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Ecosystems
*7.12AB Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Producers | organisms that use sunlight to make their own food through the process of photosynthesis |
| Consumers | organisms that cannot make their own food and obtain energy by feeding on other organisms |
| Decomposers | organisms that get energy by breaking down organic wastes or dead organisms, returning raw materials to the soil and water |
| Trophic Level | feeding level in an ecosystem |
| Energy Pyramid | diagram that shows the amount of energy that moves from one trophic level to another in a food web |
| Nutrients | substances that an organism needs to carry out its life processes |
| Biosphere | system on Earth containing all living things, & living/ nonliving factors needed for life on Earth; contains all ecosystems |
| Ecosystem | biotic and abiotic factors provided to support specific populations in a community |
| Biotic Factor | living or once living part of an ecosystem |
| Abiotic Factor | non-living part of an Ecosystem. Examples include water, space, and many others |
| 10% Rule | as energy flows from one trophic level to the next in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy is transferred, with the rest lost as heat or used for life processes |
| Biomass | total quantity or weight of organisms in a given area or volume |
| Sustainability | ability of an ecosystem to maintain itself, ensuring its continued existence, balance, and productivity over time |
| Primary Consumer | organisms that get their energy by feeding on producers in the food chain |
| Secondary Consumer | organism that gets their energy by feeding on primary consumers (herbivores) in the food chain |
| Tertiary Consumer | organisms that get their energy by eating secondary consumers |
| Herbivore | animal that only eats plants or plant products |
| Carnivore | animal that eats other animals |
| Omnivore | animal that eats both animals and plants; some will hunt and eat their food; others are scavengers and will eat dead matter |
| Heterotroph | organism that must consume other organisms to obtain energy for growth and survival |
| Autotroph | organism capable of synthesizing its own organic nutrients from inorganic substances |
| Energy Flow | movement of chemical energy through the trophic levels of an ecosystem, starting with sunlight and decreasing as it moves to higher levels |
| Food Chain | linear sequence of organisms through which nutrients and energy pass as one organism eats another |
| Food Web | complex network of interconnected feeding relationships showing how energy and nutrients circulate through an ecosystem |
| Carbon | chemical element serving as the fundamental building block for all known life |
| Carbon Cycle | process by which atoms of carbon are exchanged among the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth |
| Matter | anything that possesses mass and occupies physical space |
| Nitrogen Fixation (Cycle) | process of converting atmospheric nitrogen gas into ammonia or other nitrogenous compounds that can be utilized by living organisms |
| Phosphorus Cycle | process by which phosphorus moves through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere |
| Nutrient Recycling | process by which dead matter is broken down by decomposers and converted back into usable forms, allowing essential elements to be reused by living organisms |
Created by:
trauberk
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