herbivore; they consume (eat) producers (plants)

Secondary Consumer

typically larger animal that eats primary consumers. some secondary consumers also eat producers

Tertiary Consumer

typically larger animal classified as carnivore that consume secondary consumers and primary consumers

Herbivore

organisms that get their energy from plants

Carnivore

organisms that get their energy from other animals

Omnivore

organisms that get their energy from plants AND animals

Trophic Level

an organism's position in a food chain, showing how it gets its energy

Succession

a series of gradual changes that occur in a community over time.

Primary succession

when changes in a community begin in a place with no soil

Secondary succession

succession that follows a disturbance that changes a community without removing the soil

Disturbance

a temporary change in environmental conditions that causes a significant change in ecosystem succession

Climax Community

a stable, mature community that undergoes little or no change in species over time

Species

a group of organisms of the same kind that can produce offspring that can reproduce

Population

all the members of a particular species

Ecosystem

all of the different communities and their abiotic environment that live with a given area

Community

all of the different populations that live within a given area

Mark and Recapture

population estimating technique that involves capturing, marking, and then releasing individuals of a population. A second capture is then conducted with the number of individuals caught a s second time used to estimate the population size.

Random Sampling

population estimating technique that involves counting the number of organisms in a randomly selected small area and then multiplying to find the number in a larger area

Census (Direct Observation)

Counting each member individually

Indirect Observation

Using evidence such as footprints or nests to estimate the population size