| Term | Definition |
|---|
| AQUIFER | an underground layer of rock and sand that contains water |
| CARNIVORE | any organism that eats other consumers (sometimes referred to as "meat eaters") |
| CONSUMER | any organism that cannot produce its own food and must, therefore, get its energy by eating, or consuming, other organisms |
| DECOMPOSER | organisms such as fungi and bacteria that feed on dead material causing the chemical breakdown of the material |
| DREDGING | the removal of sediment from a channel to produce sufficient depths for navigation |
| ESTUARY | an environment where terrestrial, freshwater, and seawater (saline) habitats overlap |
| FOOD CHAIN | transfer of food energy from plants to one or more animals; a series of plants and animals linked by their food relationships |
| FOOD WEB | a series of linked food chains |
| FRESHWATER MARSH | grassy wetlands that occur along rivers and lakes; dominated by grasses, reeds, rushes, and sedges |
| GLOBAL WARMING | an increase of the earth's temperature by a few degrees resulting in an increase in the volume of water which contributes to sea-level rise |
| HERBIVORE | any organism that eats only producers (plants) |
| MARSH | an environment where terrestrial and aquatic habitats overlap; a wetland dominated by grasses |
| OMNIVORE | any organism that eats both plants and animals |
| PREDATOR | an animal that lives by capturing other animals for food |
| PREY | an animal that is killed and eaten by another animal |
| PRODUCER | any organism that is capable of producing its own food, usually through photosynthesis |
| SCAVENGER | an animal that eats the dead remains and wastes of other animals and plants |
| SPOIL | the material removed from channels and canals by dredging |
| SWAMP | forested low, spongy land generally saturated with water and covered with trees and aquatic vegetation. |
| WATERSHED | an area drained by a river. |
| WETLANDS | land areas that are wet due to a close relationship to a body of water or groundwater, or land areas that are flooded regularly; they support vegetation adapted for life in saturated soil conditions |
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