Ecosystem Vocabulary

Terms	Definitions
ecosystem	All the living and nonliving things in an area.
biotic	A living thing is called ___________.
abiotic	A nonliving thing is called _________.
population	All of the same type of species living in the same area.
niche	The job or role that an organism has in a community.
symbiosis	A long term relationship between different species.
habitat	The place where an organism lives.
mutualism	A relationship in which both organisms are helped. (bee and flower)
commensalism	A relationship in which one of the organisms benefits and the other is not benefited or harmed. (whale and barnacle)
parasitism	A relationship in which one organism benefits (wins) and the other is harmed (loses).
host	The organism that gets used for the food source in a parasitic relationship.
scavenger	An animal that survives by eating dead or decaying things.
decompose	To break down and decay.
producer	An organism that is able to produce its own food.
plants	The only organisms in nature that can produce their own food.
consumers	Animals that live off of the food that plants produce.
germinate	Means to sprout.
photosynthesis	The complex food-producing process of plants where they take in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen.
carnivore	A organism that eats only meat.
herbivore	An organism that eats only plants.
omnivore	An organism that eats plants and animals.
community	The group of all populations in an area.
cycle	A repeating process.
aqua	Means of water.
terra	Means of land.
energy pyramid	A diagram that shows the amounts of energy that flow through each level of a food chain.
food chain	The path of energy from one living thing to another. (who eats whom)
interdependent	Organisms that rely on one another.