Ecosystem Vocabulary

habitat

• The natural environment in which an organism lives.

• A type of food that organisms consume.

• A method of reproduction in animals.

• A place where organisms are kept in captivity.

scavenger

• Animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation.

• Animals that hunt and kill other animals for food.

• Animals that primarily eat plants and fruits.

• Animals that feed on living organisms without killing them.

primary consumer

• Carnivores that feed on herbivores.

• Herbivores that feed on producers.

• Omnivores that eat both plants and animals.

• Decomposers that break down organic matter.

food web

• A simple chain of organisms that eat one another.

• A complex model of the feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem.

• A diagram showing the energy flow in a single species.

• A list of all the organisms in a specific habitat.

community

• A group of individuals living in isolation.

• Many different populations that live together in a defined area.

• A single species inhabiting a region.

• An area with no inhabitants.

parasitism

• A type of symbiosis in which one organism benefits at the expense of another.

• A relationship where both organisms benefit equally.

• A relationship where one organism is harmed while the other is unaffected.

• A type of interaction where organisms compete for the same resources.

biotic

• Refers to non-living components in an ecosystem, such as rocks and water.

• Refers to living components in an ecosystem, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms.

• Refers to the interactions between different species in an ecosystem.

• Refers to the physical environment of an ecosystem.

producer

• Organisms that consume other organisms for energy.

• Organisms such as plants and algae that produce their own food through photosynthesis.

• Organisms that decompose dead matter.

• Organisms that rely on external sources for food.

symbiosis

• A close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms.

• A type of competition between two species for resources.

• A process where one organism benefits at the expense of another.

• A method of reproduction in plants.

commensalism

• A type of symbiosis in which one organism benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed.

• A relationship where both organisms benefit from each other.

• A type of interaction where one organism is harmed and the other is unaffected.

• A relationship where both organisms are harmed.