sustaining ecosystems

• What does the term "biotic" refer to in an ecosystem?

  Living elements like plants and animals
• What does the term "abiotic" refer to in an ecosystem?

  Physical, non-living parts like temperature
• What is another term for the plants in an ecosystem?

  Flora
• What is another term for the animals in an ecosystem?

  Fauna
• What is a biome?

  Large scale ecosystems unique to regions
• How is an ecosystem defined?

  Community of interacting organisms and environment
• What does interdependence mean in ecology?

  Reliance of life on other living things
• What does the term "temperate" refer to?

  Mild or moderate climate
• What characterizes a coniferous forest?

  Evergreen trees with needle-shaped leaves
• What defines a temperate deciduous forest?

  Broadleaf trees that shed leaves seasonally
• What is a tropical rainforest?

  Forest with high bioproductivity and biodiversity
• What is the tundra?

  Treeless Arctic region with permanently frozen soil
• What characterizes a temperate grassland?

  Grassland with moderate or mild temperatures
• What defines a tropical grassland?

  Grassland with tropical temperatures
• What is a hot desert?

  Area receiving less than 250 mm rainfall
• What is circumpolar wind?

  Flow of air around the Earth's poles
• What is deforestation?

  Cutting down trees for land transformation
• What does "emergent" refer to in a rainforest?

  Tallest tree towering above the canopy
• What is the canopy in a rainforest?

  Top layer formed by tall tree tops
• What is the under canopy in a rainforest?

  Young trees awaiting light to grow
• What is the shrub layer in a forest?

  Layer containing shrubs and short plants
• What is a buttress root?

  Shallow root for stability in thin soils
• What is a coral reef?

  Structure built by coral animals in warm water
• What is a continental shelf?

  Shallow area of ocean floor extending from land
• What is a parrot fish?

  Fish that feeds on coral
• What is a starfish?

  Marine echinoderm with five or more arms
• What is a clam?

  Shellfish that feeds on plankton
• What is an eel?

  Long, thin fish resembling a snake
• What is a mollusc?

  Soft-bodied creatures like snails and octopuses
• What is a dugong?

  Large plant-eating mammal in coastal waters
• What is a herbivore?

  Animal that eats only vegetation
• What is a carnivore?

  Animal that eats meat
• What is an omnivore?

  Animal that eats both meat and vegetation
• What does xerophytic mean?

  Plants that survive on very little water
• What is a microclimate?

  Climate of a small area differing from surroundings
• What is biomass?

  Total mass of plants and animals in ecosystem
• What is litter in an ecosystem?

  Total organic matter including humus and leaves
• What is soil?

  Loose mixture supporting vegetation growth
• What is convectional rainfall?

  Rainfall from rising hot air in tropics
• What is evapo-transpiration?

  Water transfer to atmosphere by evaporation