B16 - Ecosystems Flashcards
What are decomposers
Decomposers break down waste and the dead animals and plants
What do decomposers feed on?
Waste droppings, dead organisms.
Why is decomposition important?
They return mineral ions (e.g. nitrates) to the soil. Plants use these nutrients to create protein and survive.
What are detritivores?
Detritivores are animals that gain nutrients by eating dead organisms and faeces.
What sort of chemical elements are recycled by decomposers?
Nitrates
Why is water important?
As it is vital to life
Describe what happens during evaporation.
Water from the surface is heated up by the sun and turns into water vapour which rises into the atmosphere.
Describe what happens during condensation.
Most air rises and cools, water vapour condenses back to liquid into droplets producing clouds.
Describe what happens during precipitation.
Water droplets in clouds get heavier, they fall as rain, snow, or hail.
Describe what happens during transpiration and respiration.
Loss of water vapour from plants and animals directly to the atmosphere.
Describe what happens during percolation.
Water trickles through gaps in soils + rocks.
What is the role of photosynthesis in the carbon cycle?
Photosynthesis means that plants take in CO2 making them a storage, but also give this carbon to other animals who eat them. When they die it is released into the atmosphere.
What is the role of respiration in the carbon cycle?
Respiration returns CO2 back into the atmosphere.
What is the role of combustion in the carbon cycle?
Combustion releases CO2 into the atmosphere from humans using it CO2 as fuel.
Why must materials in the living world be recycled?
To provide building blocks for future organisms
