Biology Ch.3 Vocab

Front 1

ecology

Back 1

scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment

Front 2

biosphere

Back 2

part of Earth in which life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere

Front 3

species

Back 3

group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring

Front 4

population

Back 4

group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area

Front 5

community

Back 5

assemblage of different populations that live together in a defined area

Front 6

ecosystem

Back 6

collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place, together with their nonliving environment

Front 7

biome

Back 7

group of ecosystems that have the same climate and dominant communities

Front 8

autotroph/ producer

Back 8

organism that can capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds

Front 9

photosynthesis

Back 9

process by which plants and some other organisms use light energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy carbohydrates such as sugars and starches

Front 10

chemosynthesis

Back 10

process by which some organisms, such as certain bacteria, use chemical energy to produce carbohydrates

Front 11

heterotroph/ consumer

Back 11

organism that obtains energy from the foods it consumes

Front 12

herbivore

Back 12

organism that obtains energy by eating only plants

Front 13

carnivore

Back 13

organism that obtains energy by eating animals

Front 14

omnivore

Back 14

organism that obtains energy by eating both plants and animals

Front 15

detrivore

Back 15

organism that feeds on plant and animal remains and other dead matter

Front 16

decomposer

Back 16

organism that breaks down and obtains energy from dead organic matter

Front 17

food chain

Back 17

series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten

Front 18

food web

Back 18

network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem

Front 19

trophic level

Back 19

step in a food chain or food web

Front 20

ecological pyramid

Back 20

diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter within each trophic level in a food chain or food web

Front 21

biomass

Back 21

total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level

Front 22

biogeochemical cycle

Back 22

process in which elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another

Front 23

evaporation

Back 23

process by which water changes from a liquid into an atmospheric gas

Front 24

transpiration

Back 24

loss of water from a plant through its leaves

Front 25

nutrient

Back 25

chemical substance that an organism requires to live

Front 26

nitrogen fixation

Back 26

process of converting nitrogen gas into ammonia

Front 27

denitrification

Back 27

conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas

Front 28

primary productivity

Back 28

rate at which organic matter is created by producers in an ecosystem

Front 29

limiting nutrient

Back 29

single nutrient that either is scarce or cycles very slowly, limiting the growth of organisms in an ecosystem

Front 30

algal bloom

Back 30

an immediate increase in the amount of algae and other producers that results from a large input of a limiting nutrient