Communities and Ecosystems

an interaction between species, where one species is destroyed and the other is unaffected

large spatial regions where ecosystems share a broadly similar biological evolutionary history

area of study that focuses on the distribution of plants and animals in space or time

the point in ecological succession when species turnover has reached a steady state

an interaction in which one species benefits but the other neither benefits nor is harmed

the movement of Earth's continents over time

an organism that breaks down dead materials and organic wastes

an organism that gets its energy by feeding on dead organic matter

a group of species in a specific area

a series of progressive changes in species composition that happen after a disturbance in an ecosystem

an organism that can survive on its own but for which there is an added benefit if it remains with another organism

the relationship between different organisms based on which organism eats or is eaten by another organism

a combination of food chains interacting with each other within an ecosystem

the physical area where an organism lives

an interaction in which both organisms benefit from the relationship

all interactions by a species with the living and nonliving things in an environment

an organism that must have its partner in order to survive

a "supercontinent" that existed 335 to 175 million years ago, which later broke apart into the continents

organism that lives in or on another organism and uses its host for its own nutritional needs

species that can colonize an area when no soil is present

an organism that obtains its energy by consuming plant matter

the formation of new ecological communities after a disturbance has completely destroyed the ecosystem and left no soil present

an organism that makes its own food, typically by absorbing energy from sunlight

an organism at the top of the food chain that obtains its energy by feeding on tertiary consumers

an organism that obtains it energy by feeding on organism that eat producers

formation of new ecological communities in an area after a disturbance removed most of the organisms but there is soil present afterward

the ecological relationship between two or more organisms that live in direct contact

an organism that obtains its energy by feeding on secondary consumers

feeding position within a food chain or food web