| Term | Definition |
|---|
| ecology | the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment, or surroundings |
| biosphere | combined portions of the planet in which all of life exists, including land, water, and air, or atmosphere |
| species | a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring |
| populations | groups of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area |
| communities | different populations that live together in a defined area |
| ecosystem | a collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place, together with their nonliving, or physical, environment |
| biome | a group of ecosystems that have the same climate and similar dominate communities |
| observing, experimenting & modeling | three basic approaches to ecological research |
| individual, population, community, ecosystem, biome, biosphere | the six levels of organization that ecologists study in order from smallest to largest |
| sunlight | the main energy source for life on earth |
| autotrophs | use energy from the sun to produce their own food |
| producers | another name for autotrophs or organisms that make their own food |
| photosynthesis | a process by which autotrophs use light energy to power chemical reactions that convert carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and energy-rich carbohydrates such as sugars and starches |
| chemosynthesis | process by which organisms use chemical energy to produce carbohydrates |
| herbivores | eat only plants |
| carnivores | eat only animals |
| omnivores | eat both plants and animals |
| detritivores | feed on plant and animal remains and other dead material |
| decomposers | break down organic matter |
| heterotrophs | organisms that rely on other organisms for their energy and food supply |
| consumers | another name for heterotrophs |
| food chain | a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten |
| food web | network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem |
| trophic level | each step in a food chain or food web |
| ecological pyramid | a diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level in a food chain or food web |
| 10% | amount of energy available within one trophic level that is transferred to organisms at the next trophic level |
| biomass | the total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level |
| biogeochemical cycles | connect biological, geological and chemical aspects of the biosphere |
| evaporation | the process by which water chnges from liquid form to an atmospheric gas |
| transpiration | loss of water from a plant through its leaves |
| nutrients | all the chemical substancs that an organism needs to sustain life |
| nitrogen fixation | process of converting nitrogen gas into ammonia |
| denitrification | conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas |
| primary productivity | the rate at which organic matter is created by |
| limiting nutrient | an ecosystem is limited by a single nutrient that is scarce or cycles very slowly |
| algal bloom | an immediate increase in the amount of algae and other producers in an aquatic ecosystem when it receives a large input of a limiting nutrient |
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