| A | B |
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| Adaptations | -structures or behaviors that increases and organism's chances of survival or reproduction in a given environment. |
| Life-Cycle | -stages of development an organism goes through during its life. |
| Species | -a kind of organism; organisms that are very similar to each other and usually reproduce among themselves. |
| Larva | -the juvenile form of certain animals; for example, the caterpillar is the larva of the butterfly. |
| Sexual Dimorphism | -a signifcant difference in the appearance of the sexes within a species. |
| Polymorphism | -the existence of several distinct forms within the same species. |
| Asexual Reproduction | -producing offspring from a single individual; for example, by a cutting or budding. |
| Sexual Reproduction | -a method of producing offpsring by combining special reproductive cells from two individuals. |
| Gametes | -a special reproductive cell; a sperm or an egg cell. |
| Zygote | -a fertilized cell that results from the union of gamets and that can develop into a new organism. |
| Traits | -a characteristic of a living orangism; in the study of inheritance, the term refers to those characteristics inherited from parents. |
| Genes | -a unit of heredity within the nucleus of a cell, containing instructions that control the development of traits. |
| Allele | -a form of a gene. |
| Artificial Selection | -the deliberate change in a species of animals, plants, and other organisms, by breeding together, only those individuals that have the traits desired. |
| Natural Selection | -a process occuring in nature by which individuals that are not well adapted to their environment do not survive. Those that are well adapted do survive to produce more of their kind and, thus, are said to be 'selected'; over time, this process can lead to changes in species (evolution). |
| Kingdoms | -the largest group into which a living thing is classified; the five kingdoms are: Monera, Fungi, Protista, Plantae and Animalia. |
| Multicellular | -organism consisting of more than one cell; cells are specialized to preform different functions. |
| Hierarchial | -a system of classification in which groups at each level are subdivided to produce smaller groups at a level below; for example, phyla are subdivided into classes. |
| Ectotherm | -an animal whose body temperature changes when the temperature of its surrounding environment changes; all living animals living today except birds and mammals are ectotherms. |
| Endodtherm | -aAn animal that maintains a constant body temperature, even if the temperature of its surroundings change; birds and mammals are endotherms. |
| Bryophytes | -a plant that has no true roots or vascular tissue; includes liverworts and mosses; in the phylum Bryophyta |
| Vascular Tissue | -a network of conducting vessels that transport water and dissolved minerals in plants |
| Spores | -tiny reproductive structure of some groups of organisms, such as ferns, bryophytes, and fungi. |
| Ferns | -spore-producing plants with vascular tissuer, which require moisture for sexual reproduction; in the phylum Filicinophyta |
| Rhizomes | -underground stems |
| Frond | -a leaf of a fern |
| Gymnosperms | - seed-bearing plants whose seeds are exposed on the surface of leaves or scales; the most common gymnosperms are conifers. |
| Conifers | - seed-bearing plants produce cones; for example, pine and cedar trees; in the phylum Coniferophyta. |
| Angiosperms | - seed-bearing plants that produce flowers; in the phylum angiospermophyta. |
| Sponges | - simple animals in the phylum Porifera. |
| Poriferan | - an animal with no tissues; the sponges, in the phylum porifera. |
| Cnidarians | - animals with stinging cells, such as jellyfish, corals, sea anemones, and hydra; in the phylum cnidaria. |
| Polyps | - the attached form of a cnidarian, with a cylindrical shape and tentacles facing upwards; for example a sea anemone |
| Medusa | - the free-floating, umbrella-like form of some cnidarians, with tentacles trailing downwards; for example a jellyfish |
| Flatworms | - simple worms, usually with a one-ended digestive system and simple nervous system; for example, tapeworms and planarians; in the phylum platyhelminthes. |
| Roundworms | - slender pointed worms with two-ended digestive system; in the phylum Nematoda |
| Segmented worms | - worms in the phylum annelida. |
| Annelides | - animals whose bodies are divided into a series of similar segments, such as earthworms, leeches, and many sea worms; in the phylum annelida. |
| Molluscs | - Soft-bodied animals, with well-developed systems; most molluscs have a shell; for example, scallops, snails, clams, and squids (whose shells are greatly reduced and are beneath a skin-like covering); in the phylum mollusca. |
| Echinoderms | - animals with spiney skin and radial symmetry; for example sea urchins and starfish; in the phylum Echinodermata. |
| Arthropods | - animals with jointed legs and a hard shell, such as insects, crabs, lobsters, barnacles, millipedes, centipedes, spiders, scorpions, and ticks; in the phylum arthropods |
| Crustaceans | - arthropods with gills and two pairs of antennae; for example, crabs, lobsters, and shrimps; in the class crustacea |
| Arachnids | - animals with eight jointed legs and a hard shell, such as spiders, scorpions, and ticks; in the class arachnida of the phylum arthropoda |
| Centipedes | -arthropods with many segments having one pair of legs per segment; in the class chilopoda. |
| Millipedes | -arthropods with many segments having two pairs of legs per segment; in the class Diplopoda. |
| Insects | -arthropods having distinct body parts; a head, thorax, and abdomen; in the class insecta. |
| Vertebrates | -a member of the largest group of chordate animals, having a bony spinal column or " backbone" protecting the nerve cord. |
| Chordates | -animals that have a hollow cord extending along their back at some stage of their lives; in the phylum Chordata |
| Invertebrate | -an animal that lacks a bony spinal column or "backbone" |
| Jawless Fish | -vertabrates that lack jaws; the group is rare today, including only hagfish and parasitic lamprey |
| Jawed Fish | -vertabrates that live in water, breathe using gills, and have a covering of scales; most fish, both those with cartilaginous skeletons (such as sharks) and those with boney skeletons (such as perch and trout) are in this group |
| Amphibians | -vertebrates such as as frogs or salamanders, that live part their lives in water and part on land ( most lay their eggs in water); in the class Amphibia |
| Reptiles | -vertebrates, such as snakes, turtles, or crocodiles that have dry, scaly skin and lay eggs with a protective covering; in the class reptilia. |
| Birds | -vertebrates that have feathers, lay eggs with a shell, and are endotherms; in the class Aves. |
| Mammals | -vertabrates that have a covering of hair, have mammary (milk-producing) glands to nourish their young, and are endotherms; in the class mammalia. |
