Ecosystems and Biodiversity Revision

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering biodiversity types, energy flow, species interactions, and ecological adaptations from Topic 4.

Biodiversity

The variety of all living things and their importance for maintaining ecosystem health and stability.

Genetic Diversity

The variety of genes within a species.

Species Diversity

The variety and number of different species within a community.

Ecosystem Diversity

The variety of different habitats, communities, and ecological processes in a specific area.

Trophic Levels

The hierarchical levels in an ecosystem, comprising producers, consumers, and decomposers.

Producers

Organisms that produce their own energy, typically through photosynthesis, forming the base of the food chain.

Decomposers

Organisms that break down dead or decaying organisms, such as fungi and bacteria.

Food Chain

A linear sequence showing how energy is transferred from one organism to another.

Food Web

A complex network of interconnected food chains showing various energy paths in an ecosystem.

10% Energy Transfer Rule

The principle stating that only approximately $10\%$ of the energy at one trophic level is passed on to the next level.

Biotic Factors

The living components within an ecosystem.

Abiotic Factors

The non-living physical and chemical components of an ecosystem.

Apex Predator

An organism at the top of the food chain that has no natural predators within its ecosystem.

Mutualism

A symbiotic relationship where both species involved benefit from the interaction.

Parasitism

A symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits at the expense of another (the host).

Commensalism

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

K-selected Species

Species characterized by long life spans, stable population sizes, and high levels of parental care for fewer offspring.

r-selected Species

Species characterized by high reproductive rates, short life spans, and little to no parental care for many offspring.

Structural Adaptations

Physical features of an organism's body that enhance its survival in its environment.

Physiological Adaptations

Internal systematic responses or chemical processes within an organism that improve its fitness.

Behavioural Adaptations

The ways an organism acts or moves to survive in its environment.

Ecological Succession

The process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time.

Primary Succession

The type of ecological succession that occurs in essentially lifeless areas where there is no initial soil.

Secondary Succession

The type of ecological succession that occurs in an area where an ecosystem has been disturbed but soil remains intact.