| A | B |
|---|
| photosynthesis | When an organism uses sunlight to make sugar molecules |
| producer | An organism that makes its own food. |
| consumer | An organism that gets its energy from eating other organisms. |
| phosphorus cycle | The movement of phosphorus from the environment to organisms and then back to the environment. |
| cellular respiration | The process of breaking down food (sugar) to get energy. |
| food chain | Energy is transferred from one organism to another as it eats it. |
| complex community | The final and stable community |
| trophic level | One of the steps in a food chain or food pyramid |
| omnivore | Eats producers and consumers |
| carnivore | Eats other consumers only |
| herbivore | Eats plants only |
| energy pyramid | Shows how energy is lost from one trophic level to the next |
| carbon cycle | The process by which carbon is cycled between the atmosphere, land, water and organisms. |
| algal bloom | Excess nitrogen or phosphorus in an aquatic environment can cause overabundant growth of algae |
| decomposers | Organisms that break down dead organisms to get their food. |
| ecological succession | The gradual process of change and replacement of some or all of the species in a community |
| primary succession | Occurs on a surface where no ecosystem existed before |
| secondary succession | Occurs on a surface where an ecosystem existed before |
| pioneer species | The first organisms to appear |
| food web | Shows many feeding relationships as energy gets transferred. |
