Ecosystems and Tropical Rainforests

Flashcards covering key concepts about ecosystems, processes at different scales, and the tropical rainforest biome.

Ecosystem

A community of plants and animals and the environment in which they live.

Producers

Plants in an ecosystem that get their energy from the sun through photosynthesis and produce food.

Consumers

Organisms that eat the producers in an ecosystem.

Nutrient Cycling

The process by which energy is recycled in an ecosystem.

Decomposers

Bacteria and fungi that release nutrients into the soil by breaking down dead leaves and branches.

Biomes

Large-scale ecosystems that broadly match the world’s climate zones.

Latitude

The distance from the equator, affecting the amount of heat energy on the ground.

Tropical Rainforest Location

Typically found between 5 degrees north and 5 degrees south of the equator.

Tropical Rainforest Climate

Hot throughout the year with high annual rainfall totals; average temperatures around 27°C.

Convectional Rainfall

Rain that forms as water evaporates and rises into the atmosphere, forming clouds.

Nutrient Cycle in Rainforests

Rapid decomposition of dead plant material due to hot, damp conditions, providing nutrients quickly absorbed by plant roots.

Biomass

The total mass of living organisms in a given area or volume.

Leaching

The process by which high precipitation washes nutrients from the soil.