Ecology

4. – A single living thing (e.g., a plant, animal, or bacterium).
6. – A group of the same species living in the same area (e.g., a herd of deer).
8. – An organism that breaks down dead matter (e.g., fungi, bacteria).
10. Level – An organism’s position in a food chain (e.g., producer, consumer).
13. – A consumer that eats only meat (e.g., a lion).
14. – The part of Earth where life exists (includes all ecosystems).
17. – The study of how living things interact with each other and their environment.
20. (Heterotrophs) – Organisms that eat other organisms for energy.
21. Web – A network of interconnected food chains in an ecosystem.
22. – A community of organisms plus their physical environment (e.g., a forest with soil, air, water, plants, and animals).

1. – A relationship where one organism (parasite) benefits while harming another (host).
2. – An animal that hunts and kills other animals for food.
3. – A consumer that eats both plants and animals (e.g., a human or bear).
5. Factors – Living parts of an ecosystem (e.g., plants, animals, bacteria).
6. (Autotrophs) – Organisms that make their own food (usually through photosynthesis, like plants).
7. Factors – Non-living parts of an ecosystem (e.g., sunlight, water, temperature).
9. – A consumer that eats only plants (e.g., a deer).
11. – The natural home or environment of an organism (e.g., a pond is a frog’s habitat).
12. – An animal that is hunted and eaten by a predator.
15. – An organism that eats dead animals (e.g., vultures).
16. – All the different populations living and interacting in an area (e.g., deer, trees, birds, and insects in a forest).
18. – An organism that a parasite lives on or in.
19. Chain – A sequence showing who eats whom in an ecosystem (e.g., grass → rabbit → fox).