| A | B |
|---|
| Ecology | Study of the relationships and interactions of living things with one another and with their non-living enviroment |
| Eco- | environment/habitat |
| -ology | Study of |
| Interdependent | they need each other |
| Biotic/organic | All living things (plants, animals, bacteria, etc.) in the natural environment |
| abiotic/inorganic | nonliving things (ex. air, water, soil, light) in the natural environment. |
| Ecosystem | group of organisms in an area that interact with each other and with their nonliving environment |
| commmuity | all living organisms in an area. (ex. alll types of plants, animals, bacteria, fungi) |
| Population | group of the same type of organisms in an area |
| population density | a measurement of the number of individuals of a species in a certain area. (ex. number of Karner Blue Butterflies in the Pine Bush. |
| Habitat | place in which an organism lives |
| niche | role of an organism in a community. (ex. bee's niche is to pollinate flowers) |
| food chain | shows how the groups of organisms within an ecosystem get their food and energy. Plants are the first link. (ex. algae > shrimp>whale) |
| food web | made of all the food chains in an ecosystem that are connected |
| food group | is made up of all living things that get their food in the same way (consumers producers, decomposers) |
| producers | Have chlorophyll. Only organisms that can make food energy from sun energy. Process is photosynthesis. A chemical change occurs during photosynthesis. |
| consumers | consumes or uses food that was made by the producer |
| herbivores | Plant eaters. Largest group of consumers (ex.deer, rabbits, mice) |
| carnivores | Flesh eaters (ex. lions weasels) |
| scavenger | feed on dead animals(vulture, crows) |
| omnivores | Variety eaters. Eat plants and animals (ex. people, pigs, bears) |
| parasite | feed on other living things without killing them. (ex. Tick is a parasite on a deer) |
| host | fed on by parasites. (ex. Deer is the host for the tick) |
| decomposers | cause any dead plant or animal to decay. (ex. bacteria, fungi(mold, mushrooms, etc.) |
