Ecology Definitions and Concepts

• Ecology


  The study of the interactions between living organisms and their environment.
• Ecosystem


  A community of organisms and their interactions with their environment.
• Community

  All the organisms found within an ecosystem.
• Biosphere


  All the parts of the earth where life can exist.
• Niche


  The functional role of an organism in an ecosystem.
• Habitat


  The place where a species lives and to which it is adapted.
• Species


  A group of organisms which can interbreed to produce fertile offspring.
• Population


  All the members of the same species, living in a habitat.
• Flora


  Plants growing in a habitat.
• Fauna


  Animals growing in a habitat.
• Biology


  The study of living things.
• Biotic factors


  Living factors in an ecosystem.
• Abiotic factors

  Non-living factors in an ecosystem.
• Edaphic factors


  Abiotic factors which relate to the soil.
• Climate


  Long-term prevailing conditions in an ecosystem.
• Weather

  Short-term atmospheric conditions in an ecosystem.
• Parasite


  A species which lives in or on the body of the host, causing harm.
• Ectoparasite


  Organisms which live on the outside of the host and cause harm.
• Endoparasite


  Organism which lives inside the host and causes harm.
• Predator


  An animal which catches, kills, and eats another animal.
• Prey


  The animal that is killed and eaten by a predator.
• Predation


  The act of catching, killing, and eating another animal for food.
• Adaptations


  Structural or behavioral features that help organisms to survive and thrive in a habitat.
• Competition


  The struggle between organisms for limited resources in an ecosystem.
• Contest competition

  A struggle for a limited resource where only one organism wins and one loses the resource.
• Scramble competition


  A struggle for a scarce resource where all organisms get some of the resource.
• Symbiosis

  A close relationship between organisms of two different species where at least one benefits.
• Feeding

  A pathway of energy flow within an ecosystem.
• Energy flow


  A pathway of energy transfer within an ecosystem.
• Detritus


  Animal waste and decaying plants and animals in an ecosystem.
• Detritus feeders


  Organisms that consume decaying plant and animal parts as well as faeces in an ecosystem.
• Food chain


  A list of species such that each species in the list is eaten by the next one, representing a pathway of energy transfer in an ecosystem.
• Grazing VS Detritus food chains

  Grazing food chains begin with green plants, while detritus food chains begin with dead or decaying organic matter in the soil.
• Trophic level


  The feeding or energy level in a food chain, marking the position of a species within the chain.
• Food web


  Consists of two or more interconnected food chains with more than one species at each trophic level.
• Pyramid of numbers


  A diagram showing the number of different organisms at each trophic level in an ecosystem.
• Producers


  Organisms that make their own food using an energy input, including green plants and some bacteria.
• Consumers


  Organisms that cannot make their own food and take in food from other organisms, including all animals.
• Herbivores


  Animals that only eat plants.
• Carnivores


  Animals that only eat other animals.