Topic 2 - The Ecosystem - Key words

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International Baccalaureate Environmental Systems & Societies (Topic 2 - The Ecosystem) Flashcards on Topic 2 - The Ecosystem - Key words, created by Sarah-Karolina V on 19/04/2014.
Sarah-Karolina V
Flashcards by Sarah-Karolina V, updated more than 1 year ago
Sarah-Karolina V
Created by Sarah-Karolina V about 10 years ago
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Resource summary

Question Answer
biosphere the part of the Earth inhabited by organisms
ecosystem a community of interdependent organisms and the physical environment they inhabit
Biotic living part of of an ecosystem (e.g the community)
abiotic the non-living part of an ecosystem (e.g air, wind, temperature, water, soil, climate)
producer plants etc.
primary consumer herbivores
secondary consumer carnivores
tertiary consumer top carnivore
trophic level the position that an organism occupies in a food chain
pyramid of numbers represents the number of organisms in coexisting in an ecosystem
pyramids of biomass represents the amount of biological mass at each trophic level
species a group of organisms that interbreed and capable of producing fertile offspring
population a group of organisms of the same species living in the same ares at the same time with the capability of interbreeding
community a group of populations living and interacting with each other in a common habitat
habitat the environment in which a species normally lives
niche is a species' share of a habitat and resources - this is specific to the one specie
mutualism an interaction in which both species benefit
Parasitism relationship where one organism - the parasite - benefits at the expense of another - the host
dichotomous keys a methode used to identify organisms
Biome a collection of ecosystems sharing similar climatic conditions
photosynthesis the process by which plants transform carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen in the presence of light energy and chlorophyl
respiration this is the release of energy from food in the form of breaking down glucose using oxygen, releasing carbon dioxide, water and energy
Gross productivity the total gain in energy or biomass per unit area or per unit time
net productivity the gain in energy or biomass per unit are or time, remaining after loss of respiratory losses
primary productivity the gain in energy or biomass per unit are or time by producers. could be gross or net
secondary productivity the gain in energy or biomass per unit are or time by consumers through feeding and absorption.
limiting factor they restrict the growth of a population or prevent it from growing any further
carrying capacity this is the maximum number of species that can be sustainably supported by a given environment.
Density dependant factors these are limiting factors that are related to populations density. they are biotic factors. e.g and can be internal or external
density-independant factors these are abiotic limiting factors therefore do not depend on population size
K - strategists species that produce and small number of offspring thus increasing their survival rate and adapting them for living in longterm climax communities
r - strategists species that tend produce a large number of offspring so that they are well adapted to colonise new habitats rapidly.
succession this is the process of change over time in a community. changes within organisms often cause changes in the physical environment thus allowing another community to become established replacing the former one through competition
sere the set of communities that succeed one other over time over the course of succession at a given location
Zonation the arrangement of plants communities into parallel bands in response to change over distance - relates to climate and latitude or altitude
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