Unit 3: Ecosystems

Front 1

System

Back 1

group of parts that work together as a unit

Front 2

Ecosystem

Back 2

system made up of living things and their environment

Front 3

Population

Back 3

a group of the same species living in the same place at the same time

Front 4

Community

Back 4

group of organisms living together and interacting

Front 5

Habitat

Back 5

a place where every population lives in an ecosystem

Front 6

Niche

Back 6

role of an organism in its habitat

Front 7

Producer

Back 7

organisms that use sunlight to make the food they need from carbon dioxide and water

Front 8

Consumer

Back 8

organisms that must eat to get the energy they need

Front 9

Decomposer

Back 9

organisms that break down the tissues of dead organisms
(Examples: bacteria and fungi)

Front 10

Natural Resource

Back 10

any of the useful minerals and other substances that people take from the Earth

Front 11

Weathering

Back 11

the process of rocks being broken into smaller pieces

(Examples:
1. plant roots breaking rock
2. Wind changing the surface
3. Water causing rock to become sooth)

Front 12

Erosion

Back 12

The process in which wind and moving water move bits of rock

Front 13

Deposition

Back 13

the process of dropping, or depositing, sediment in a new location

Front 14

Humus

Back 14

new soil created from rotting plant and animal materials

Front 15

Fertile

Back 15

able to support plant growth

Front 16

Soil Conservation

Back 16

saving soil

Front 17

Succession

Back 17

the process of gradual changes in an ecosystem

Front 18

Reclamation

Back 18

repairing some of the damage done to an ecosystem

Front 19

Renewable Resource

Back 19

a resource that is replaced as it is used

Front 20

Nonrenewable resource

Back 20

a resource that cannot be readily replaced once it is used

Front 21

Conservation

Back 21

careful and wise use of natural resources

Front 22

Preservation

Back 22

maintaining and area in its natural condition

Front 23

Trash

Back 23

material to be thrown away, solid waste

Front 24

Garbage

Back 24

wastes, like food, that are likely to decompose

Front 25

Recycle

Back 25

to make new products out of used materials

Front 26

Reduce

Back 26

to cut down on the amout of trash we produce

Front 27

Predator

Back 27

a meat-eating animal that catches and feeds on other animals

Front 28

Prey

Back 28

an animal that is eaten by other animals

Front 29

Herbivore

Back 29

first-level consumers that eat producers

Front 30

Carnivore

Back 30

second-level consumers that eat first-level consumers (Some carnivores eat other carnivores)

Front 31

Omnivore

Back 31

third-level consumers that eat first and second-level consumers and producers