Ecosystem Vocabulary
A non-living factor that plays a role in an organism's environment; non-living environmental factors. e.g. A forest fire. e.g. Water
What is an abiotic factor?
What organism makes its own food using energy from the Sun?
What is a Producer?
What is the process called when liquid water changes into water vapour?
What is Evaporation?
A type of food pyramid that is based on the numbers of organisms at each trophic level.
What is a pyramid of numbers?
Are rocks, sunlight and water biotic or abiotic factors?
What is Abiotic?
What do we call an organism that eats only plants?
What is a herbivore?
The term for water evaporating from the surface of leaves
What is transpiration?
What is the term for the variety of living organisms in an ecosystem?
What is Biodiversity?
This sphere of the contains all living organisms found on Earth
What is the biosphere?
In the food chain Grass → Grasshopper → Frog → Snake, which organism is the secondary consumer?
What is a frog?
A tick feeds on a dog and benefits while the dog is harmed. What type of relationship is this?
What is parasitism?
Plants use sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to produce glucose and oxygen.
What are Photosynthesis?
What is an organism called that eats both plants and animals?
What is an Omnivore?
What is a sustainable ecosystem?
This name is used to describe the different feeding levels in a food chain or food web
What is a trophic level?
This is the total number of individuals which can be supported by an ecosystem
What process releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when organisms break down food for energy?
What is Cellular respiration?
This term describes an organism that feeds on dead and decaying matter, returning nutrients to the soil
What is a decomposer?
This term is used to describe the role an organism plays within its ecosystem, in other words, an organisms job
What is a niche?
What happens to the amount of available energy as you move up each trophic level?
What is 10% rule - only about 10% is transferred to the next level.
A bee collects nectar from a flower while helping pollinate it. What type of relationship is this, and how does each benefit?
What is Mutualism? The bee gets food and the flower gets pollinated.
This is the term for atmospheric nitrogen is converted into usable nitrogen compounds by bacteria.
What is Nitrogen fixation?
What type of relationship occurs when two of the same species compete for the same limited resources?
What is intraspecific competition?