Chapter 5 Life Science Test

7th grade Q3

ecology

the study of interactions among organisms and their surroundings

biotic factors

the living parts of an ecosystem including communities, populations, and individual organisms

population

a group of the same species

community

populations of different species of organisms

ecosystem

different communities ; made up of a group of living things and their abiotic surroundings

biosphere

Earth’s life supporting layer of land, water, and air

photosynthesis

when a plant uses the sun’s energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into glucose and oxygen

niche

the role of an organism or population in its ecosystem

producer

a living thing that can make its own food

consumer

a living thing that eats other living things for food and energy

herbivore

a consumer that eats only plants

carnivore

a consumer that eats only animals

omnivore

a consumer that eats both plants and meat/animals

decomposer

a living thing that breaks down waste and dead things

nutrients

the elements and compounds needed by organisms to stay alive

precipitation

when there is rainfall or snowfall

condensation

water vapor cools and changes back into liquid form

evaporation

water, driven by the heat of the sun changes into vapor and rises into the air

filtration

underground water filters down toward the ocean

transpiration

plants open their pores for carbon dioxide and lose water to evaporation

respiration

the action of breathing oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide

food chain

shows how each member of an ecosystem community gets its food

energy pyramid

diagram that shows how energy moves from one feeding level to the next in a food chain

primary carnivore

the first carnivore in the food chain to eat meat

secondary carnivore

the second organism in the food chain to eat meat

apex predator

the “top dog” aka a consumer with no predators

food web

a group of overlapping food chains in an ecosystem

competition

happens when members of an ecosystem depend on the same limited supply of food

predator

animals that hunt and feed on other animals

prey

animals that are killed for food by a predator

symbiosis

an interaction where 2 species live together for a long time and at least one of the species benefits

growth rate

the change in size of a population over time

invasive species

a species that has been introduced to a region where it did not previously occur naturally and it spreads rapidly (usually in a bad way)

exotic species

an organism that is not native to an area

pollutant

a variable that causes harm to an organism

biomagnification

when toxins accumulate in the tissues of living things and build up

toxins

human activities create these bad things

turbinity

the cloudiness of water

chemosynthesis

when producers use chemicals to make their food instead of the sun

zooplankton

little floating animals

phytoplankton

little floating plants

morpheme : -ation

the act of

morpheme : bio-

life, living

morpheme : carn-

meat, flesh

morpheme : chem-

dealing with chemicals

morpheme : de-

away from, down

morpheme : eco-

house

morpheme : ex-

out of, away from

morpheme : herb-

grass, plants

morpheme : omni-

all

morpheme : photo-

light

morpheme : phyt- or phyte-

plant

morpheme : plan-

roaming, wandering

morpheme : re-

again, back

morpheme : -sis

condition, state

morpheme : -sphere

ball, round

morpheme : spir- or -spire

breathe

morpheme : sym- or syn-

together

morpheme : -the or -thes-

put

morpheme : trans-

across

morpheme : turb-

whirl

morpheme : -vor-

devour, eat