Ecosystems Vocabulary

An organism that is able to capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds

• consumer

• heterotroph

• autotroph

• animal

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-6

An organism that obtains food by consuming other living things

• autotroph

• heterotroph

• producer

• plant

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

A consumer that eats other animals

• carnivore

• omnivore

• herbivore

• decomposer

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

A consumer that eats plant leaves, roots, seeds, and fruit

• carnivore

• omnivore

• herbivore

• decomposer

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-2

A consumer that eats both plants and animals

• carnivore

• omnivore

• herbivore

• decomposer

A consumer that eats carcasses of dead animals

• scavenger

• omnivore

• herbivore

• decomposer

A consumer that chews or grinds small pieces of dead/decaying plant or animal remains into smaller pieces

• carnivore

• decomposer

• detritivore

• scavenger

A consumer that chemically breaks down organic matter

• omnivore

• decomposer

• detritivore

• scavenger

A series of organisms in which energy is transferred from one organism to another

• food web

• food chain

• trophic level

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

A network of complex interactions formed by feeding relationships among all the organisms in an ecosystem

• food web

• food chain

• trophic level

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3