Homework Packet #1 Directions: Complete all questions and turn this into the homework bin at the start of class on Friday, October 11th. VOCABULARY TERM DEFINTION EXAMPLE Ecology The study of how living things interact with each other and their environment. Biosphere All the areas of the Earth that support life, together with the organisms that live in them, are called the biosphere. (Earth is sphere shaped!) The Earth’s life-supporting areas. (we only know of one Earth…so far.) Biome A group of ecosystems with similar climate and organisms (like a rainforest. The ecosystems in a biome do not have to be in one area of the Earth. Desert biome, rain forest biome, tundra. Ecosystem A community of organisms TOGETHER WITH its nonliving (abiotic) surroundings make up an ecosystem. All the communitites in Crotona Park, together with the rocks, air, temperature, sun, water, and other abiotic factors in the park. Community All the different populations that live together in an area make up a community. (There can be hundreds of populations in an area.) All the populations in Crotona Park, like: grass, maple trees, squirrels, pigeons, mice, ants, earthworms, bacteria, bees, etc. Population All members of one species in a particular area are called a population. All the squirrels in Crotona Park. Species A group of organisms that are physically similar and can mate with each other and produce offspring that can also mate and reproduce. Zebras are their own species. Horses are their own species. (Zebras and horses are similar, but they don’t mate.) Autotroph An organism that makes its own food. (AUTO = self, TROPH = food). Major groups of autotrophs: plants, algae, phytoplankton, some bacteria.
Heterotroph An organism that can’t make its own food. It has to get its food somewhere else. Consumers, like: Humans, birds, cows, spiders, amoeba Decomposers, like: fungi (mushrooms), most bacteria Producer An organism that makes its own food. It means the SAME THING as autotroph. Producers are important because they bring energy into the ecosystem. They are at the bottom of every food chain. (Same examples as AUTOTROPHS). Major groups: plants, algae, phytoplankton, some bacteria. Consumer An organism that EATS (consumes) other organisms for food. All carnivores (like lions, spiders, sharks), herbivores (like rabbits, cows, leaf-eating insects) and omnivores (like humans, bears, rats) are consumers. Decomposer An organism that gets its food by breaking down dead organisms. Fungi (mushrooms, molds), most bacteria, worms. Herbivore Organisms that eat PLANTS ONLY. Cows, deer, giraffes, rabbits, caterpillars, leaf-eating insects, pandas, koalas, bees (eat nectar), crabs & shrimp (eat plankton) Carnivore Organisms that eat MEAT ONLY. Sharks, spiders, lions, tigers, polar bears, killer whales, praying mantises, frogs, anteaters, ladybugs. Omnivore Organisms that eat BOTH PLANTS and MEAT. Humans, rats, bears (eat berries and fish), racoons, many birds (eat berries and worms / insects), cockroaches, goats. QUESTIONS Identify the correct levels of organization in Ecology going from largest to smallest Species, Population, Community, Ecosystem Species, Community, Population, Ecosystem Ecosystem, Community, Population, Species