Vocabulary
- biomass - the total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level
- carnivore - organism that obtains energy by killing and eating animals
- chemosynthesis - process in which chemical energy is used to produce carbohydrates
- consumer - organism that relies on consuming other organisms for its energy and food supply
- decomposer - organism that chemically breaks down and obtains energy from dead organic matter
- detritivore - organism that feeds on plant and animal remains and other dead matter
- herbivore - organism that obtains energy by eating only plants
- heterotroph - organism that obtains energy by consuming other organisms
- omnivore - organism that obtains energy by eating plants and animals
- primary producer - first producer of energy-rich compounds that are later used by other organisms
- scavenger - animal that consumes the caucuses of other animals
- transpiration - loss of water from a plant through its leaves
- trophic level - each step in a food chain or food web
- aphotic zone - dark layer of oceans where sunlight does not penetrate
- benthos - organisms that live attached to or near the bottom of lakes, streams, or oceans
- ecological succession - series of gradual changes that occur in a community following a disturbance
- limiting factor - factors that cause population growth to decrease
- photic zone - sunlight region near the surface of water
- pioneer species - first species to populate an area during success
- plankton - microscopic organisms that live in aquatic environments
- primary succession - succession that occurs in an area in which no trace of a previous community is present
- salinity - the amount of dissolved salt in water
- secondary succession - type of succession that occurs in an area that was only partially destroyed by disturbance
- logistic growth - growth pattern in which a population's growth and then stops following a period of exponential growth
- exponential growth - growth pattern in which the individuals in a population reproduce at a constant rate
- carrying capacity - largest number of individuals of a particular species that a particular environment can support
- limiting factor - factor the causes population growth to decrease
- demographic transition - change in a population from high birth rate to low birth and death rates
- monoculture - farming strategy of planting a single, highly productive crop year after year
- biological magnification - increasing concentration of a harmful substance in organisms at higher trophic levels in a food chain or food web
- biodiversity - total of the variety of organisms in the biosphere; also called biological diversity
- ecological hot spot - small geographic area where significant numbers of habitats and species are in immediate danger of extinction
