Ecology – study of the interaction between plants and animals
Ecologist – scientists who study ecology
Animals can be CLASSIFIED into three groups based on what they eat:
Herbivore – animals that eat only plants
Omnivore – animals that eat both plants and animals
Carnivore – animals that eat only animals
Habitat - where animals live
an animal’s home address
must include water good and a safe home (cover and space)
Living things – includes plants and animals
Humans ARE animals!!!!!!!!!!
Producers – living things that make its own food (plants)
Consumers – living things that must eat other living things to get energy (include:
omnivores, herbivores, carnivores)
Decomposers – living things that get nutrients by breaking down other living
things
Photosynthesis – process where plants (producers) make their own food
Energy – ability to do work
Food Web –
all the food chains in a particular ecosystem
Combines many food chains into one picture
Shows how plants and animals are connected many ways to help them survive
Food Chain –
transfer of energy through a series of organisms that use each other for food
shows how energy is passed directly from organism to organism
follows just one path as animals find food
Energy pyramid –diagram that shows the amount of energy that flows through
each level of the food chain
Primary consumers – first level of consumers on the energy pyramid, eat
producers
Secondary consumers – second level of consumers on the energy pyramid, rely on
producers and primary consumers for food
Organism – any living thing
Population – group of organisms of one species that live in an area
Community – groups of all the populations in an area
Habitat – place where an organism lives
Ecosystem – all living and non-living things in an area
Biome – large ecosystem
Habitat destruction – when a habitat of an animal is destroyed and made into
different types of habitats
Causes of habitat destruction: logging, mining, building roads and houses,
hurricanes, wildfires
Predator – an animal that lives by preying on other animals
Prey – animals that are hunted
Adaptation – physical or behavioral characteristics that an animal develops over
time to help it survive
Examples of adaptation: sharp teeth, fangs, claws, poisonous venom, good sense
of hearing, sight and smell