Ecology Key Terms

Abiotic

Abiotic

Non-living factors or components in an ecosystem or environment.

Anaerobic

A process or organism that can function without the presence of oxygen.

Aerobic

A process or organism that requires oxygen to survive or function.

Autotroph

An organism that can produce its own food using energy from sunlight or inorganic substances.

Biomass

The mass/number of biological organisms in an area or ecosystem at a given time.

Biotic

Living organisms or factors that are derived from living organisms.

Captive Breeding

The practice of breeding and raising animals in controlled environments, such as zoos or conservation centers, with the aim of increasing their population size or preserving endangered species.

Capture-Mark-Release-Capture

A technique used in population ecology to estimate the size of a population.

Carbohydrates

Serves as a primary source of energy for living organisms. They play crucial roles in cellular processes, including energy storage, structural support, and cell recognition.

Carrying Capacity

The maximum population size that an environment can sustainably support over a long period of time, given the available resources.

Chemical Energy

It is a form of potential energy that can be released during chemical reactions, such as cellular respiration, to perform various biological processes.

Chi-Squared

Tests how well the pattern of observed frequency fits an expected pattern of frequency.

Community

All populations found in one area.

Competition

Two species that use the same limited resource and have a negative impact of each other.

Consumer

An organism that has to eat to survive. They eat living or recently dead matter.

Density-Dependent

Limiting factors that have a greater effect on population growth at higher population densities.

e.g. food, nest, mates, pathogens, predators, parasites

Detritivore

An organism that feeds on dead organic matter, such as decaying plant and animal material. Uses internal digestion.

Diversity limited to island size

Diversity on islands is often limited by factors such as limited resources, isolation, and colonization abilities of species. This can result in fewer species and lower genetic diversity compared to larger landmasses.

Ecology

The study of relationships between organisms and their relationship with the environment.

Ecosystem

A community of living organisms interacting with each other and their physical environment.

Edge Effects

The changes in species composition, population dynamics, and ecological processes that occur at the boundaries or edges between different habitats or ecosystems.

These transitional zones often exhibit unique environmental conditions:

• increased light

• temperature fluctuations

• altered nutrient availability

Emigration

The movement of individuals out of a population or habitat.

Endangered

A species that is in danger of going extinct.

Endemic

Species that are only found in one area of the world. Their habitat is limited and restricted.

Energy Pyramid

Representation of the energy levels found in the trophic levels of an ecosystem.

External Digestion

Food chain

Food web

Fundamental Niche

Habitat

Herbivory

Heterotroph

Holozoic

Immigration

Inorganic

Interactions

Internal Digestion

Interspecifc competition

Invasive

Keeling Curve

Light Energy

Limit of Tolerance

Limiting Factors

Lincoln Index

Mineral Nutrients

Mortality

Motile

Mutualism

Natality

Negative Feedback

Non-competitive

Nutrient Cycle

Organic

Organism

Parasitism

Pathogenicity

Phenology

Photosynthesis

Population

Precautionary principal

Predation

Producer

Quadrat Sampling

Realized Niche

Reintroduction

Saprotroph

Sessile

Sigmoid Curve

Spacial Habitat

Species

Succession

Trophic levels

Zones of Stress