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Ecosystems
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| adaptation | a physical feature or a behaviour that helps an animal to survive |
| genetic diversity | the diversity within the genes in a particular population or species |
| species diversity | the variety of different species that exist in a particular habitat or living space |
| ecosystem diversity | the different ecosystems that exist within a geographical location |
| the importance of biodiversity | the greater the biodiversity of an ecosystem the more stable it is |
| competition | organisms competing for the same resources |
| predation | when an organism captures and feeds on another organism |
| predator | hunter |
| prey | hunted |
| symbiosis | any relationship where two species live closely together |
| mutualism | both species benefit from a relationship |
| commensalism | one member of a symbiotic relationship benefits and the other is neither helped or harmed |
| parasitism | one creature benefits and one creature is harmed |
| producers | make their own food via photosynthesis |
| consumers | obtain their energy by eating other organisms or parts of them |
| herbivores | eat plants |
| carnivores | eat animals |
| omnivores | eat plants and animals |
| detritivores | eat decomposing organic matter |
| physical adaptation | physical features of a plant or animal that improve its chance of survival in its environment |
| behavioural adaptation | affects the way a plant or animal acts |
| natural selection | the process whereby plants and animals better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring |
| migration | when an animal moves from one place to another at certain times of the year |
| hibernation | when an animals body temperature, breathing and heart rate all slow down to conserve energy |
| classification | the process of grouping things by their similarities |
| dichotomous key | a chart used to classify things by giving two choices at each step |
| order of classification | domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species |
| way to remember the order of classification | dear king Phillip came over for good spaghetti |
| scientific name | the name for a species used by scientists around the world |
| bioshphere | made up of the parts of Earth where life exists |
| habitat | the natural home or environment of a plant, animal, or other organism |
| species | A group of organisms in a population that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring |
| population | a group of individuals of the same species living and interbreeding within a given area |
| communitty | a group or association of populations of two or more different species occupying the same geographical area at the same time |
| endemic | a species only being found in a single defined geographic location |
| phenotype | physical characteristic |
| genotype | an organisms unique sequence of DNA |
| niche | the role an organism plays in a community |
| abiotic factor | non living factor of an ecosystem |
| biotic factor | living factor of an ecosystem |
| limiting factor | anything that constrains a population's size and slows or stops it from growing |
| scavenger | an organism that mostly consumes decaying meat or rotting plant material |
| biomass | a measure of the total mass of living material in each trophic level |
| energy flow | the flow of energy through living things within an ecosystem |
| photosynthesis | the process by which plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create oxygen and energy in the form of sugar |
| food web | describes who eats whom in the wild |
| trophic Level | the position an organism occupies in a food web |
| basic resources needed to carry out life processes | optimum temperature, oxygen, water, breeding sites, shelter |
| domain | archaea, bacteria, eukarya |
| kingdom | animalia, plantae, protista fungi, archaea, bacteria |
| phylum | a group of similar classes |
| class | a group of similar orders |
| order | a group of similar families |
| family | a group of similar genus |
| genus | a group of similar species |
| reproductive strategies | Giving birth to live young, laying eggs, methods of caring for young, and reproducing asexually |
| successful survival | survival to reproductive age, reproduce and have enough offspring to ensure survival of the next generation |
| structural adaptation examples | body coverings, teeth, method of movement, camouflage, mimicry |
| camouflage | organisms use it to disguise their appearance, usually to blend in with their surroundings |
| mimicry | when one species of animal resembles another species |
| physiological adaptation examples | venom, poison, being nocturnal, concentrated urine, specialised digestion, temperature regulation |
| human impact in ecosystems | irrigation, deforestation, fertilizer run off, sewerage, burning of fossil fuels, introduced pathogens, agriculture |
| secondary succession | when plants and animals recolonize a habitat after a major disturbance |
| primary succession | the colonization of new sites by communities of organisms |
Created by:
justineforrest
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