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Chapter 3 Ecosystems
cards for crossword
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| ecology | the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment, or surroundings |
| levels of organization (organism->population->community->ecosystem->BIOME->biosphere) | Species, populations, communities, ecosystem, biome |
| biome | ecosystems that have the same climate and dominant communities |
| species | a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring |
| producer | an organism that makes its own food |
| photosynthesis | use light energy from sun to power chemical reactions that convert carbon dioxide and water and oxygen and energy rich carbohydrates |
| chemosynthesis | when organisms use chemical energy to produce carbohygrates |
| consumer | organisms that rely on other organisms for their energy and food supply |
| herbivore | eat plants |
| carnivore | eat animals |
| omnivore | eat plants and animals |
| detritivore | eat plant and animal remains and other dead matter |
| decomposer | break down organic matter |
| food chain | a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten |
| food web | when the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem form a network of complex interactions |
| cellular respiration | the way cells turn food into chemical energy |
| trophic level | each step in a food chain or food web |
| ecological pyramid | relative amounts of energy available at each trophic level |
| biogeochemical cycle | elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another through these cycles |
| limiting nutrient | when an ecosystem is limited by a single nutrient that is scarce or cycles very slowly |
| algal bloom | when an aquatic ecosystem receives a large input of a limiting nutrient |