symbiosis		driest biome south of the taiga; receives less than 25cm of precipitation annually, and produces a range of vegetation including shrubs
temperate forest		symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other species is neither harmed nor helped
trophic level		most biologically diverse terrestrial biome
mutualism		interbreeding individuals of one species that compete with one another for food, water, and mates and live in the same place at the same time
habitat		living partos of the environment
biome		stable, mature community that undergoes little ecological succession
community		several interacting populations that inhabit a common environment
ecosystem		marine biome that never receives sunlight because of water depth
food web		coastal body of water in which both frewhwater and saltwater mix
tundra		role of a particular species in a community regarding food, space, reproduction, and how it interacts with abiotic factors
biotic factor		microscopic organissm found floating in the photic zone
commensalism		development of living communities from bare rock, where pioneer species such as lichens are often followed by small plants, then trees
desert		biome located just south ot the tundra
intertidal zone		life-supporting portions of Earth composed of air, land, fresh water, adn salt water
ecology		large areas with the same type of climax community
abiotic factor		any factor limiting hte survival and productivity of organisms
biosphere		organisms unable to make their own food
parasitism		scientific study of interactions between organisms and their environments
taiga		a possible route for the transfer of matter and energy through an ecosystem
plankton		biome in which an even amount of precipitation falls in all four seasons; includes hardwood trees that lose their foilage annually
climax community		permanent, close association between two organisms of different species
heterotroph		nonliving parts of the environment
aphotic zone		symbiotic relationship beneficial to both species
food chain		treeless biome south of the ice cap of the north pole
scavenger		organisms that play beneficial roles in all ecosystems by breaking down and absorbing nutrients from dead and decaying organicmatter
permafrost		layer of permanently frozen ground found under the topmost layer of soil in the tundra
autotroph		collection of niches in which an organism lives
tropical rain forest		organisms that are able to synthesize food using sun energy or energy stored in chemical compounds
population		portion of the marine biome shallow enough for the sun to penetrate
decomposer		biome composed of large communities of grasses and other small plants
photic zone		animal that plays a positive role in the ecosystem by consuming dead organisms and their refuse
limiting factgor		populations in a community and abiotic factors with which they interact
grassland		ahsows all the possible feeding relationships in a community at each trophic level
niche		symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits at the expense of he other species
primary succession		link represented by each organism in a food chain
estuary		part of the shoreline between the high and low tide lines