Unit one notes

Ecosystem: A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.
Biotic Factors: The living components of an ecosystem, such as plants, animals, and bacteria.
Abiotic Factors: The non-living components of an ecosystem, such as water, sunlight, temperature, and soil.
Ecosystem Services: Benefits provided by ecosystems that contribute to making life possible for humans (e.g., clean water, pollination, climate regulation).

Biome: A large community of plants and animals that occupies a distinct region defined by its climate and dominant vegetation.
Tundra: A cold and treeless biome with low-growing vegetation.
Boreal Forest (Taiga): A biome characterized by coniferous forests, cold temperatures, and moderate precipitation.
Temperate Rainforest: A coastal biome typified by moderate temperatures and high precipitation.
Temperate Seasonal Forest: A biome with warm summers, cold winters, and deciduous trees.
Tropical Rainforest: A warm and wet biome found near the equator with high biodiversity.
Savanna: A biome characterized by warm temperatures, dry and rainy seasons, and grassland with scattered trees.
Desert: A biome with low precipitation, extreme temperatures, and sparse vegetation.
Chaparral: A biome with hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, with vegetation that is drought-resistant.

Freshwater Biomes: Aquatic systems that include rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands with low salinity.
Marine Biomes: Aquatic systems in oceans, coral reefs, and estuaries with high salinity.
Wetlands: Areas where water covers the soil or is present at or near the surface, supporting plant life adapted to saturated conditions.
Estuary: A coastal area where freshwater from rivers mixes with saltwater from the ocean, creating a unique ecosystem.
Coral Reef: A marine biome characterized by diverse species of corals and found in shallow, warm ocean waters.
Salinity: The concentration of salts in water, which affects the types of organisms that can live in aquatic systems.

Carbon Cycle: The movement of carbon through the atmosphere, biosphere, oceans, and geosphere.
Photosynthesis: The process by which plants use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen.
Cellular Respiration: The process by which organisms break down glucose to produce energy, releasing carbon dioxide and water as byproducts.
Nitrogen Cycle: The movement of nitrogen through the atmosphere, soil, and living organisms.
Nitrogen Fixation: The process by which nitrogen gas from the atmosphere is converted into ammonia by bacteria or through lightning.
Nitrification: The conversion of ammonia to nitrate by bacteria in the soil.
Denitrification: The process by which bacteria convert nitrates back into nitrogen gas, returning it to the atmosphere.

Phosphorus Cycle: The movement of phosphorus through rocks, soil, water, and living organisms without involving the atmosphere.
Eutrophication: A process by which excess nutrients (like phosphorus) in water bodies lead to overgrowth of algae and depletion of oxygen.
Hydrologic (Water) Cycle: The movement of water through the atmosphere, land, and oceans via processes like evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and infiltration.
Evaporation: The process by which water changes from a liquid to a gas due to heat from the sun.
Precipitation: Water falling from the atmosphere to the Earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
Infiltration: The process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil.
Transpiration: The release of water vapor from plants into the atmosphere.

Gross Primary Productivity (GPP): The total amount of energy captured by producers (e.g., plants) through photosynthesis in an ecosystem.
Net Primary Productivity (NPP): The energy remaining after producers have used some of it for respiration; this energy is available to consumers.
Photosynthesis: (Repeated here) The process by which plants and other autotrophs capture light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen.

Trophic Levels: The hierarchical levels in an ecosystem, based on the flow of energy from primary producers to consumers.
Primary Producers (Autotrophs): Organisms, like plants and algae, that produce their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.
Primary Consumers (Herbivores): Organisms that consume primary producers for energy.
Secondary Consumers (Carnivores): Organisms that consume herbivores.
Tertiary Consumers: Top predators in a food chain that consume secondary consumers.
Decomposers: Organisms, such as fungi and bacteria, that break down dead organic matter, returning nutrients to the ecosystem.
10% Rule: The principle that only about 10% of the energy at one trophic level is transferred to the next level, with the rest lost as heat.
Food Chain: A linear sequence of organisms, each feeding on the next, showing energy transfer through trophic levels.
Food Web: A complex network of interconnected food chains that show how energy flows through an ecosystem.