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Ecology Vocabulary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Microorganism | an organism that is too small to be seen with the naked eye |
| Decomposition | The process of breaking down a substance into its smaller components of organic matter; decay |
| Nitrogen Fixation | Bacterial action that results in the combination of atmospheric nitrogen with other elements making nitrogen available for use by plants. |
| Health | an organisms's state of being free from disease or ailment |
| Fermentation | a metabolic process that converts sugars to acids, gasses, and /or alcohol to produce ATP; does not involve an electiron transport chain and produces less ATP than respiration |
| Extremophile | any organism that lives and thrives in extreme enviroments |
| Yeast | a single-celled fungus; some species are beneficial, and others are parasitic. |
| Primary Succession | the development of an ecological community in a previously uninhabited lovation |
| Secondary Succession | the development of an ecological community in an area that was once inhabited, but experienced devastation |
| Climax Community | the dynamically stable ecological community representing the final stage of ecological succession |
| Natural Disaster | a force of nature that results in catastrophic consequences |
| Habitat Destruction | the alteration of the area and conditions in which and organism lives so that the organisms can no longer live in them |
| Limiting Factor | an environmental factor that limits the growth of a population |
| Biodiversity | the sum of the different forms of living things in a given area or population |
| Pioneer Species | the first plant species to grow during primary succession |
| Predator | an organism that captures and consumes another organism for nourishment |
| Prey | an organisms that is captured and consumed by another organism for nourishment |
| Parasitism | the symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits while the other is harmed |
| Parasite | an organism that lives in or on another organism (host) and causes harm to the host |
| Host | an organism within or upon which another organism (parasite, commensal, or mutualist) resides |
| Niche | the ecological role played by an organism |
| Habitat | the area and conditions in which an organism lives |
| Interspecific | activity occurring between two or more species |
| Intraspeciific | activity occurring within a species |
| Pollinator | something that carries pollen from the anther to the stigma in flowering plants |
| Food Chain | a single linear path of energy transfer through the trophic levels of an ecosystem |
| Food Web | a complex of interconnected food chains showing the trophic interactions in an ecosystem |
| Trophic Level | an organism's position on a food chain |
| Ecological Pyramid | a representation of the organisms in a an ecosystem organized into separate trophic levels with producers at the bottom and top predators at the top |
| Tundra | a biome characterized by vast, treeless plains and extremely cold temperatures |
| Taiga | a biome characterized by its coniferous evergreen forests and cold temperatures |
| Desert | a biome characterized by very low annual rates of precipitaion and sparse vegetation |
| Rain Forest | a biome characterized by high biodiversity, humid climate, and high annual precipitaion |
| Grasslands | a biome characterized by a primary vegetation of grasses, warm-to-hot climates, and moderate rainfall |
| Temperate Forest | a biome characterized by high biodiversity four distinct seasons, and moderate climate |
| Primary Consumer | an animal that eats the producers |
| Secondary Consumers | an animal that eats the primary consumers |
| Tertiary Consumer | an animal that eats the secondary consumers |
| Quaternary Consumer | an animal that eats the tertiary consumers |
| Nutrient Cycle | cycling of organic and inorganic matter through living organisms and the evcironment |
| Ammonificaiton | the process of converting nitrogen into ammonium by bacteria |
| Carbon Cycle | the continuous movement of carbon among the abiotic environment and living things |
| Denitrification | the reduction of oxidized forms of nitrogen (nitrates), ultimately resulting in molecular nitrogen |
| Detrivore | an organism that feeds on dead or decaying plant or animal remains |
| Legume | a family of plants including beans, alfalfa, and peas, most of which harbor symbiotic, nitrogen-fixing bacteria in nodules in their roots |
| Lithosphere | the outermost part of the Earth, comprising the crust and the uppermost part of the mantle |
| Nitrification | the biological transformation of ammonia or ammonium to nitrites and nitrates |
| Nitrogen Fixation | bacterial action that results in the combination of atmospheric nitrogen with other elements; making nitrogen available for use by plants |
Created by:
Doerre12
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