Biology Unit 1

Conservation

Actions and strategies to protect, manage, and restore natural resources and biodiversity so ecosystems and species survive over time.

Ecosystem

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

Biodiversity

The variety of life in a given place, including the diversity of species, genetics, and ecosystems.

Keystone species

A species that has a large effect on its ecosystem. Removing it can cause major changes in ecosystem structure and function.

Carrying capacity

The maximum population size of a species that an environment can sustain.

Limiting factor

Any physical, chemical, or biological condition that restricts the growth, abundance, or distribution of an organism or population.

Disturbance

An event that quickly changes ecosystem structure or resource availability.

Resilience

An ecosystem's ability to recover its structure and functions after a disturbance and return to a stable state or shift to a new stable state.

Biomass

The total mass of living organisms in a given area or volume at a given time.

Group behavior

Coordinated or collective actions by individuals of the same species that improve survival, foraging efficiency, or reproductive success.

Mechanism

The process, interaction, or causal pathway that produces an observed pattern or outcome in an ecosystem.

Empirical evidence

Observations or measurements collected through experiments that support scientific explanations.

Mortality factors

Causes of death affecting individuals or populations.

Conservation plan

A structured, evidence-based set of goals, criteria, actions, timelines, and monitoring designed to protect or restore species, habitats, or ecosystem services.

Constraints

Limits or restrictions that affect which conservation or management actions are possible or effective.

Abiotic factors

Nonliving physical and chemical parts of an ecosystem, such as sunlight, temperature, water, soil, and nutrients.

Biotic factors

Living components of an ecosystem and their interactions that shape population sizes, community structure, and energy flow.

Population

A group of individuals of the same species living in the same place at the same time.

Community

All the different populations (multiple species) that interact within a particular area.

Trophic level

A position in a food chain or food web based on how organisms obtain energy.

Food web

A network of interconnected food chains showing how energy and nutrients move among organisms in an ecosystem.

Ecosystem resilience

The ability of an ecosystem to resist, recover from, or adapt to disturbances while maintaining essential functions.

Habitat fragmentation

The breaking of continuous habitat into smaller, isolated patches, often by roads, agriculture, or development. It reduces connectivity and can harm populations and migration.

Ecosystem services

The benefits people receive from ecosystems, including food, water, climate regulation, cultural benefits, and supporting services.

Ecological functions

Processes that living and nonliving components perform to maintain ecosystem stability and resilience.

Computational function

Using computer models to make predictions.