Food Chains & Webs
Organisms that eat producers in the food chain
primary consumers
Maximum number of individuals of a species that an ecosystem can sustainably support.
Carrying capacity
When one species hunts another species
predation
Sphere for all living things
biosphere
Energy source that powers the water cycle
sun
An organism that breaks down dead organic material and retuns nutrient back to soil
Decomposer
A J shape population graph
Exponential growth
A relationship where both species benefit.
Mutualism (+/+)
layer of gases around Earth
atmosphere
Liquid water into water vapour
evaporation
Organisms that make their own food using sunlight.
Producers/autotrophs
Non-living factors that influence living organisms.
Abiotic factors
A tick feeding on a dog is an example of:
parasitism
Rainwater carrying dissolved minerals from mountain rocks down into the ocean is an interaction between these two spheres.
hydrosphere and the geosphere
When plants release water vapour from their leaves
transpiration
The name for a level in a food chain or energy pyramid
trophic
The movement of individuals out of a population.
Emigration
This interaction occurs when two species attempt to use the same resource.
Competition (-/-)
Volcanic eruptions releasing ash into the air represent a direct interaction between these two spheres.
geosphere and atmosphere
Underground layer of permeable rock that holds groundwater.
Aquifer
The percentage of energy passed from one trophic level to the next.
10%
Density-independent
Barnacle attaching to a whale for transport/food is an example of:
commensalism (+/0)
Earthworms burrowing through soil shows interactions between these spheres:
biosphere and geosphere
Solid water directly into gas form
sublimation