Ecology and Biomes Flashcards
Grade 7 · Science · Flashcards
Key vocabulary and concepts for understanding Earth's biomes and ecological relationships.
Flashcards
- Ecology
- The scientific study of the relationships between living organisms and their environment.
- Biome
- A large region of Earth defined by its climate, plants, and animals — such as desert, rainforest, or tundra.
- Food chain
- A linear sequence showing how energy flows from one organism to the next through feeding relationships.
- Producer
- An organism that makes its own food using sunlight (photosynthesis) or chemicals (chemosynthesis); the base of most food chains.
- Consumer
- An organism that cannot make its own food and must eat other organisms for energy.
- Decomposer
- An organism (like fungi or bacteria) that breaks down dead organic matter and recycles nutrients back into the ecosystem.
- Predator
- An organism that hunts and eats other organisms (prey) for food.
- Symbiosis
- A close, long-term relationship between two different species living in direct contact.
- Mutualism
- A symbiotic relationship where both species benefit — for example, bees pollinating flowers while collecting nectar.
- Parasitism
- A relationship where one organism (the parasite) benefits at the expense of another (the host), often harming it.
- Population
- All the individuals of the same species living in a particular area at the same time.
- Community
- All the different populations of species living and interacting in the same area.
- Abiotic
- Nonliving physical and chemical factors in an environment, such as temperature, water, light, and soil.
- Biotic
- All the living components of an ecosystem, including plants, animals, fungi, and microorganisms.
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