Cycle of Matter/Flow of Energy Vocabulary 7th Grade Science

Ecosystem All the living and nonliving things that interact in an area.

Biotic Factors a living part of an ecosystem

Abiotic Factors All of the nonliving parts of an ecosystem

Habitat The place where an organism lives and that provides the things the organism needs

Species A group of similar organisms whose members can mate with one another and produce fertile offspring

Niche An organism’s particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living

Producers An organism that can make its own food

Consumers An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms

Herbivore An animal that eats only plants

Carnivore An animal that eats only other animals

Omnivore An animal that eats both plants and animals.

Scavenger A carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms

Decomposer An organism that breaks down large molecules from

Food chain A series of events in which one organism eats another and obtains energy

Food web The pattern of overlapping food chains in an ecosystem

Energy pyramid A diagram that shows the amount of energy that moves from one feeding level to another in a food web

Biome A group of ecosystems with similar climates and organisms

Biomass Matter formed by plants or animals that is used as a fuel, such as wood or dung.

Compost bin Made up of discarded fruit and vegetable material, yard waste, and other plant materials

Autotroph Primary producers

Heterotroph An organism that obtains the energy it needs by feeding on other organisms

Trophic levels The position an organisms occupies in a food chain

Radiant Energy Light energy that ravels in waves and supplies the earth with almost all of our energy.

Predator A carnivore that hunts and kills other animals for food and that has adaptations that help it capture the animals it preys upon

Evaporation Is the process in which liquid water changes into invisible water vapor.

Denitrification Is the process where nitrogen compounds are turned back into atmospheric nitrogen.

Matter Anything that has mass and takes up space

Condensation Is the process in which water vapor changes into liquid water.

Nitrogen fixing bacteria Are bacteria that take atmospheric nitrogen and change it  into useful nitrogen compounds that plant and animals can use.

Transpiration Water vapor is released to the air from the leaves of plants.  

Prey An animal that a predator feeds upon

Precipitation Occurs when water or a form of ice falls from the atmosphere to Earth’s surface.