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Sinead McDougall 1/7/10 per.6
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43
Biology
10th Grade
01/07/2010

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Term
Biosphere
Definition
All the parts of the planet that are inhibited by living things. -Includes both the atmosphere and the soil; the sum of all the earths ecosystem.
Term
Ecosystem
Definition
A community of living things and the non-living features of the environmental needed for their survival.
Term
Organism
Definition
an independent living thing
Term
cell
Definition
a membrane-bound structure that is the basic unit of life
Term
DNA
Definition
Deoxyribonucleic acid; the hereditary material that controls all the activities of a cell, contains the info to make new cells. a provider of instructions.
Term
gene
Definition
a segment of DNA that carries the hereditary instructions for producing a protein. -the basic info unit
Term
producer
Definition
an organism that makes its own food using the energy in light (photosynthesis) or a chemical reaction (chemosynthesis). -green plants and some bacteria.
Term
consumer
Definition
an organism that must eat other living things to provide the food energy. -pretty much all animals
Term
decompser
Definition
a type of consumer that breaks waste and/or dead organisms to provide its food energy. -fungi, bacteria, and scavengers
Term
food chain
Definition
a map of energy flow that shows what organisms eat what in the ecosystem.
Term
food web
Definition
a more complete map of energy flow that shows all of the various food chains in an ecosystem and how they are related.
Term
ecology
Definition
the scientific study of the interactions among and between organisms and their environment
Term
biotic factor
Definition
any living part of an ecosystem
Term
abiotic factor
Definition
any non-living component of an ecosystem. -includes both the physical and chemical features of the environment.
Term
population
Definition
a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time.
Term
community
Definition
all the populations of organisms living in one area
Term
habitat
Definition
the specific environment in which an organism lives with all its characteristic abiotic and biotic factors
Term
climate
Definition
the average seasonal weather conditions for a given location. -includes average high and low temperatures, precipitation, and solar radiation
Term
microclimate
Definition
a climate in a specific area that differs significantly from the climate of the surrounding region
Term
biome
Definition
a major type of terrestrial (land) ecosystem
Term
tropical rain forest
Definition
forest ecosystem near the equator that receives as much as 250 cm of rainfall yearly
Term
savanna
Definition
grassland with scattered trees found in tropical regions. -these regions have a warm climate with alternating wet and dry seasons
Term
desert
Definition
land area that receives less than 30cm of rain a year. -climate may be hot, temp, or even polar.
Term
chaparral
Definition
a temperature, coastal ecosystem dominated by dense evergreen shrubs. climate consists of mild, rainy winters and hot dry summers.
Term
temperate grasslands
Definition
ecosystem built on deep nutrient soil that supports a wide variety of grasses. -Growth of woody shrubs and trees is prevented by drought, occasional fires, and the grazing of large animals
Term
decidous forest
Definition
a forest ecosystem in a temperature region characterized by trees and shrubs that drop their leaves each winter.
Term
coniferous forest
Definition
a forest ecosystem dominated by cone-bearing evergreen trees, mostly found in northern latitudes. -trees are adapted to long cold winters with heavy snow.
Term
tundra
Definition
an ecosystem found above the arctic circle or on high mountains characterized by extreme cold, frozen sub-soil, and high winds. -plant communities are dominated by mosses and grasses
Term
permafrost
Definition
permanently frozen sub-soil
Term
population density
Definition
measures how crowded a population is
Term
dispersion
Definition
the spatial distributions of individuals within the population.
Term
birth rate
Definition
the number of births occurring in a period of time
Term
mortality rate
Definition
the number of deaths in a period of time
Term
life expectancy
Definition
how long ago on average an individual is expected to live
Term
age structure
Definition
the distribution of individuals among different ages in a population
Term
survivorship curve
Definition
the graph of a species mortality rate data.
Term
growth rate
Definition
the amount by which a populations size changes in a given time.
Term
immigration
Definition
the movement of individuals into a population
Term
emigration
Definition
the movement of individuals out of the population
Term
exponential growth
Definition
the larger the population gets, the faster it grows.
Term
limiting factor
Definition
a factor that restrains the growth of a population
Term
density-independent factor
Definition
(weather, floody, fires) reduce the population by the same proportions regardless of the populations size.
Term
carrying capacity
Definition
the number of individuals of a species that an ecosystem is capable of supporting
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