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IB Biology > 4: Ecology > Flashcards

4: Ecology Flashcards

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1
Q

Define species

A

a group of organisms that can potentially interbreed to produce fertile offsprings

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2
Q

Define Population

A

a group of organisms of the same species that are living in the same area at the same time

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3
Q

Define Community

A

a group of populations living together and interacting with each other

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4
Q

Define Ecosystem

A

a community and its abiotic environment

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5
Q

Define abiotic

A

the non-living chemical and physical factors in an environment which affect and ecosystem

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6
Q

Define biotic

A

the living components of an environment which affect an ecosystem

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7
Q

What are the features of autotrophs

A

they synthesise their own organic molecules from inorganic molecules with the use of light

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8
Q

What are the features of heterotrophs

A

They obtain organic molecules from other organisms

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9
Q

What are the different types of heterotrophs

A

consumers, detritivores, saprotroph

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10
Q

Define consumers

A

they ingest organic molecules from living or recently killed organisms

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11
Q

What are the two types of consumers

A

herbivores: feed only plants
carnivores: feed only meat

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12
Q

Define detritivore

A

they obtain organic molecules from foetal matter and they ingest internally

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13
Q

Define saprotroph

A

they obtain organic molecules from dead organic molecules and they digest externally (they secrete digestive enzymes into the non-living matter and absorb the products)

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14
Q

Describe the limitations of the biological species concept

A

sometimes animals of different species breed together and produce fertile offspring (cross-breeding)

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15
Q

Outline how reproductive isolation can lead to speciation

A
  • This isolation means that members of the separate populations cannot breed together and gene exchange or gene flow cannot take place between them
  • leads to speciation and the two species can no longer produce fertile offspring; they are reproductively isolated
  • combination of genetic drift and natural selection can lead to speciation
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16
Q

What is an example of an ecosystem

A

forest

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17
Q

Define nutrient

A

substance found in food used by an organism to survive, grow and reproduce

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18
Q

Outline nutrient cycling

A
  1. Autotrophs are producers, they transform inorganic molecules into organic molecules
  2. Heterotrophs that are consumers will then obtain the organic molecules as they will eat the producers
  3. Decomposers will obtain organic molecules by secreting digestive enzymes on the dead organisms, which leads to the recycling of nutrients back in the soil, making them available to producers again (detritovers and saphotrophs)
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19
Q

What are the 3 main components required for sustainability in an ecosystem

A
  • energy availability
  • nutrient availability
  • recycling of wastes
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20
Q

What is a Mesocosm

A

an enclosed environment that allows a small part of the natural environment to be viewed under controlled conditions

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21
Q

Methods of population sampling

A
  • Transect lines
  • Quadracts
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22
Q

What is the initial source of energy

A
  • light energy (sunlight)
  • it is converted by producers into chemical energy via photosynthesis by producers
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23
Q

What are the uses of energy

A
  • Functions of life (MR.H.GREN)
  • Muscle contraction
  • Active transport
  • Metabolic Reactions
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24
Q

What are the reasons for energy lost

A
  • Heat from respiration
  • Not every part of the food is eaten
25
Q

energy conversions

A

Living organisms cannot convert the heat energy that is released as a by-product of respiration into any other form of energy

26
Q

How much energy is lost per trophic level

A

90%

27
Q

Explain how energy availability helps sustain an ecosystem

A

light from the sun provides the initial energy source for almost all communities

28
Q

Explain how nutrient availability helps sustain an ecosystem

A

saprotrophic decomposers ensure the constant recycling of inorganic nutrients within an environment

29
Q

Explain how Recycling of wastes helps sustain an ecosystem

A

certain bacteria can detoxify harmful waste byproducts

30
Q

Why are food chains limited in length

A

there is less and less energy available to the consumer as you go up the food chain

31
Q

Why do biomass pyramids decrease

A

Because only around 10% of the energy stored in a producer’s tissues is available to a primary consumer, primary consumers needs to consume a large amount of plant biomass to gain enough energy to survive

32
Q

trick about biomass pyramids

A

they can be inverted

33
Q

trick about energy pyramids

A

they cannot be inverted

34
Q

What is a biomass pyramid

A

a representation of the biomass at different trophic levels

35
Q

What is an energy pyramid

A

a representation of how much energy is retained at each trophic level

36
Q

What can be said about a positive association between species

A

Species that are in a symbiotic relationship are likely to be found next to each other; we would say that there is a positive association between the distributions of these two species

37
Q

What can be said about a negative association between species

A

Species that are in direct competition for the same resources will exclude each other from their immediate surroundings, and so are likely to be found in different parts of a habitat; there might be a negative association between the distributions of these two species

38
Q

What can be said about no association between species

A

species have no interaction with each other
- they are independent of each other

39
Q

Conditions for a sample to be representative

A
  • Large enough: larger and more diversity
  • random: avoids bias
40
Q

What are the units for pyramids of energy

A

kJ m-2 year-1

41
Q

Outline the relationship between carbon dioxide and coral reefs

A
  • CO2 dissolves in water and makes carbonic acid
  • it dissociates into HCO3- and H+
  • water becomes more acidic
  • causes calcium carbonate to dissolve of corals exoskeletons
42
Q

What are the effects of dissolved carbon dioxide

A
  • ocean acidification
  • CO2 is a greenhouse gas that increases the temperature of water
  • causes bleaching of corals who expel alage which can lead to death
  • loss of biodiversity
43
Q

What are the effects of dissolved carbon dioxide

A
  • ocean acidification
  • CO2 is a greenhouse gas that increases the temperature of water
  • causes bleaching of corals that expel algae which can lead to death
  • loss of biodiversity
44
Q

Outline how greenhouse gases interact with radiation and contribute to global warming

A
  • methane/nitrogen oxide/water vapour + CO2 are greenhouse gases
  • light radiation passes through the atmosphere to reach the Earth’s surface
  • CO2 in the atmosphere/greenhouse gases absorb/trap/reflect back some radiation/heat
45
Q

What is Methanogenesis

A

when methane is produced by methanogens (ex: archeans)

46
Q

Outline the role of methanogenic archaea in the transformation of organic material into methane​

A
  • waterlogged mud
  • guts of ruminant mammals
  • Landfill sites containing organic matter such as food waste
  • the methane is released directly into the soil or atmosphere
47
Q

what is methane oxidised to

A

carbon dioxide and water

48
Q

What is peat

A

when organic matter is not fully decomposed because of acidic and/or anaerobic conditions in waterlogged soils

49
Q

Outline the formation of peat

A

when organic matter is not fully decomposed because of anaerobic conditions in waterlogged soils
large quantities of organic matter accumulate and become compressed to form peat

50
Q

Outline the formation of coal

A

forms when peat that forms in acidic and anaerobic conditions is buried, compressed, and heated

51
Q

Outline formation of oil and natural gas

A

Oil and natural gas form in anaerobic conditions at the bottom of seas and lakes when aquatic organisms die and are covered by layers of sediment, and are then compressed and heated.

52
Q

Define combustion

A

when fossil fuels (hydrocarbons) are burned in excess oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water

53
Q

State the products of a combustion reaction

A

water and carbon dioxide

54
Q

State sources of fuel for a combustion reaction

A

dead organic matter

55
Q

what are the hard shells of molluscs made out of

A

calcium carbonate

56
Q

Outline the formation of limestone

A

When animals that have shells made of calcium carbonate die, the soft parts of their bodies are decomposed.
- calcium carbonate shells remain and deposit to the seafloor
-The layers of sediment that form on the seafloor are rich in the calcium carbonate shells of marine organisms, and as the layers are compacted with their own weight and that of the sea above them, they harden, and limestone is formed

57
Q

What are the main greenhouse gases

A
  • water vapour
  • methane
  • carbon dioxide
  • nitrous oxides
58
Q

Outline the effect of greenhouse gases

A
  • they absorb long-wave radiation
  • trapping it in the earth’s atmosphere so that it is not lost to space

IB Biology (11 decks)

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