species, A group of organisms that are all physically similar to one another. They should be able to reproduce and create offspring that also have those same features., organism, An individual living thing / One biotic factor / One member of a species. It's the smallest living unit of organization in environments., population, All the members of a species in a certain area. (How many organisms of one species in an area.) It doesn't matter how large of an area you refer to, as long as you define where it is., community, All the living things in a certain area. OR All the biotic factors in an area. OR All the populations in an area., ecosystem, All the living and non-living things in a certain area. OR All the biotic & abiotic factors in an area. Remember that these factors will interact with each other., species diversity, This is when there is more than one type of species in an environment. A high amount of this is a sign of an overall healthy and stable ecosystem., resource, Factors in an ecosystem that the species rely on. Examples: food, water, atmospheric gases, shelter, mates, territory, etc., competition, A type of community interaction. This can occur within one species, or between members of multiple species. It's when organisms fight over limited available resources. This is the "driving reason" that causes natural selection within a species., predation, A type of community interaction. This typically occurs between members of two or more species. It is hunting with the intent to kill and eat., predator, The hunter in the predation relationship. *If you are eating plants, you cannot be one of these - because you're not HUNTING plants!, prey, The animal that is the food source in a predation relationship., symbiosis, A type of community interaction. This must occur between members of two or more species who are 'living together' in a close relationship. At least one organism will always benefit., mutualism, A type of symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit. It is good for everyone involved. Ex: a human and a pet dog, commensalism, A type of symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other is unaffected. Ex: barnacles on a turtle, parasitism, A type of symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other is harmed. Ex: flea and a dog, parasite, An organism that lives in or on another organism, usually harming it by taking some nutrients. This does NOT "want" to kill the organism it lives on, though!, host, An organism that is lived on or in by another. It may pick up a disease or be harmed by that organism., X-axis, The bottom/horizontal axis of any graph, where the IV is typically plotted, Y-axis, The left/vertical axis of any graph, where the DV is always plotted, independent variable, The experimental factor that is intentionally changed or controlled to determine the effect it has on the results of the study., dependent variable, The experimental factor that is being tested and measured in a study. (This is the 'data' the scientist gathers.), trendline, The data shown in a line graph: showing the general direction that a group of data points is following., natural selection, A process of long-term change within a species, "driven" by competition. The best-adapted members of the species (should) live longest and (should) have the most chances to reproduce - and (should be able to) create more individuals that look like them., adaptations, Physical or behavioral "traits" that ideally help a species live well in its environment. **THIS IS A NOUN. Reference the traits, NOT the process of change to develop those traits!, genetic diversity, This occurs when members of the same species have different characteristics to likely help with survival. AND...this is influenced by natural selection as the 'best' traits tend to occur more over time, and the 'worst' traits tend to disappear over time.

Unit 6 GOLD: Natural Selection

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