Ecology Science Olympiad 2024-2025 Study
Guide| with Complete Verified Solutions
Heterotroph - ✔cannot make own food, eats others
Indicator Species - ✔A species that gives an early warning that an ecosystem is in a state
of flux, often times fish and amphibians or apex predators
Interspecific competition - ✔Attempts by two or more species to use the same resources in
an ecosystem
Intraspecific competition - ✔Attempts by two or more organisms of a single species to use
the same limited resources in an ecosystem
J-shaped curve - ✔Curve with a shape similar to that of the letter J; can represent
prolonged exponential growth
Keystone species - ✔Species that play roles affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem
K-selected species - ✔Species that produce a few, often fairly large offspring but invest a
freat deal of time and energy to ensure that most of those offspring reach reproductive age
, Muellerian Mimicry - ✔Resemblance of two equally unpalatable species in order to
increase the concentration of individuals with the warning appearance to increase its
efficiency
Muskeg - ✔An acidic soil type common in Arctic and boreal areas, synonymous with bogland
Mutualism - ✔A symbiotic relationship in which both participate species generally benefit
Niche - ✔Total way of life or role of a species in an ecosystem. It includes all physical,
chemical, and biological conditions a species needs to live and reproduce in an ecosystem
Nitrification - ✔The process of oxidizing ammonia to create nitrite (NO2−)then oxidizing
the nitrite to create nitrate (NO3-)
Nitrogen Cycle - ✔Cyclistic movement of nitrogen in different chemical forms from
the environment to organisms and then back to the environment
Nitrogen fixation - ✔The process of chemically converting nitrogen gas (N 2 ) from the air
into compounds, such as nitrates (NO 3 ), nitrites (NO 2 ), or ammonia (NH 3 ), that can be
used by plants in building amino acids and other nitrogen-containing organic molecules.
Parasitism - ✔Interaction between species in which one organism, called the parasite,
preys on another organism, the host;
one benefits, other is harmed
Perennial Herbaceous - ✔A perennial plant that has stems that die at the end of the growing
season, but parts of the plant survive under or close to the ground from season to season (for
biennials, until the next growing season, when they flower and die). New growth develops from
living tissues remaining on or under the ground, including roots, a caudex (a thickened portion
of the stem at ground level) or various types of underground stems, such as bulbs, corms,
stolons, rhizomes and tubers.
Guide| with Complete Verified Solutions
Heterotroph - ✔cannot make own food, eats others
Indicator Species - ✔A species that gives an early warning that an ecosystem is in a state
of flux, often times fish and amphibians or apex predators
Interspecific competition - ✔Attempts by two or more species to use the same resources in
an ecosystem
Intraspecific competition - ✔Attempts by two or more organisms of a single species to use
the same limited resources in an ecosystem
J-shaped curve - ✔Curve with a shape similar to that of the letter J; can represent
prolonged exponential growth
Keystone species - ✔Species that play roles affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem
K-selected species - ✔Species that produce a few, often fairly large offspring but invest a
freat deal of time and energy to ensure that most of those offspring reach reproductive age
, Muellerian Mimicry - ✔Resemblance of two equally unpalatable species in order to
increase the concentration of individuals with the warning appearance to increase its
efficiency
Muskeg - ✔An acidic soil type common in Arctic and boreal areas, synonymous with bogland
Mutualism - ✔A symbiotic relationship in which both participate species generally benefit
Niche - ✔Total way of life or role of a species in an ecosystem. It includes all physical,
chemical, and biological conditions a species needs to live and reproduce in an ecosystem
Nitrification - ✔The process of oxidizing ammonia to create nitrite (NO2−)then oxidizing
the nitrite to create nitrate (NO3-)
Nitrogen Cycle - ✔Cyclistic movement of nitrogen in different chemical forms from
the environment to organisms and then back to the environment
Nitrogen fixation - ✔The process of chemically converting nitrogen gas (N 2 ) from the air
into compounds, such as nitrates (NO 3 ), nitrites (NO 2 ), or ammonia (NH 3 ), that can be
used by plants in building amino acids and other nitrogen-containing organic molecules.
Parasitism - ✔Interaction between species in which one organism, called the parasite,
preys on another organism, the host;
one benefits, other is harmed
Perennial Herbaceous - ✔A perennial plant that has stems that die at the end of the growing
season, but parts of the plant survive under or close to the ground from season to season (for
biennials, until the next growing season, when they flower and die). New growth develops from
living tissues remaining on or under the ground, including roots, a caudex (a thickened portion
of the stem at ground level) or various types of underground stems, such as bulbs, corms,
stolons, rhizomes and tubers.
