Transcript Ecology Vocab - cloudfront.net

Ecology Vocab
• The study of the
interactions
among living
things, &
between living
things & their
surroundings.
•Ecology
–Comes from
the Greek word
oikos, which
means “house”
Ecology Vocab
• A group of
different species
that live in one
area.
– Ex: Groups of
alligators, turtles,
birds, fish, etc. that
live in the Florida
Everglades.
•Community
Ecology Vocab
• Includes all of the
organisms as well
as all the
nonliving things
(abiotic factors)
in an area.
•Ecosystem
Ecology Vocab
• A major regional or
global community of
organisms. They are
usually defined by
the climate
conditions & by the
plant communities
that live in that area.
– Ex: Rainforest, Tunga.
•Biome
Ecology Vocab
• The living things
in an ecosystem.
–Ex: Plants,
Animals, Fungi,
Bacteria.
•Biotic Factor
Ecology Vocab
• The nonliving
things in an
ecosystem.
–Ex: Temperature,
Moisture, Wind,
Rocks, Soil,
Sunlight.
•Abiotic Factor
Ecology Vocab
• The assortment
(variety) of living
things in an
ecosystem.
•Biodiversity
Ecology Vocab
• A species that
has an unusually
large effect on its
ecosystem.
–Ex: Beaver
•Keystone
Species
Ecology Vocab
• An organism that
get their energy
from nonliving
resources.
Meaning they
make their own
food.
–Ex: Plants
•Producer
Ecology Vocab
• Organism that
performs
photosynthesis
•Autotroph
– The suffix trophcomes from the
Greek word
meaning
“nourishment”.
The prefix Automeans “self”.
•Self nourishment :)
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
get their energy
by eating other
living or onceliving resources.
• Also called
heterotrophs.
•Consumer
Ecology Vocab
• An organism that
consumes other
organisms for
energy or
nourishment.
• Also called
consumer.
•Heterotroph
– The suffix trophcomes from the
Greek word
meaning
“nourishment”. The
prefix Heteromeans different.
•Different
Nourishment
Ecology Vocab
• A process by which
an organism forms
carbohydrates using
chemicals, rather
than light, as an
energy source.
– Ex: Organisms found
at deep-sea vents,
hydrothermal pools,
or marsh flats.
•Chemosynthesis
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
eat only plants.
–Ex: Desert
cottontail
•Herbivore
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
eat only animals.
–Ex: Harris hawks
eat desert
cottontails.
•Carnivore
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
eat both plants
and animals.
–Ex: Kangaroo rats
eat seeds &
insects.
•Omnivore
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
eat dead organic
(plant and
animal) matter.
–Ex: Millipede
feeds on detritus.
•Detritivore
– Dih-TRY-tuh-VOHR
Ecology Vocab
• These are
detritivores that
break down
organic (plant and
animal) matter into
simpler
compounds.
– Ex: Fungi
•Decomposer
Ecology Vocab
• A consumer that
primarily eats one
specific organism
or feeds on a very
small number of
organisms.
– Ex: Florida snail
kites rely on apple
snails.
•Specialist
Ecology Vocab
• Organisms that
have a varying
diet.
–Ex: Gray wolf’s
diet.
•Generalist
Ecology Vocab
• The levels of
nourishment in a
food chain.
–Also known as a
feeding level.
•Trophic Level
Ecology Vocab
• A model that
shows the
complex network
of feeding
relationships &
the flow of
energy within an
ecosystem.
•Food Web
Ecology Vocab
• Sequence that links
species by their
feeding
relationships.
–It shows the
relationships for a
single chain of
producers &
consumers.
•Food Chain
Ecology Vocab
• A Diagram that
•Energy Pyramid
compares energy
used by
producers,
primary
consumers, &
other trophic
levels.
Ecology Vocab
• A measure of the
total dry mass of
all organisms in a
given area.
•Biomass
Ecology Vocab
• The movement of a •Biogeochemical
particular chemical Cycle
through the living
(biological) &
nonliving
(geographical)
parts of an
ecosystem.
Ecology Vocab
• The circular
pathway of
water on Earth.
•Hydrologic
Cycle
Ecology Vocab
• The process where
oxygen flows into the
atmosphere as a
byproduct of
photosynthesis.
Organisms take in
this oxygen & release
it as CO2 through
respiration.
•Oxygen Cycle
Ecology Vocab
• The organic
•Carbon Cycle
circulation of
carbon from the
atmosphere, into
organisms, and
back again.
Ecology Vocab
• The process by
•Nitrogen
which certain
Fixation
types of bacteria
can turn nitrogen
gas into
ammonia.
Ecology Vocab
• A local cycle that
begins when
phosphate is
released by the
weathering of
rocks. It is limited
to water, soil, &
ocean sediment.
•Phosphorus
Cycle
Ecology Vocab
• The area in which
an organism lives.
– Includes all the
biotic and abiotic
factors that
interact with the
organism.
•Habitat
Ecology Vocab
• The role an
organism plays
within its habitat.
– All the physical,
chemical, and
biological factors that
a species needs to
survive, stay healthy
and reproduce.
•Niche
Ecology Vocab
• Sequence of biotic
changes that
regenerate a
damaged
community or
changes that create
a community in a
previously
uninhabited area.
•Succession
Ecology Vocab
• A close ecological
relationship
between two or
more organisms of
different species
that live in direct
contact with one
another.
•Symbiosis