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ch3 study
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| ecosystem | all the living and nonliving things in the environment, including there interactions |
| population | all the members of one species in an area |
| community | all the living things in an ecosystem |
| food chain | the path that energy and nutrients flow in an ecosystem |
| food web | the overlapping food chains in an ecosystem |
| predator | an animal that hunts other animals for food |
| prey | a living thing that is hunted for food |
| energy pyramid | a diagram that shows the amount of energy available at each level in an ecosystem |
| limiting factor | any resource that restricts the growth of popultations |
| carrying capacity | the maximum population size that an ecosystem can support |
| habitat | the place where a plant or an animal lives and grows |
| niche | the role of an organism in an ecosystem |
| symbiosis | a relation between two kinds of organisms over time |
| mutualism | a relation between two kinds of organisms that benefits both |
| commensalism | a relation between two kinds of organisms that benefits one without harming the other |
| parasitism | a relationship in which one organism lives in or on another organism and benefits from that relationship while the host organism is harmed |
| adaptation | a characteristic that helps an organism to survive in its environment |
| camouflage | an adaptation in which an animal protects itself against predators by blending in with the environment |
| protective coloration | a type of camouflage in which the color of an animal blends in with its background, protecting the animal against predators |
| protection resemblence | a type of camouflage in which the color, shape, and the texture of an animal blends in with its evironment, protecting it against predators. |
| mimicry | an adaptation in which an animal is protected against predators by its resemblance to another, unpleasant animal |