Biology PHall Red - Chapter 03 The Biosphere

Biosphere

This is all of the portions of the Earth that can support life.

Ecology

This is the scientific study of the interactions among organisms and their environment.

Oikos

This is the Greek word for "house" or "home."

Species

This is a group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring.

Population

This is a group of individuals of the same species that live and breed in a particular area.

Community

This is an assemblage of different populations that live in the same area.

Ecosystem

This is all of the organisms that live in a particular place and their physical environment.

Biome

This is a group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms.

Biotic Factor

This is any living part of an ecosystem.

Abiotic Factor

This is any nonliving part of an ecosystem.

Autotroph

This is any organism that can make its own food.

Primary Producer

This is another name for autotrophs.

Photosynthesis

This is the biological process that captures the energy in light and stores that energy in chemical bonds.

Chemosynthesis

This is the biological process that the energy in inorganic compounds is used to manufacture organic compounds.

Heterotrophs

These are organisms that cannot make their own food.

Consumers

This is another name for heterotrophs.

Food Chain

A diagram that shows one set of feeding relationships in an ecosystem.

Food Web

A diagram that shows all of the feeding relationships in an ecosystem.

Phytoplankton

These are the autotrophic algae that serve as primary producers in aquatic ecosystems.

Zooplankton

These are the small, swimming organisms that serve as primary consumers in aquatic ecosystems.

Herbivores

These are animals that eat plants.

Primary Consumers

These are organisms that eat primary producers in any ecosystem.

Carnivores

These are animals that eat other animals.

Secondary Consumers

These are animals that eat the primary consumers in any ecosystem.

Trophe

This is the Greek word for food, or feeding.

Trophic Level

This is the name used to refer to any step in a food chain or food web.

Ecological Pyramids

These diagrams show the relative amounts of energy or matter in a food chain or food web.

Biomass

The total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level of an ecosystem.

Biogeochemical Cycles

These are closed loops in the biosphere in which elements pass from one organism to another, or from organism to Earth.

Nutrients

These are the chemical substances that organisms need to live.

Nitrogen Fixation

This is the process by which certain types of bacteria can convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia.

Denitrification

This is the process by which certain bacteria convert nitrogen compounds in the soil into atmospheric nitrogen.

Limiting Nutrient

This is any nutrient that may limit primary productivity because of its scarcity.

Detritivores

These organisms feed on detritus.

Detritus

This is dead particulate organic material that typically includes the bodies or fragments of dead plants and animals.

Scavengers

These animals feed on the bodies of other animals that have been killed by predators or that have died of other causes.

Decomposers

These are organisms that feed by chemically breaking down organic matter.

Ernst Haeckel

coined the term "ecology" in 1866

Transpiration

Evaporation of water from the leaves of a plant