Chapter 15 Vocab

All organisms and the part of the Earth where they exist

Collection of living things

Collection of Earth's water bodies, ice, and water vapor

Air blanketing Earth's solid surface

Features of Earth's surface-such as continents and the sea floor- and everything below Earth's surface

Average long-term weather pattern of a region

Climate of a specific location within a larger area

Dense covering formed by the uppermost branches of trees

Biome in which the primary plant life is grass

Biome characterized by a very dry climate

Tree that has adapted to winter temperatures by dropping its leaves and going dormant during the cold season

Tree that retains its needles year-round and reproduces with cones

Biome with long and cold winters, lasting up to 6 months, also called boreal forest

Biome found at far northern latitudes where winters last as long as 10 months per year

Biome characterized by hot, dry summers and cool, moist winters; also called Mediterranean Shrub

Strip of land between the high andlow tide lines

Zone of the ocean that extends from the intertidal zone out to the edge of the continental shelf

Zone of the ocean that extends from the edge of the neritic zone to the base of the continental shelf

Depth of the ocean that lies below 2,000 meters and is in complete darkness

Microscopic, free-floating organisms, which may be animals or protists, that lives in the water

Animal plankton

Photosynthetic, microscopic protists, such as algae

Ocean habitat found in the shallow coastal waters in a tropical climate

Ocean habitat that exists in cold, nutrient-rich shallow coastal waters, composed of large communities of kelp, and seaweed

Partially enclosed body of water found where a river flows into the ocean

Region of land that drains into a river, river system, or other body of water

Area between the high and low water marks along the shoreline of a lake or pond

Open water of a lake or pond that is located away from shore

Lake or pond bottom where no sunlight can reach