Study of interactions between organisms and their environments.
Biosphere life-supporting layer of EarthBiotic factors all living organisms in a biosphere
Nonliving factors in an environmentExamples:Air currentsTemperatureMoistureLightSoil
Habitatthe natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.Nichea position or role taken by a kind of organism within its community. Antelope Habitat: grassland, savannah, etc.Niche: primary consumerKangarooHabitat: woodlands, grassy plainsNiche: primary consumer
Producers Autotrophs capture energy from sunlightConsumers Heterotrophs rely on other organisms for energyHerbivores eat only plantsCarnivores eat animalsOmnivores eat living plants and animalsDetritivores -eat dead plants and animals
Producerautotroph which captures energy from sunlight Primary consumer (herbivores, detritivores)gets energy from eating producersexamplesdeer, pill bugsSecondary consumer (carnivores, omnivores, detritivores) get most or all energy from eating primary consumersexamplesfox, raccoon, catfishTertiary consumers (carnivores, detritivores)get most or all energy from eating secondary consumersexampleseagles, vulturesQuaternary consumertop level (apex) predators that eat all consumers but have no natural predatorsexamplesorcas, lionsDecomposersbreak down organic matter (leftovers of dead plants and animals)examplesfungi, bacteria
Food chain a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten
Food web the feeding relationships that form a network of complex interactions (more realisticwhy?)
Trophic level each step in a food chain or food web
Food WebQuaternary consumers1234
Mutualismboth species benefit from the relationshipExamplesrhino & oxpecker, E. coli & human gut
Commensalismone organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmedExamplesclownfish & sea anemones, spanish moss growing on trees
Parasitismone organism benefits and the other is harmedExamplestapeworms in your intestines, wasp larvae in caterpillar
Energy pyramid shows the relative amount of energy available at each trophic levelSunlight is the main source of energy.Energy passes from one level to another in only one direction. Matter passes from level to level in a cycle (the circle of life).
Biomass pyramid represents the amount of living organic matter at each trophic level
Pyramid of numbers shows the relative number of individual organisms at each trophic level
Only 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next.Example:It takes 100 kgs of plant materials (producers) to support 10 kgs of herbivoresIt takes 10 kgs of herbivores to support 1 kg of 1st level predatorThe other 90% is used up in life processes or released as heat
