OFL Biology Unit 7

using computers and mathematical models to describe and model nature; scientists manipulate different model variables to learn about organisms or whole ecosystems

nonliving things or factors in an environment that may impact the survival of a living thing

variety of living things in an ecosystem; a higher number of different species means there is more biodiversity.

species that has an unusually large effect on its ecosystem and holds together a dynamic ecosystem, like elephants and beavers

organisms that get their energy from nonliving resources and make their own food; a.k.a. autotrophs. They provide the energy in an ecosystem. Most producers use sunlight

consumers. organisms that get their energy by eating other living or once-living resources

process by which an organism forms carbohydrates using chemicals, rather than light, as an energy source

a single sequence that links species by their feeding relationships

organisms that eat dead organic matter and break it down into simpler compounds. They are important in an ecosystem because they return important nutrients back into the environment

model that shows the complex network of feeding relationships and the flow of energy within and sometimes beyond an ecosystem.

water cycle; circular pathway of water on Earth from the atmosphere, to the surface, below the ground, and back.

cycles that depend on photosynthesis

the circular pathway of carbon flowing from the environment to living organisms and back again.

process in which certain types of bacteria convert gaseous nitrogen into ammonia

herbivores; first consumer above the producer trophic level

carnivores that eat herbivores

levels of nourishment in a food chain; carnivores are at the highest level, herbivores are at the second level, producers are at the bottom first level.

diagram that compares energy used by producers, primary consumers, and other trophic levels. the pyramid shows how available energy is distributed among trophic levels; energy levels on the bottom is largest, and energy is progressively lost as it moves up the pyramid

competition of two species competing for the same resources; one will be pushed into another ecological niche, die out, or experience divergent evolution

species that occupy similar ecological niches but live in different geographical regions

process by which one organism captures and feeds upon another organism

a symbiotic relationship in which one organism receives an ecological benefit from another organism that neither benefits nor is harmed from the relationship.

relationship in which one organism benefits while the other is harmed; the host is kept alive for days or years

generalized diagram showing the number of surviving members over time from a measured set of births; gives information about the life history of a species

movement of individuals into population from another population

the maximum number of individuals of a particular species that the environment can normally and consistently support; changes in the environment can lead to changes in the carrying capacity

limiting factors that are affected by the number of individuals in a given area; competition, predation, parasitism, and disease are DDLF

factor in the environment that limit a population's growth regardless of the density of the population

the first organisms that live in a previously uninhabited area; typical examples are lichens and some mosses

reestablishment of a damaged ecosystem in an area where the soil was left intact

measurement of the number of individuals living in a given space. Population density=number of individuals/area of the space

species will live at specific distances from one another due to territoriality and competition for limited resources

immigration, births, emigration, deaths

type of growth in population that occurs when a population size increases dramatically over a period of time

a population begins with a period of slow growth followed by a brief period of exponential growth before leveling off at a stable size

interspecies interaction in which both organisms benefit from one another