| Animal |
a
multi-celled organism without cell walls that
requires an outside source of food, possesses
some ability to move and is able to reproduce.
|
| Camouflage |
behavior
or coloration designed to hide or conceal
|
| Characteristic |
a
distinguishing trait, feature or quality
|
| Conservation |
sustainable
use of resources
|
| Consumer |
a
member of an ecological community that relies
on energy and materials gathered from other
members of the community for its survival.
|
| Decomposer |
a
member of an ecological community that relies
energy and materials gained by breaking down
the bodies of deceased members of that community.
|
| Desert |
a
region where water evaporation exceeds rainfall.
Extreme variations in day/night temperature
are normal.
|
| Ecosystem |
a
natural unit in which the living and non-living
parts interact to create a stable system where
the flow of energy and materials is self-supporting.
|
| Endangered
species |
A
species of plant or animal, placed on a list
issued by a government agency, and that is
at serious risk of becoming extinct.
|
| Environment |
the
total (living and non-living) surroundings
of an organism.
|
| Feline |
a
cat, a member of the carnivore family Felidae
|
| Forest |
a
region where the dominant plant form is trees.
Generally, rainfall occurs throughout the
year. Most aspects of life are affected by
the size, density and diversity of the tree
species found in a forest.
|
| Geography |
a
science that deals with the description, distribution
and interaction of the physical, biological
and cultural features of the earth's surface
|
| Grassland |
a
region where the dominant plant form is grasses.
There are distinct rainy and dry seasons.
|
| Habitat |
the
area or environment that provides food, water,
shelter and space (in the proper arrangement)
for an organism. A biome is a large unit of
habitat in which similar components of habitat
are found in a geographic area. The three
land biomes most often used to describe the
habitats of many zoo animals are: forest,
grassland and desert
|
| Hair |
a
slender, threadlike outgrowth of the skin
of an animal
|
| Keystone
species |
A
species whose relative abundance in an ecosystem
is used to gauge the overall health of that
ecosystem.
|
| Mammal |
a
member of the class of vertebrates that is
warm-blooded, bears live young, has hair and
produces milk as food for its offspring.
|
| Map |
a
representation, usually on a flat surface,
of an area
|
| Nocturnal |
Active
at night
|
| Predator |
an
animal that lives by killing and consuming
other animals
|
| Prey |
an animal taken by a predator as food
|
| Producer |
a
member of an ecological community that incorporates
non-living materials and energy from the sun
for its survival and growth.
|
| Rest |
a
bodily state characterized by minimal functional
and metabolic activities
|
| Rosette |
a
color marking on an animal resembling a rose
or disk of foliage
|
| Stalk |
to
pursue prey stealthily
|
| Symbol |
something
that stands for or suggests something else,
by reason of relationship, association, convention
or accidental resemblance
|
| Warm-blooded |
having
a relatively high and constant body temperature
relatively independent of the surroundings
|
| Wetland |
land
containing much soil moisture. Two basic types
of wetlands are swamps (dominated by trees)
and marshes (dominated by grasses).
|
