| Question | Answer |
| a diagram showing the many feeding relationships that are in an ecosystem | food web |
| the process in which energy
from the sun is used by plants to
make sugar molecules (sunlight, carbon dioxide, water make carbohydrates and oxygen) | photosynthesis |
| illustrates the loss of energy
from one trophic level to the next | energy pyramid |
| organisms that get their energy
by eating other organisms | consumers |
| stored carbon from the remains
of plants and animals that died millions of years ago | fossil fuels |
| organisms that make their own food | producers |
| a type of secondary succession that occurs on an abandoned farm when a farmer stops cultivating a field, grasses and
weeds quickly grow and cover the abandoned land. | old-field succession |
| a part of the carbon cycle | atmospheric CO2 |
| results from excessive use of fertilizers | algal bloom |
| organisms that transform atmosphereic nitrogen into usable nitrogen compounds | nitrogen-fixing bacteria |
| part of the nitrogen cycle | atmospheric N2 |
| transfer of energy from one organism to another | food chain |
| What are the first
organisms to colonize any
newly available area
called? | pioneer species |
| Which of the following is
a producer that breaks
down rock? | lichen |
| Humans are affecting the
balance of the carbon
cycle by | burning fossil fuels |
| What is a pattern of
change that occurs on a
surface where an
ecosystem has previously
existed? | secondary succession |
| What do deep-ocean
bacteria use to make their
food? | hydrogen sulfide |
| Which of the following is
an herbivore?
a. cow
b. lion
c. bear
d. grass | cow |
| Which of the following is
a producer?
a. oak tree
b. raccoon
c. cockroach
d. human | oak tree |
| Which of the following is
a process in the cell where
by glucose and oxygen
produce carbon dioxide,
water, and energy?
a. photosynthesis
b. cellular respiration
c. synthesis
d. decomposition | cellular respiration |
| Which of the following
organisms would be found
at the top of an energy
pyramid?
a. alga
b. krill
c. leopard seal
d. killer whale | killer whale |
| Humans usually get the
phosphorus that their
bodies need from | eating plants and
animals that contain
phosphorus. |
| Producers are also called ________, or self-feeders. | autotrophs |
| Consumers are also called _________, or
other-feeders. | heterotrophs |
| What do herbivores eat? | producers |
| What do carnivores eat | other consumers |
| What do omnivores eat? | producers and consumers |
| Where do decomposers get their energy? | breaking down organic matter from dead organisms |
| The process of breaking down carbohydrates to yield
energy is called | cellular respiration |
| Excess energy is stored as | fat or sugar |
| one of the steps in a food chain or
food pyramid; examples include producers and primary,
secondary, and tertiary consumers. | trophic level |
| Each time energy is transferred, some of the energy is
lost as energy in the form of ____; Therefore, less _____ is available to organisms at
higher trophic levels. | heat; energy |
| How does the energy pyramid work? | Producers form the base of energy pyramid & contain the most energy; pyramid becomes smaller toward top, where less energy is available |
| the movement of carbon from the
nonliving environment into living things and back to the
environment. | carbon cycle |
| Carbon is the essential component of ____, ____, and _______which make up all organisms. | proteins, fats, and
carbohydrates, |
| Carbon molecules may form deposits of coal, oil, or
natural gas, which are known as | fossil fuels |
| Increased levels of carbon dioxide contribute to _____ _____. | climate
change. |
| the process in which nitrogen
circulates among the air, soil, water, plants, and animals
in an ecosystem. | nitrogen cycle |
| All organisms need nitrogen to build______, which are
used to build new cells. | proteins |
| ________ makes up 78 percent of the gases in the
atmosphere. | Nitrogen |
| Where do nitrogen-fixing bacteria live? | in nodules on roots of plants called legumes, which include beans, peas, & clover. The bacteria use sugar provided by the legumes to produce nitrogen containing compounds such as nitrates. Excess nitrogen fixed by the bacteria is released into the soil. |
| cyclic movement of phosphorus from the environment to organisms and then back to the environment. | Phosphorous Cycle |
| Plants get the phosphorus they need from ____ & _____,
while animals get their phosphorus by _____ plants or
other animals that have eaten plants. | soil and water; eating |
| Excess nitrogen and phosphorus can cause rapid growth
of _____. | algae |
| Why is excess algae bad? | It chokes the oxygen out of the water, which fish and other living organisms depend on. |
| a gradual process of change
and replacement of the types of species in a community.
Each new community that arises often makes it harder
for the previous community to survive. | ecological succession |
| a type of succession that occurs on a surface where no ecosystem existed before. It begins in an area that previously did not support life (ex. new islands, areas exposed when glaciers retreat); much slower than secondary succession. | primary succession |
| a species that colonizes an
uninhabited area and that starts an ecological cycle in
which many other species become established. | pioneer species |
| occurs on a surface where an ecosystem previously existed; one community replaces another community that's been destroyed. (ex. ecosystems that have been disturbed/disrupted by humans, animals, or by natural process (floods, storms, etc.) | secondary succession |
| the final, stable community in
equilibrium with the environment. | climax community |
| How can forest fires be beneficial? | Minor forest fires remove accumulations of brush that would otherwise contribute to major fires that burn out of control. Some animal species depend on occasional fires because the feed on the vegetation that sprouts after a fire has cleared the land. |
