B17- Biodiversity and ecosystems ♻️ Flashcards
What is biodiversity ?
Hint: variety
- biodiversity, is the variety of all the different species of organisms on Earth.
What is one way that species help to maintain the environment ?
- decomposers, break down the remains of dead organisms.
What does a high level of biodiversity mean ?
- a high level of biodiversity, means there’s lots of different species.
How are humans having a negative effect on biodiversity ?
- an example of how humans having a negative effect on biodiversity, is deforestation.
- tropical forests contain a very rich biodiversity; large areas of these forests are now being destroyed to provide land.
- this is because the land is often used for rice fields or for grazing cattle.
- and in many cases, the land is used to grow crops which is then used to make biofuels.
Humans are having a negative effect on biodiversity. What are some of the causes for this ?
- deforestation: large areas of these forests are now being destroyed to provide land.
- because the land is often used for rice fields or for grazing cattle.
- and in many cases, the land is used to grow crops which is then used to make biofuels.
Why are humans using more of the Earth’s resources than ever before ?
- the population of humans has increased massively over the last hundred years
- the average standard of living has also increased.
What are the three types of pollution ?
- the three types of pollution are: water, land and air pollution
What are the three types of waste, that can lead to water pollution ?
- the three types of waste, that can lead to water pollution are:
- sewage
- fertilisers
- and, toxic chemicals.
How can sewage lead to water pollution occurring ?
- sewage- humans produce a large amount of sewage.
- ; sewage contains urine and faeces which is simply released into nearby waterways, in some countries.
- This can cause water pollution because large [and excess] amounts nutrients, are introduced into the water. [e.g- nitrogen and phosphorous.]- causing eutrophication
What is eutrophication ?
Hint: enriched
- eutrophication, is the process by which a body of water becomes enriched with nutrients, [therefore] leading to excessive growth of algae and other aquatic plants
How can fertilisers lead to water pollution occurring ? 🐟
Hint: dissolved oxygen
- rivers and streams can be polluted, with fertilisers from farms.
- this means fertilisers can cause dissolved oxygen levels to fall, which can kill aquatic organisms [such as fish-] and reduce biodiversity
How can toxic chemicals lead to water pollution occurring ?
Hint: nervous system
- toxic chemicals- sometimes toxic chemicals are released into rivers, from factories.
- This can kill animals in the river because, it can cause damage to their nervous systems- which reduces biodiversity
What are the two types of waste, that can lead to air pollution ?
- the twoe types of waste, that can lead to air pollution are: acidic gases and smoke.
How can acidic gases lead to air pollution occurring ?
- burning coal in power stations can release acidic gases, which can cause acid rain- acid rain is a result of air pollution.
- and acid rain can dissolve nutrients, [e.g-magnesium and calcium] that trees need to be healthy.
How can smoke lead to air pollution occurring ?
Hint: released
- burning [coal] can also release smoke, which can kill plants and animals- therefore reducing biodiversity
- ; if released into the atmosphere, it can pollute the air and then contribute to climate change.
What are the two types of waste, that can lead to land pollution ?
- the three types of waste, that can lead to water pollution are: landfill and toxic chemicals
How can landfill, lead to land pollution occurring ?
Hint: waste
- waste can pollute the land. For example, millions of waste is dumped in landfills.
- and these landfills can then destroy habitats, for plants and animals.
How can toxic chemicals, lead to land pollution occurring ?
Hint: leach
- toxic chemicals can leach out of landfills and pollute the soil- which can then lead to land pollution occurring
List some resources that humans are using up
- fossil fuels for energy and raw materials
- minerals from rocks (e.g. gold is VERY expensive as we’ve mined most of it.
- open spaces to provide soil to grow food.
- as most of the water is in the sea, we are running out of fresh water to: grow food, for cleaning, drinking and waste removal.
Why is a good level of biodiversity important, to the future of the human species ?
- a good level of biodiversity is important, to the future of the human species
- This is because without a wide range of animals, plants and microorganisms, we can’t have the [healthy] ecosystems we rely on to provide us with the air we breathe and the food we eat
Describe some effects of human population growth.
- as the population grows, more resources are used so more energy is required.
- this means, there is an increase in the use of fossil fuels and an increase in the waste produced.
- this will then leads to an increase in pollution.
- This increase in pollution, can then affect the environment.
- ; there’s also an effect on land and resources
How can the human population growth, effect the land we use ?
- More land is needed for homes, shops, industrial sites, roads destroying [existing] habitats.
- More land is needed for farming- destroying natural plant and animal communities.
- vast areas of land to obtain rocks & metal ores are dug up– meaning natural ecosystems are lost= a loss of both plant and animal species.
Explain why human population change differs from population change of other animals.
- in nature, population chamge is normally controlled by: predators, a lack of food, build up of waste and disease controls a population.
Explain how human population change differs from population change of other animals.
- ; with humans this isnt the case, as we grow our own food using fertilisers and pesticides – meaning plenty of food available
- we cure diseases using medicine – meaning there is a limited number of deaths
- humans have no natural predators – also meaning there is a limited number of deaths
- and we also remove and dump waste elsewhere – meaning better sanitation, and therefore once again, limiting the number of deaths.
Suggest and evaluate solutions to the problems, caused by human population growth. 🚹🚺
- China attempted the controversial, ‘One Child Policy’ as they realised that their supply was not meeting their demand.
- This is because, weren’t enough resources for the sheer number of people.
- ; although the the birth rate decreased after 1980, sons were generally preferred over daughters- therefore the overall sex ratio in China became skewed toward males.
- [In 2016 there were 33.59 million more men than women]
Suggest and evaluate solutions to the problems, caused by human population growth. 🥑🥙🍖🍔
- a solution could be to reduce your personal consumption. To do this, a person could go vegan.
- ; although the consumption of meat would be reduced, more people would be at risk of being deficient in certain nutrients.
- This is because they wouldn’t be eating certain nutrients [e.g- calcium and vitamin B12] typically found in dairy and meat
How does a high biodiversity, make an ecosystem stable ?
- this makes an ecosystem more stable because, lots of different species mean that the ecosystem is less dependent on one species.
- and therefore if the population of a species falls, it’s less likely to affect the whole ecosystem.
- Fill in the gaps: In the UK, sewage is treated before being released
- though in some cases, untreated sewage can accidentally be released into rivers or streams.
- in the UK, sewage is treated before being released
- though in some cases, untreated sewage can accidentally be released into rivers or streams.
How can toxic chemicals kill organisms ?
- ; in some cases, toxic chemicals are simply dumped directly onto the land
- and those chemicals can kill living organisms.
- This is because, when the toxic compound comes in contact with or is absorbed by body tissues, these compounds can then interact with parts of the body.
