12.14 Biodiversity Flashcards
Biodiversity definition
The number of species and the number of individuals of each different species in a community
Species richness definition
The number of different species in a community
Community definition
All the individuals of all the species living together in the same area at the same time
Species definition
A group of similar organisms with the same genes that reproduce top produce fertile offspring
Genetic diversity definition
Difference in DNA
Niche definition
An organisms role in the community
Describes how it interacts with other species and how it responds to the environment
Habitat definition
A place where organisms usually live within an ecosystem
What does higher diversity index suggest?
Greater the species diversity
What does d stand for in the diversity index equation?
Species diversity index
What does N stand for in the diversity index equation?
Total number of organisms of all species
What does n stand for in the diversity index equation?
Total number of organisms of each species
Compare and contrast the species richness and index of diversity (2)
The species richness and index of diversity both use the number of different species in a community
The index of diversity takes into consideration the number of organisms of each species, whereas the species richness doesn’t
What information is required to calculate an index of diversity for a particular community?
Number of species
Number or individuals in each species
Explain why an index of diversity may be a more useful measure of biodiversity than just the number of species present
It also measures the number of individuals of each species
Some species may be present in low/high quantities
Give 2 advantages of using an index of biodiversity rather than in indicator species
You do not need to identify the species
Index considers the number of individuals in each species
Suggest one economic argument for maintaining biodiversity
Financial by :
- Medicine
- Commercial products
- Tourism
- Agriculture
- Saving local forest communities
Explain why the diversity of insects decreased when a forest was cleared
- Decrease in variety of plants
- Fewer habitats
- Decrease in variety of food sources
- Aspect of clearing forest killed insects (pesticides, machinery)
Farmers clear tropical forest and grow crops. Explain how this decreases the diversity of insects in the area
- Lower diversity of plants
- Fewer sources of food
- Fewer habitats
- Fewer species of herbivore so fewer species of carnivore
- Aspect of agriculture kills insects
Name the taxonomist group between order and genus
Family
Explain what is meant by a hierarchy
Groups within groups
No overlap between groups
Explain what is meant by a phylogenetic group
Grouped according to evolutionary links or common ancestry
Give two ways in which courtship increases the probability of successful mating
- Attracts same species
- Attracts opposite sex
- Indication of sexual mating
- Stimulates release of gametes
- Form pair bond
Describe how comparisons of biological molecules in two species could be used to find out if they are closely related
Compare DNA
Sequence of bases
Compare cytochrome C (mitochondria)
Sequence of amino acids
Give two ways doctors could use base sequences to compare the different types of HPV
- Compare DNA base sequences
- Compare mRNA base sequences
- Look for mutations
Comparing the base sequence of genes provides more evolutionary information than comparing the structure of proteins
Explain why
Reference to base triplets, more bases than amino acids
Introns
Degeneracy of code, more than one code for each amino acid
What is the order of classification of animals?
Domain
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
What is classification?
The grouping of organisms
What is taxonomy?
The theory and practice of classification
What is the binomial naming system of animals?
Means each species has a two-word scientific name
It is universal and used by all scientists
What is the binomial species name for humans?
Homo sapiens
Name the three domains
Bacteria - prokaryotes
Archaea - ancient bacteria
Eukarya
What are bacteria and what do they have?
Single celled prokaryotes
- No membrane bound organelle
- Smaller ribosome (70S)
Cell wall made from murein
- Circular DNA not associated with histones
What are archaea and what do they have?
Single celled prokaryotes. They resemble bacteria but are slightly different
- Genes and protein synthesis mechanisms similar to eukaryotes
- Fatty acids and glycerols joined by ether bonds, not ester
- No murein cell walls
- More complex RNA polymerase
Name the 4 kingdoms in the eukaryotic domain
Protoctista
Fungi
Plantae
Animalia
What is phylogenetics
The study of patterns of evolutionary history
What have all organisms evolved from?
A shared common ancestor
How are organisms more closely related?
They share a common ancestor more recently
Why do organisms show courtship behaviour?
To attract a mate of the same species but opposite sex
Why is courtship behaviour important?
To ensure reproductive success
Name the 4 types of modern classification methods
Frequency of measurable characteristics
Base sequence of DNA
Base sequence of mRNA
Amino acid sequence of the proteins encoded by DNA and mRNA
Why can you not always observe an animals reproductive behaviour?
Can be extinct
Reproduce asexually
Practical or ethical issues
How can we see if organisms are related via proteins?
If two organisms are closely related, they will have similar DNAbase sequences and therefore code for very similar amino acids
How can we see if organisms are closely related via immunological comparisons?
Antigens bind specifically to the complimentary antibodies and caused them to agglutinate
This forms clumps which can precipitate out of solution
if antibodies from one species can bind to the protein of another species then they likely shared a common ancestor recently
