4432352889 | Biome | A large region characterized by a specific type of climate and certain types of plant and animal communities. | 0 | |
4432352890 | Savanna | A tropical / subtropical grassland biome with scattered individual trees, large herbivores, and three distinct seasons based primarily on rainfall, maintained by occasional fires and drought. | 1 | |
4432352891 | Desert | A region of little vegetation, either cold or hot, that receives ten inches or less of precipitation each year, long periods without rain, deserts have extreme temperatures. | 2 | |
4432352892 | Tundra | Biome that surrounds the north and south poles; treeless landscape with short, cool summers, and long, very cold winters with short periods of winter sunlight, beneath the topsoil is a layer of permafrost. | 3 | |
4432352893 | Temperate Deciduous Forest | Characterized by warm summers, cool winters, has all four seasons, year-round precipitation and fertile soil. | 4 | |
4432352894 | Conifer | Cone-bearing trees (ie: pine, or fir tree) of middle and high latitudes that are mostly evergreen and that have needle-shaped or scale like leaves. Conifers are able to withstand the long, cold winter season. | 5 | |
4432352895 | Coniferous Forest | Forest populated by cone-bearing evergreen trees; mostly found in the colder northern latitudes. | 6 | |
4432352896 | Flora | All the plant life in a particular region, or period. | 7 | |
4432352897 | Fauna | All of the animal life in a particular region, or period. | 8 | |
4432352898 | Steppe | A climate with partly dry grassland often found on the edges of a desert. It receives less than 20 inches of rain per year. | 9 | |
4432352899 | Pampas | Flat grassland regions in the southern part of South America: A region similar to the Great Plains in the United States. | 10 | |
4432352900 | Prarie | A large area of flat land, or rolling hills covered by grasses and wild flowers but few trees. | 11 | |
4432352901 | Temperate | Climate zones with moderate (warm) temperatures that are located between the tropics and the polar zones. | 12 | |
4432352902 | Permafrost | A layer of permanently frozen subsoil found in the tundra | 13 | |
4432352903 | Alpine Tundra | biome at high mountain altitudes, which has vegetation & climate similar to those of the Arctic tundra (though no permafrost) | 14 | |
4432352904 | Marine | Biome that includes open ocean, seashore, and it covers 75% of the planet. There is a very high salinity level, and a wide variety of animals | 15 | |
4432352905 | Plankton | A general term for the tiny, free-floating or weakly swimming organisms that live in both freshwater and saltwater environments. | 16 | |
4432352906 | Estuary | An area where fresh water from a river mixes with salt water from an ocean; are productive ecosystems because they constantly recieve fresh nutrients from the river and the ocean. | 17 | |
4432352907 | Forest | Large tree and plant filled area that covers 30% of Earth's land surface. Provide habitats, maintain soil, air, and water quality, acts as a carbon sink in biogeochemical cycle. | 18 | |
4432352908 | Intertidal Zone | Part of the shoreline that is under water at high tide and exposed to the air at low tide. | 19 | |
4432352909 | Neritic Zone | Area of ocean that extends from the low-tide line out to the edge of the continental shelf. | 20 | |
4432352910 | Benthic Zone | At the bottom of all aquatic biomes, deep or shallow. Made up of sand and organic and inorganic sediments. | 21 | |
4432352911 | Oceanic Zone | All the water the covers the sea floor except for the continental shelf -water temperature is colder and pressure is greater -strange looking animals live in the dark deeper areas. (Ex. Giant Squid). | 22 | |
4432352912 | Coral Reef | A structure of calcite skeletons built up by coral animals in warm, shallow ocean water. | 23 | |
4432352913 | Open Water Zone | The zone of a lake or pond that extends from the littoral zone out across the top of the water, and that is only as deep as light can reach through the water. | 24 | |
4432352914 | Deep Water Zone | The zone of a lake or pond below the open water zone where no light reaches. | 25 | |
4432352915 | Wetland | An ecosystem in which water either covers the soil or is present at or near the surface of the soil for at least part of the year. | 26 | |
4432352916 | Marsh | A type of wetland featuring grasses, reeds and other plants in shallow water. | 27 | |
4432352917 | Tributary | A stream or river that flows into a larger river. | 28 | |
4432352918 | Freshwater | Aquatic ecosytem that does not contain any saltwater, can be rivers, lakes, streams,ponds, and wetlands. | 29 | |
4432352919 | Littoral Zone | Shallow water near shore that receives enough sunlight to support photosynthesis. May be marine or freshwater; often flowering plants are present. | 30 | |
4432352920 | Brackish Water | More salty than fresh water, and less salty than marine saltwater. It is found in estuaries where freshwater and saltwater mix. | 31 | |
4432352921 | Biosphere | Consists of all life on Earth and all parts of the Earth in which life exists, including land, water, and the atmosphere. | 32 | |
4432352922 | Organism | Individual living thing. | 33 | |
4432352923 | Species | A group of organisms that are closely related, who can mate to produce fertile offspring. All of the cats are feline, but each cat is a different species. | 34 | |
4432352924 | Biodiversity | The number, and variety of living organisms in a given area, during a specific period of time. | 35 | |
4432352925 | Ecosystem | A system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment. | 36 | |
4432352926 | Habitat | Place where an organism lives. | 37 | |
4432352927 | Niche | An organism's particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living. | 38 | |
4432352928 | Abiotic | All of the non-living parts of an ecosystem. | 39 | |
4432352929 | Biotic | All of the living parts of an ecosystem. | 40 | |
4432352930 | Biomass | Total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level. | 41 | |
4432352931 | Herbivore | A consumer that eats only plants. | 42 | |
4432352932 | Carnivore | An animal that eats other animals A consumer that eats only animals. | 43 | |
4432352933 | Omnivore | A consumer that eats both plants and animals. | 44 | |
4432352934 | Producer | An organism that can make its own food. | 45 | |
4432352935 | Consumer | An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms. | 46 | |
4432352936 | Autotroph | An organism that makes its own food. | 47 | |
4432352937 | Heterotroph | An organism that cannot make its own food, it gets food by consuming other living things, or their by-products. | 48 | |
4432352938 | Taiga | A biome in which the winters are cold, but summers are mild enough to allow the ground to thaw, it contains mostly coniferous forests. | 49 | |
4432352939 | Prey | An organism that is hunted, killed and eaten by another organism. | 50 | |
4432352940 | Predator | An animal that hunts, and kills other animals for food. | 51 | |
4432352941 | Population | A group of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area. | 52 | |
4432352942 | Community | A group of interdependent organisms inhabiting the same region and interacting with each other. | 53 | |
4432352943 | Food Web | A diagram that shows the feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem; it contains multiple overlapping food chains. | 54 | |
4432352944 | Food Chain | A diagram that represents how energy in food flows from one organism to the next in an ecosystem. | 55 | |
4432352945 | Energy Pyramid | A diagram that shows the amount of energy that moves from one trophic level to another in an ecosystem. | 56 | |
4432352946 | Limiting Factor | A biotic or abiotic factor that restricts the number, distribution, or reproduction of a population within a community. | 57 | |
4432352947 | Carrying Capacity | Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support. | 58 | |
4432352948 | Predation | An interaction in which one organism captures and feeds on another organism to gain energy. | 59 | |
4432352949 | Competition | Ecological relationship in which organisms compete for available resources. There are 2 types: between organisms within a population, and between different populations. | 60 | |
4432352950 | Symbiosis | A close relationship between two species that benefits at least one of the species. | 61 | |
4432352951 | Mutualism | A relationship between two species in which both species benefit. | 62 | |
4432352952 | Parasitism | A relationship between two organisms of different species where one benefits and the other is harmed. | 63 | |
4432352953 | Commensalism | A relationship between two organisms in which one organism benefits and the other is unaffected. | 64 | |
4432352954 | Co-evolution | Relationship in which 2 organisms change or adapt together over time. | 65 | |
4432352955 | Cooperation | Relationship in which behavior by two or more individuals leads to mutual benefit. | 66 | |
4432352956 | Decomposition | The breaking down of matter into simpler molecules. Typically performed by bacteria. | 67 | |
4432352957 | Carbon Cycle | The movement of carbon from the nonliving environment into living things and back. | 68 | |
4432352958 | Combustion | Burning of fossil fuels and wood, releasing energy and carbon dioxide. | 69 | |
4432352959 | Nitrogen Cycle | The movement of nitrogen from the atmosphere to the soil, to living organisms, and back to the atmosphere. | 70 | |
4432352960 | Water Cycle | The movement of water from Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back. | 71 | |
4432352961 | Photosynthesis | Process used by plants to capture and convert the sun's energy, water, and carbon dioxide into glucose (sugar). | 72 | |
4432352962 | Transpiration | The evaporation of water from the leaves of a plant into the atmosphere. | 73 | |
4432352963 | Succession | The sequence of biotic changes that regenerate a damaged community or create a community in a previously uninhabited area. | 74 | |
4432352964 | Primary Succession | Biotic growth on newly exposed areas (bare,rocky) that were not previously occupied by soil and vegetation. | 75 | |
4432352965 | Secondary Succession | A type of ecological succession that occurs where a disturbance has destroyed an existing biological community but left the soil intact. | 76 | |
4432352966 | Pioneer Species | Creates soil in primary succession (lichen/moss) first species to appear on bare or rocky area. | 77 | |
4432352967 | Nitrogen Fixation | Process in which bacteria in the soil change nitrogen gas into materials that plants can use during photosynthesis. | 78 | |
4432352968 | Evaporation | A physical change from a liquid to a gas at a temperature that is lower than the boiling point. | 79 | |
4432352969 | Condensation | A physical change from a gas to a liquid at cooler temperatures (the opposite of evaporation). | 80 | |
4432352970 | Precipitation | Any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth's surface. | 81 | |
4432352971 | Nitrification | The process by which nitrites and nitrates are produced by bacteria in the soil. | 82 | |
4432352972 | Denitrification | Denitrifying bacteria converts nitrates into gaseous nitrogen that re-enters the atmosphere. | 83 | |
4432352973 | Respiration | The exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between living cells and their environment; this includes breathing and cellular respiration. | 84 | |
4432352974 | Aquifer | An underground area of sediment and rocks that is filled with groundwater. | 85 | |
4432352975 | Pollution | An unwanted change in the environment caused by the introduction of harmful materials, or the production of harmful conditions (chemical, biological, heat, cold, sound). | 86 | |
4432352976 | Renewable Resource | A natural resource that can be replaced at the same rate at which the resource is consumed. | 87 | |
4432352977 | Non-Renewable Resources | A resource that cannot be reused or replaced as quickly as it is used (ex. gems, iron, copper, fossil fuels). | 88 | |
4432352978 | Overpopulation | Term used when the number of people in an area exceeds the capacity of the environment to support life at a decent standard of living. | 89 | |
4432352979 | Conservation | The preservation, wise use, and protection of natural resources. | 90 | |
4432352980 | Recycle | The process of recovering valuable or useful materials from waste or scrap; the process of reusing, or remanufacturing some items. | 91 | |
4432352981 | Percolation | The downward movement of water through soil and rock due to gravity. | 92 | |
4432352982 | Infilration | Process of water seepage into the ground becoming ground water. | 93 | |
4432352983 | Runoff | Part of the water cycle where an excess of water runs down and does not sink into the soil and eventually makes it to the rivers, lakes, and oceans. | 94 | |
4432352984 | Biodegradable | Capable of being broken down by bacteria and other decomposers. | 95 | |
4432352985 | Reduce | To cut down / back on the consumption of; or to use less of a resource. | 96 | |
4432352986 | Reuse | Involves using a resource over and over in the same form. | 97 | |
4432352987 | Deciduous | Falling off or shed at a particular season, stage of growth, etc., as leaves, horns, or teeth; not permanent; transitory. | 98 | |
4432352988 | Polar | A cold air mass that forms north of 50° north latitude or south of 50° south latitude and has high air pressure | 99 | |
4432352989 | Frigid | Intensely cold temperatures; cold in manner; Ex. frigid zone | 100 | |
4432352990 | Tropical | Biome near the equator with warm temperatures, wet weather, and lush plant growth. | 101 | |
4432352991 | Climate | Seasonal pattern of weather conditions in a large geographic area over many years; it does not change rapidly. | 102 | |
4432352992 | Climate Zone | A region in which yearly patterns of temperature, rainfall, and the amount of sunlight are similar throughout. | 103 | |
4432352993 | Grassland | A biome found in the dry temperate interiors of continents. This biome is characterized by rich soil, moderate rainfall, a hot, dry climate, thick grasses, and herds of grazing animals. | 104 | |
4432352994 | Canopy | Dense covering formed by the leafy tops of tall rainforest trees. | 105 | |
4432352995 | Tropical Rain Forest | Biome characterized by hot temperatures, large amounts of rainfall, and high biodiversity,that grows near the equator; it receives large amounts of rain, and has dense growths of tall, leafy trees; the weather is warm and wet year-round; few plants live on the dark forest floor. | 106 | |
4432352996 | Swamp | A type of freshwater wetland that consists of spongy, muddy land full of water. | 107 | |
4432352997 | Holdfasts | Root like structures that some organisms have to help them hold on to rocks. | 108 | |
4432352998 | Sargasso Sea | An area in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean in which green seaweed grows thick. | 109 | |
4432352999 | Treeline | The limit of the area that trees can grow in on Earth. Above it, it's too cold for trees to grow. | 110 |
Ecology Flashcards
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