Vocabulary for Test 6

Here's the vocabulary that could be on Vocabulary Test 6, which will be next week.

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