mod 4

• ecosystems


  all living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) things in a specific area, and how they interact with each other
• biotic factors


  living things in an ecosystem, like animals and plants

  eg. predation, competition
• abiotic factors


  non-living things in an ecosystem

  eg. light, temperature
• habitat


  the place where an organism lives

  one ecosystem can have many different habitats
• community


  all the different populations of species living together in the same area at the same time
• ecological niche


  the role an organism plays in its environment, including how it gets energy, interacts with other species, and interacts with its environment
• population size


  the number of individuals of a species in a habitat
• carrying capacity


  the largest population size that a habitat can support over time
• competition


  when organisms fight for the same resources

  can happen within the same species (intraspecific) or between different species (interspecific)
• predation


  the relationship where a predator hunts and eats its prey
• extinction


  when a species no longer exists
• representative sampling


  a sample from a larger group that accurately represents the characteristics of a larger population
• quadrants


  a square area used to sample plants or animals in a larger area
• abundance


  species are considered abundant when it has a high population relative to the size of the area it inhabits
• random


  made, done or happening without method or conscious decision
• transects


  a line along which data is collected to study the distribution of organisms
• invasive


  a species that spread quickly and harms the environment it's in
• climate change


  long term changes in weather patterns, mainly due to human activities
• migration


  when animals or people move from one place to another