Ecology Studyguide

ecosystem

all the living and nonliving things that interact in an area

habitat

the place where an organism lives and that provides the things it needs

abiotic factor

a nonliving part of an ecosystem

biotic factor

a living part of an ecosystem

photosynthesis

the process in which organisms use water along with sunlight and carbon dioxide to make food

species

a group of organisms that are similar and reproduce fertile offspring

population

all the members of one species in a particular area

community

all the different populations that live together in an area

ecology

the study of how living things interact with each other and their environment

biome

a group of ecosystems with similar climates and organisms

predation

an interaction in which one organism kills and eats another

predator

the organism that does the killing in predation

prey

an organism that is killed in predation

niche

an organism's particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living

natural selection

process by which individuals that are better adapted to the environment are more likely to survive and reproduce than others

adaptation

the behaviors and physical characteristics of species that allow them to live sucessfully in their environments

competition

the struggle between organisms for the limited resources in a habitat

commensalism

a relationship between two species in which one species benefits and the other is nethier helped or harmed

parasitism

a relationship in which one organism lives on or inside another and harms it

parasite

the organism that benefits by living on or in a host in parasitism

host

the organism that a parasite lives in or on in parasitism

mutualism

a relationship between two species in which both species benefit

producer

an organism that can make its own food

consumer

an organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms

herbivores

consumers that eat only plants

carnivores

consumers that eat only animals

omnivores

a consumer that eats both plants and animals

scavenger

a carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead

decomposers

organisms that break down wastes and dead organisms and return raw materials to the environment

food chain

a series of events in which one organism eats another and obtains energy

food web

consists of the many overlapping food chains in an ecosystem

energy pyramid

diagram that shows the amount of energy from one feeding level to another in a food web