Ecology Basics
contains the combined portions of the planet in which all of life exists, including land, water, and air
What is the biosphere?
a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten
What is a food chain?
the main energy source for life on Earth
What is sunlight?
atoms of the same element that differ in the number of neutrons they contain
What are isotopes?
the process by which water changes from liquid form to an atmospheric gas
What is evaporation?
a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring
What is a species?
organisms that rely on other organisms for their energy and food supply
What are heterotrophs? (or consumers)
use energy from sunlight or chemicals to produce food
What are autotrophs? (or producers)
formed when one or more electrons are transferred from one atom to another
What is an ionic bond?
single nutrient that either is scarce or cycles very slowly, limiting the growth of organisms in an ecosystem
What is a limiting nutrient?
assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined area
What is a community?
when organisms use chemical energy to produce carbohydrates, rather than light
What is chemosynthesis?
organisms that obtain energy by eating only plants
What are herbivores?
an attraction between molecules of different substances
What is adhesion?
conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas
What is denitrification?
a collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place, together with their nonliving, or physical, environment
What is an ecosystem?
organisms that feed on plant and animal remains and other dead matter
What are detritivores?
a method of describing a network of complex interactions among the various organisms in an ecosystem
What is a food web?
weak acids or bases that can react with strong acids or bases to prevent sharp, sudden changes in pH
What are buffers?
process of converting nitrogen gas into ammonia
What is nitrogen fixation?
three basic research approaches used by ecologists
What are observing, experimenting, and modeling?
what each step in a food chain or food web is called
What is a trophic level?
organism that breaks down and obtains energy from dead or organic matter. Example: Bacteria and fungi
What is a decomposer?
proteins that act as biological catalysts
What are enzymes?
three prominent nutrient cycles that play especially prominent roles in the biosphere
What are the carbon cycle, the nitrogen cycle, and the phosphorus cycle?