Ecology Vocabulary (Part A: Basics and Relationships) Make cards for the words you got wrong…. use the examples provided or think of your own!

Pertaining to the nonliving factors playing a role in environment abiotic factors Pertaining to the nonliving factors playing a role in environment

autotroph (producer) Makes own food (Ex) plants

biotic factors Pertaining to the living factors playing a role in environment

carnivore an organisms that eats meat only

biome a complex community characterized by distinctive plants, animals and climate

carrying capacity maximum population of a particular organism an environment can support

commensalism A relationship in which one member benefits and the other is NOT harmed and does NOT benefit

population a group of living things interacting with one another in a specific region

competition the struggle among organisms both of the same and different species for food, mate and other vital requirements

Consumer (heterotroph) an organism, like an animal, that consumes or feeds on other animals

decomposer breaks down dead organisms and turns them into simpler substances (ex) bacteria

ecology branch of biology dealing with interactions between living and nonliving factors in an environment

ecosystem system formed by the interactions of a community of organisms and their environment (living and non-living things)

energy pyramid show the amount of energy in each level of an ecosystem (bottom of pyramid is biggest - therefore has most energy)

food chain series of organisms interrelated by their feeding habits. (arrows point from the MOST energy to the LEAST energy)

food web Made up of two or more food chains

habitat the natural environment of an organism; place natural for food and other resources of an organism

herbivore an organism that eats plants only

host an organism from which a parasite receives nutrition/resources

limiting factor any variable that slows the growth or activities of an organism

mutualism A relationship in which each member benefits from the relationship

niche the role of an organism in the community

omnivore eats both plants and animals

parasite organism that lives on or in another organism causing harm

parasitism a relationship in which one member benefits and the other is harmed

population a single type of an organism in a given location

population density number of organisms per unit of area

predator an organism that captures and feeds on the other organism

prey the organism that IS captured and eaten for food by a carnivorous animal

scavenger feeds on dead animals (ex) vulture

symbiosis a relationship between two or more species which are living in the same area, in which at least one organism benefits. (there are different kinds, for example, commensalism, mutualism, parasitism, predation)