ecosystem
All the interacting parts of a biological community and it’s environment
sustainable ecosystem
an ecosystem that is capable of withstanding pressure and giving support to a variety of organisms
biotic
The living parts of an ecosystem
abiotic
The nonliving parts of ecosystem
lithosphere
The hard part of earths surface
hydrosphere
all the water found on earth, including lakes, oceans and ground water
biosphere
The regions of Earth where living organisms exist
nutrient
a chemical that is essential to living things and is cycled through ecosystems
terrestrial ecosystem
The ecosystem that is land based
aquatic ecosystem
an ecosystem that is water based either freshwater or saltwater
eutrophication
A process in which nutrient levels in aquatic ecosystems increase leading to an increase in the populations of primary producers
photosynthesis
A process that changes, solar energy into chemical energy
biomass
The soil mass of living organisms in a defined group or area
trophic levels
A category of organisms that is defined by how the organisms gain their energy
tropic efficiency
A measure of the amount of energy or biomass transferred from one trophic level to the next higher trophic level
bioaccumulation
A process in which materials, especially toxins are ingested by an organism at a rate greater than they are eliminated
cellular respiration
A process that releases energy from organic molecules, especially carbohydrates in the presence of oxygen
fermentation
A process that releases energy from organic molecules, especially carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen
greenhouse gases
atmospheric gases that prevent heat from leaving the atmosphere, thus increasing the temperature of the atmosphere
greenhouse effect
The warning of Earth as a result of greenhouse gases, which trap some of the energy that would otherwise leave earth
acid precipitation
rain, snow or fog that is unnaturally acidic due to gases in the atmosphere that react with water to form acids
