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Definition
| the series of predictable changes that occur in a community over time |
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Term
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Definition
| the last stage of succession; the ecosystem has reached equilibrium |
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Term
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Definition
| a series of changes hat occur in an area where no ecosystem previously existed |
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Definition
| the first species to populate an area |
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Term
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Definition
| a series of changes that occur after a disturbance in an existing ecosystem |
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Term
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Definition
| an area that includes plants, animals, sunlight, soil and other things |
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Term
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Definition
| the organisms in an ecosystem |
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Term
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Definition
| nonliving things in an ecosystem |
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Term
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Definition
| a specific environment in an ecosystem |
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Term
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Definition
| an organism that makes its own food; autotroph |
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Term
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Definition
| an organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms/heterotroph |
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Term
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Definition
| consumers that eat only plants |
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Definition
| consumers that eat only animals |
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Term
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Definition
| consumers that eat plants and animals |
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Term
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Definition
| a carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms |
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Term
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Definition
| organisms that break down wastes and dead organisms and return raw materials to the environment |
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Term
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Definition
| a series of events in which one organism eats another and obtains energy |
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Term
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Definition
| consists of many overlapping food chains |
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Term
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Definition
| shows the amount of energy that moves from one feeding level to another in a food web |
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Term
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Definition
| the study of where organisms live |
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Term
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Definition
| the very slow movement of the continents |
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Term
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Definition
| the movement of organisms from one place to another |
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Term
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Definition
| species that have naturally evolved in an area |
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Term
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Definition
| when an organisms is carried into a new location |
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Term
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Definition
| the typical weather pattern in an area over a long period of time |
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Term
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Definition
| a group of ecosystems with similar climates and organisms |
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Term
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Definition
| tall trees form a leafy roof in a rainforest |
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Term
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Definition
| an area that receives less than 25cm of rain per year |
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Term
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Definition
| a characteristic that helps an organism survive in its environment and reproduce |
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Term
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Definition
| receives between 25cm and 75cm of rain per year |
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Term
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Definition
| grassland located closer to the equator; receives 120cm of rain per year |
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Term
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Definition
| trees that shed their leaves each year and grow new ones |
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Term
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Definition
| trees that produce their seeds in cones and have leaves shaped like needles |
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Term
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Definition
| extremely cold land biome |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| where fresh water of a river meets the salt water of an ocean |
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Term
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Definition
| the part of the shore between the highest high-tide line and the lowest low-tide line |
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Term
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Definition
| the region of shallow water that extends over the continental shelf |
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Term
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Definition
| all the different organisms that live together in an area |
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