AP Environmental Science 1B Vocab By. Abrielle Walker

Aerobic respiration

The process by which cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy, carbon dioxide, and water

Algal bloom

A rapid increase in the algal population of a waterway

Anaerobic respiration

The process by which cells convert glucose into energy in the absence of oxygen

Assimilation

A process by which plants and algae incorporate nitrogen into their tissues

Biogeochemical cycle

The movements of matter within and between ecosystems involving cycles of biological, geological, and chemical processes

Biomass

Biological material that has mass

Carbon cycle

The movement of carbon around the biosphere among reservoir sources and sinks

Carnivore (aka secondary consumer)

A consumer that eats other consumers

Cellular respiration

The process by which cells unlock the energy of chemical compounds

Consumer (aka heterotroph)

An organism that is incapable of photosynthesis and must therefore obtain its energy by consuming other organisms (Also known as heterotroph)

Dead zone

When oxygen concentrations become so low that it kills fish and other aquatic animals

Decomposer

Fungi and bacteria that complete the breakdown process by converting organic matter into small elements and molecules that can be recycled back into the ecosystem

Denitrification

The conversion of nitrate (NO3-) in a series of steps into the gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and, eventually, nitrogen gas (N2) which is emitted into the atmosphere

Detritivore

An organism that specializes in breaking down dead tissues and waste products into smaller particles

Ecological efficiency

The proportion of consumed energy that can be passed from one trophic level to another

Evapotranspiration

The combined amount of evaporation and transpiration

Food chain

The sequence of consumption from producers through tertiary consumers

Food web

A model of how energy and matter move through two or more interconnected food chains

Global warming

The increase in global temperatures due to humans producing more greenhouse gases

Greenhouse gases

Gases in Earth's atmosphere that trap heat near the surface

Gross primary productivity (GPP)

The total amount of solar energy that producers in an ecosystem capture via photosynthesis over a given amount of time

Herbivore (aka primary consumer)

A consumer that eats producers. Also known as primary consumer

Hydrologic cycle

The movement of water around the biosphere among reservoir sources and sinks

Hypoxic

Low in oxygen

Leaching

A process in which dissolved molecules are transported through the soil via groundwater

Limiting nutrient

A nutrient required for the growth of an organism but available in a lower quantity than other nutrients

Mineralization (aka ammonification)

The process by which fungal and bacterial decomposers break down the organic matter found in dead bodies and waste products and convert it into inorganic compounds, such as inorganic ammonium

Net primary productivity (NPP)

The energy captured by producers in an ecosystem minus the energy producers respire

Nitrification

The conversion of ammonia (NH4⁢+) into nitrite (NO2-) and then into nitrate

Nitrogen cycle

The movement of nitrogen around the biosphere among reservoir sources and sinks

Nitrogen fixation

The process that converts nitrogen gas in the atmosphere (N2) into forms of nitrogen that plants and algae can use

Phosphorus cycle

The movement of phosphorus around the biosphere among reservoir sources and sinks

Primary productivity

The rate of converting solar energy into organic compounds over a period of time

Producer (aka autotroph)

Plants, algae, and some bacteria that use the Sun's energy to produce usable forms of energy, such as sugars. Also known as autotrophs

Reservoirs

The components of the biogeochemical cycle that contain matter, including air, water, and organisms

Runoff

Water that moves across the land surface and into streams and rivers

Scavenger

An organism that consumes dead animals

Standing crop

The amount of biomass present in an ecosystem at a particular time

Steady State

When a system's inputs equal outputs, so that the system is not changing over time

Tertiary consumer

A carnivore that eats secondary consumers

The 10% rule

Of the total biomass available at a given trophic level, only about 10 percent can be converted into energy at the next highest trophic level

Transpiration

The release of water from leaves into the atmosphere during photosynthesis

Trophic levels

The successive levels of organisms consuming one another

Trophic pyramid

A representation of the distribution of biomass, numbers, or energy among trophic levels