Ecology Vocabulary

3. An organism, such as bacteria or fungus, that breaks down dead matter and returns nutrients to the soil
4. Forest A forest biome with many kinds of trees that lose their leaves each autumn
6. An organism that survives by eating producers or other consumers in its ecosystem
9. A characteristic that helps an organism survive in its environment (Ex: A cactus storing water)
12. An organism that eats only other consumers (meat eater)
13. Cycle The movement of carbon from the environment into living things and back into the environment

1. A plant and animal community that covers a large part of the Earth
2. The cutting down and clearing of forest land – will usually lead to increased soil erosion in this area
5. Factor The part of the ecosystem that is not alive and has never been alive (sun, soil, water, etc.)
7. The large leaf layer in the forest biomes created by overhanging leaves and branches. Can be very thick and prevent some sunlight from reaching the forest floor
8. A group of organisms living together in a certain area
9. A simple plant-like organism that is food for many water organisms
10. Factor The part of an ecosystem that is alive
11. An area that gets less than 25 centimeters of precipitation each year, making it VERY dry