Parts of an ecosystem
Any organism that performs photosynthesis.
green plants OR autotrophs OR producers
Animal that hunts for its food.
predator
What do “Producers” produce?
glucose
An organism’s role in the ecosystem
niche
All of the energy that is present in an ecosystem comes from this source
sun
Any organism that must obtain food and eat to obtain nutrients.
consumer OR heterotroph
Animal that is hunted and eaten by another animal.
prey
Primary consumers in a food chain must always eat what kind of food?
plants
Process of change that occurs in an ecosystem as new plant and animal life enter (bare rock --> pioneer species --> climax community)
succession
Type of organism that can transform light energy into chemical energy
green plants OR producers OR autotrophs
Any organism that causes dead organisms to decay, recycling nutrients back into the soil.
decomposer
Type of symbiosis where one organism benefits by harming another organism
(tapeworms, lice, etc)
parasitism
Term used to describe animals that eat both plants and other animals
omnivore
Term used to describe a stable ecosystem that has completed succession
climax community
Percentage of calories lost at each step up on the food chain.
90% (10% is passed on)
Term meaning “Organic material” that is present in an ecosystem. This type of factor is either an organism (dead or alive), or some product of an organism (like feces or tree sap).
biotic factor
Type of symbiosis where both organisms benefit from their close interaction.
mutualism
The term used to describe animals that eat producers.
herbivores
Term used to describe a foreign species that enters a new ecosystem and has little competition
invasive species OR exotic species
How energy is lost as it is transferred to the next level of the food chain.
Metabolism of the organism that is eaten OR Heat
Three examples of Abiotic Factors that could be found in an ecosystem.
Water, Carbon Dioxide, Oxygen, Temperature, Terrain, etc.
The type of symbiosis where one organism benefits from a close interaction and the other organism is unaffected.
commensalism
Term used to describe a complicated pattern of overlapping food chains.
food web
Failure of a species to adapt to a changing ecosystem will result in the ___________ of that species
extinction
These two types of organisms must be present in order for an ecosystem to be self-sustaining.
producers and decomposers