🌍 AP Environmental Science – Topic 1.1: Ecosystems 🎯 Objective 1. Ecosystem Basics

Individual

One organism (a single living thing).

Population

Group of individuals of the same species.

Community

All the living organisms in an area (plants, animals, fungi, bacteria).

Ecosystem

Living (biotic) + nonliving (abiotic) components (soil, water, rocks).

Biome

Large area defined by climate, which determines plants/animals (e.g., rainforest, desert).

Competition

A species interaction where organisms compete for limited resources, resulting in a lose-lose situation.

Predation

An interaction where one species consumes another for energy, impacting the latter negatively.

Mutualism

A type of symbiotic relationship where both species benefit.

Commensalism

A type of symbiotic relationship where one species benefits and the other is unaffected.

Parasitism

A type of symbiotic relationship where the parasite benefits and the host is harmed.

Resource Partitioning

A mechanism that reduces competition by allowing species to share resources differently.

Temporal Partitioning

Using resources at different times to reduce competition.

Spatial Partitioning

Using different areas of a habitat to reduce competition.

Morphological Partitioning

Physical differences that reduce overlap in resource use among species.

Resource Availability

The primary factor that drives interactions and shapes ecosystems.