Download Ecosystems Vocabulary Study Guide

Ecosystems: Vocabulary
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Date: ___________________
1. Ecosystem: ALL the living and non-living things that exist and
interact in an environment
2. Organism: a living thing that is made up of several parts that work
together as a whole
3. Habitat: a place where an organism lives
4. Community: all the organisms living in a place
5. Migration: to move from one place to another
6. Biome: a large area on the Earth's surface with certain types of
animals and plants living there. A biome can also be defined by the
local climate patterns. Some types of biomes are: desert, tundra,
rainforest, grassland, wetlands, forests, oceans.
7. Energy: the ability cause matter to change or move; light and heat
are forms of energy
8. Nutrients: a nourishing substance, such as food, that is used by
plants and animals for growth and energy
9. Scarce: lacking in quantity or number; not plentiful; food is scarce
10. Food Web: two or more food chains that overlap
11. Food Chain: the path of energy in an ecosystem as one living
thing eats another
12. Producer: organisms that make their own food
13. Consumer: organisms that eat other living things to get energy
Omnivore (eats plants and animals)
Carnivore (eats other animals)
Herbivore (eats only plants)
14. Decomposer: organisms that feed off of dead organisms and
break down the remains of dead organisms
15. Species: group of organisms (plants or animals) that produce
organisms of the same kind
16. Population: all the organisms of the same kind that live in an
ecosystem
17. Pollution: anything that harms the environment
18. Overpopulation: the condition of having too many species living
in a certain area
19. Extinction: bringing to an end; wiping out; no longer existing
20. Adaptation: a feature or trait that an organism is born with that
increases its chances of survival in the environment
21. Protection: condition of being kept from harm; defense
22. Camouflage: a disguise or false appearance for the purpose of
hiding or concealing
23. Hibernation: to go into a deep sleep during which an animal uses
very little energy and usually does not need to eat (chipmunks, bears)
24. Predator: an animal that hunts other animals for food
25. Prey: an animal that is hunted for food by a predator