Ecology

3. physical,or nonliving, factor that shapes an ecosystem.
5. first producer of energy-rich compounds that are later used by other organisms.
7. organism that is able to capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds; also called a producer.
9. Organism that obtains energy by eating animals.
10. any living part of the environment with which an organism might interact.
11. Organism that breaks down and obtains energy from dead organic matter.
13. Organism that obtains energy by eating only plants.
15. All the organisms that live in a place, together with their nonliving environment.
20. process which chemical energy is used to produce carbohydrates.
21. A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms.

1. Part of Earth in which life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere.
2. Series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten.
4. Assemblage of different populations that live together in a defined area.
6. Organism that relies on other organisms for its energy and food supply; also called a heterotroph.
8. Organism that obtains food by consuming other living things; also called a consumer.
12. process used by plants and other autotrophs to capture light energy and use it to power chemical reactions
14. Group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area.
16. Animal that consumes the carcasses of other animals.
17. Organism that obtains energy by eating both plants and animals.
18. A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring.
19. Scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment.