Science LQ1 Review

• The biotic component of an ecosystem refers to all the living organisms in a habitat.
• Abiotic components are non-living factors that affect life, such as temperature, water availability, light intensity, soil type, air pollution, etc.
• An ecosystem consists of a community of organisms living together and interacting with the nonliving components.
• The branch of biology that deals with the study of the ecosystem is called ecology.
• Producers are organisms that are capable of producing their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis
• Consumers are organisms that cannot produce their own food. Instead, they depend on producers or other consumers for food.
• Producers are also known as autotrophs.
• Consumers are also known as heterotrophs.
• Decomposers are organisms that decompose dead components of living organisms.
• Decomposers are also called saprophytes.
• Air is a mixture of different gases.
• light

  is needed by plants for photosynthesis.
• Mineral salts are obtained by plants through

  absorption from the soil.
• The salinity of an environment is influenced by the number of mineral salts dissolved in water.
• The pH level of a habitat refers to the acidity and alkalinity of the substrate.
• Water is vital for the survival of all organisms.
• Detritivores are responsible for the decaying of matter (dead plants and animals) and reabsorption of the nutrients back to the soil and release gases into the atmosphere.
• Biomes are regions on Earth having similar climate, animals, and plants.
• Terrestrial biomes are generally grouped based on the types of plants they support.
• Desert is the driest biome.
• Grasslands are widely distributed over temperate parts of the world.
• Savanna is a rolling grassland scattered with shrubs and isolated trees, which can be found between a tropical rainforest and a desert biome.
• Temperate grasslands have hot summers and cold winters.
• Taiga is considered as the largest terrestrial biome on Earth.
• most people call the taiga a coniferous forest.
• Tropical rainforest receives the highest amount of rainfall among all terrestrial biomes.
• Tundra is the coldest and harshest of all biomes. This biome is also called the treeless plain.
• Aquatic biomes comprise 70 percent of Earth’s surface.
• Marine biomes include the oceans and seawater that all connect to form a single body of water.
• Freshwater biomes consist of lakes, rivers, and streams.
• Symbiotic Relationships involves organisms living in close nutritional relationships, with the organisms typically living in close proximity to each other.
• Mutualism is a type of relationship in which both organisms benefit from each other.
• Commensalism is a type of relationship in which one organism benefits while the other is neither harmed nor benefited.
• Parasitism is a relationship where one organism benefits at the expense of the other.
• The organism that benefits is the parasite, and the organism that is harmed is the host.
• Ectoparasites live on the surface of the host.
• Endoparasites live inside the body of the host.
• Nonsymbiotic relationships involve organisms that are free-living.
• Predation is a relationship where one organism kills and eats another organism to obtain nutrients.
• Another type of predation is herbivory in which an organism consumes autotrophs like plant parts or algae.