Ecology and Scientific Literacy Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering ecological concepts, feeding roles, levels of organization, and relationships as outlined in the Ecology Test Study Guide.

Resource

Materials or substances found in the environment that organisms need for survival.

Cells

The basic structural and functional unit of all living organisms.

Species

A group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding.

Habitat

The natural home or environment where an organism lives.

Photosynthesis

The process by which plants and other organisms use energy to synthesize food.

Energy

The capacity for doing work; it flows through food chains and food webs in an ecosystem.

Nutrients

Substances that provide nourishment essential for the maintenance of life and for growth.

Human Impact

The effect humans have on biophysical environments, biodiversity, and natural resources.

Adaptation

A trailing or behavior that allows a species to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Natural Selection

The process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring, leading to evolution over time.

Invasive species

A species that is not native to a specific location and can cause harm to the ecosystem.

Biotic Factors

The living components of an ecosystem.

Abiotic Factors

The non-living components of an ecosystem.

Producers

Organisms that make their own food, typically through photosynthesis.

Herbivores

Organisms that primarily eat plants.

Carnivores

Organisms that primarily eat meat or other animals.

Decomposers

Organisms that break down dead or decaying matter.

Organism

An individual living thing.

Population

A group of individuals of the same species living in a specific area.

Community

Different populations of various species interacting in a common location.

Ecosystem

A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.

Biosphere

The global sum of all ecosystems; the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth occupied by living organisms.

Competition

An ecological relationship where organisms compete for limited resources.

Predation

An ecological relationship where one organism (the predator) eats another (the prey).

Symbiotic Relationships

Close and long-term biological interactions between two different species, including parasitism, commensalism, and mutualism.

Parasitism

A symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits at the expense of the other.

Commensalism

A symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed.

Mutualism

A symbiotic relationship where both organisms benefit from the interaction.

Food Chain

A linear diagram showing what is being eaten by what in an ecosystem.

Food Web

A diagram representing the complex interlocking and interdependent food chains in an ecosystem.

Energy Pyramid

A diagram that demonstrates the flow of energy and the amount of energy available at each trophic level.

Trophic Levels

The hierarchical levels in an ecosystem, consisting of producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, and tertiary consumers.

Biodiversity

The variety of different species within an ecosystem.

Ecological Disruptions

Changes to an ecosystem that can be classified as either natural or human-caused, impacting food webs and biodiversity.