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The role and position a species has in its environment; how it meets its needs for food and shelter, how it survives, and how it reproduces. Example: Bees pollinating flowers while feeding on nectar.

Benefits provided by ecosystems that contribute to making life sustainable for humans. Example: Wetlands filtering pollutants and providing habitat for fish.

The process by which the concentration of toxic substances increases in each successive link in the food chain. Example: Mercury becoming more concentrated in fish at higher trophic levels.

A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative to its abundance. Example: Sea otters protecting kelp forests by eating sea urchins.

Place where an organism or a biological population normally lives or occurs. Example: A coral reef serving as a habitat for a variety of marine species.

Species that are non-native to an ecosystem and cause harm. Example: The zebra mussel in the Great Lakes region disrupting local ecosystems.

The maximum population size of a species that an environment can sustain indefinitely. Example: The number of deer an island can support without running out of food resources.

The hierarchical levels in a food web based on the position in the flow of energy. Example: Producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers.

A complex network of feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem, representing the flow of energy. Example: Grasses eaten by rabbits, which are then eaten by foxes.

Variety and variability of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or for the entire planet. Example: The Amazon rainforest hosts a high level of biodiversity.

The process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time. Example: After a forest fire, the area regrows from grasses to shrubs to a mature forest.