Chapter 6 Vocab

Chapter 6 Vocabulary - Communities and Ecosystem Dynamics 

1. Habitat- an area where an organism lives including the biotic and abiotic factors that affect it

2. Tolerance- ability of an organism to survive and reproduce under circumstances that differ from their optimal conditions

3. Niche- full range of physical and biological conditions in which an organism lives and the way in which the organism uses those conditions

4. Resource- any necessity of life, such as water, nutrients, light, food, or space

5. Competitive exclusion principle-principle that states that no two species can occupy the same niche in the same habitat at the same time

6. Keystone species-single species that is not usually abundant in a community yet exerts strong control on the structure of a community

7. Symbiosis-relationship in which two species live close together

8. Commensalism-symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is neither helpful nor harmed

9. Mutualism-symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the relationship

10. Parasitism-a symbiotic relationship in which one organism lives on or inside another organism and harms it

11. Ecological succession- series of gradual changes that occur in a community following a disturbance

12. Primary succession- succession that occurs in an area in which no trace of a previous community is present

13. Pioneer species- first species to populate an area during succession

14. Secondary succession- type of succession that occurs in an area that was only partially destroyed by disturbances

15. Biodiversity- the total of the variety of organisms in the biosphere; also called biological diversity

16. Ecosystem diversity- variety of habitats, communities, and ecological processes in the biosphere

17. Species diversity- number of different species that makes up a particular area

18. Genetic diversity- sum total of all the different forms of genetic information carried by a particular species, or by all organisms on earth

19. Resilience- the ability to recover after a disturbance; the ability to deal with change and move on

20. Ecosystem services- the benefits for humans that are provided by healthy ecosystems