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GCSE Biology > B18 - Biodiversity and ecosystems > Flashcards

B18 - Biodiversity and ecosystems Flashcards

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1
Q

What is biodiversity

A

a measure of the variety of all the different species of organism in an ecosystem

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2
Q

What is the benefit of having biodiversity

A

it reduces the dependence of one species on another for food, shelter and maintenance of the physical environment

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3
Q

What is the effect of the loss of a species of ecosystems with high and low biodiversity

A
  • high : little effect
  • low : large effect
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4
Q

why has the human population been able to grow so fast

A
  • lack of predators
  • grow lots of food
  • cures for disease
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5
Q

how is land consumed by humans

A
  • industrial areas
  • farms
  • quarries
  • processing waste
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6
Q

what are some problems with how we manage waste

A
  • water gets polluted with sewage
  • air we breathe contains pollutants
  • land is polluted with chemicals
  • these can wash into water
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7
Q

how do people pollute land

A
  • waste disposal
  • toxic chemicals
  • side effect of farming e.g. herbicides etc.
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8
Q

how do people pollute water

A
  • sewage water washed into sea
  • toxic chemicals drain into rivers and seas
  • ## lots of ions from fertilisers cause growth stimulation in plants, which causes others to die out, which causes lots of decomposers
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9
Q

why are green ponds bad

A

because all the animal life it once had is dead due to lots of competition for resources

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10
Q

how is acid rain produced

A

sulfur in fuels reacts with oxygen in air to make sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain
- nitrous oxides are produced in car engines

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11
Q

What is the effect of acid rain
- why is it dangerous to places far from where it was created

A

kills animals and plants, corrodes buildings
- wind

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12
Q

how have some countries reduced likelihood of acid rain

A
  • using low sulfur alternatives e.g. gas, nuclear instead of coal
  • catalytic converters limit nitrous oxides
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13
Q

what does smoke pollution do to affect the body and the environment

A

causes an increase in small particles, particulates. They block sunlight causing global dimming and damage the lungs when breathed in

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14
Q

What is smog
- what does it do

A

lots of particles of smoke and chemicals
- forms a haze of small particles and acidic gases

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15
Q

What are the three main reasons for deforestation

A
  • grow foods
  • rear cattle
  • crow crops for biofuels
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16
Q

what are four negative effects from deforestation

A
  • burning trees increases CO2 released into the atmosphere
  • less trees reduce amount removed
  • decomposers release CO2 when the trees decay
  • loss of biodiversity
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17
Q

What is peat

A

plant material that cannot decay completely due to the acidic, anaerobic conditions

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18
Q

What are peat bogs used for

A
  • have unique ecosystems
  • burned as fuel
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19
Q

why is peat not sustainable as a fuel

A

it is produced very slowly and is being destroyed faster than it is being made

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20
Q

how is CO2 removed from the atmosphere

A

photosynthesis, dissolved in oceans and lakes

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21
Q

how is CO2 and methane added to the atmosphere

A
  • respiration, burning fuels, decay
  • rice and cattle farming
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22
Q

What is the greenhouse effect

A
  • energy is transferred to the Earth from the Sun
  • energy gets reflected to space
  • the longer wavelength radiation cannot pass through the atmosphere so stays and is radiated back to Earth
  • this causes the Earth to heat up
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23
Q

Why is the greenhouse effect necessary

A

to keep the Earth’s surface at a suitable temperature

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24
Q

What are some effects of global warming

A
  • rising sea levels
  • climate change
  • ice caps melting
    more unpredictable weather events
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25
Q

what are some effects of climate change

A
  • loss of habitat
  • changes in distribution
  • changes in migration patterns
  • reduced biodiversity
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26
Q

what environmental factors affect distribution of animals

A
  • water scarcity
  • temperature
  • concentration of gases in water
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27
Q

Whata re the three types of environmental changes

A
  • seasonal changes
  • geographical changes
  • result of human interaction
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28
Q

What are some examples of seasonal environmental changes

A
  • temperature
  • amount of rainfall
  • sunlight hours
  • water scarcity
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29
Q

What are some examples of geographical environmental changes

A
  • soil structure and pH
  • altitude
  • saltiness of water
  • water availability
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30
Q

What are some examples of environmental changes caused by human interaction

A
  • maintaining / destroying rain forests
  • acid rain
  • pollution
  • global warming and climate change
  • conservation measures
31
Q

What are some negative effects of migration of species

A
  • affects biodiversity of areas
  • new type of predator or pathogen can be transported and cause lots of harm
32
Q

How can breeding programmes help endangered species
- what are some issues with this

A
  • increases population of species
  • they often do not have a proper habitat and so must remain in captivity, must prevent inbreeding
33
Q

What are 5 ways we can maintain biodiversity

A
  • breeding programmes for endangered species
  • protection and regeneration of rare habitats
  • reintroduction of field margins and hedgerows
  • reduction of CO2 emissions and deforestation
  • recycling resources
34
Q

how does protecting and regenerating habitats help maintain biodiversity

A
  • more habitats for threatened animals
    so that they are no longer having a reduced habitat
35
Q

how does reintroducing field margins and hedgerows help maintain biodiversity

A

allows former species to continue living where they were

36
Q

how does reducing CO2 emissions help maintain biodiversity

A

reduced climate change

37
Q

how does recycling affect biodiversity

A
  • pollution from waste and land used by landfill reduces biodiversity
38
Q

how have governments reduced amount of landfill

A

introducing landfill taxes

39
Q

What is a trophic level

A

the position of organisms in a food chain

40
Q

What is on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th trophic level

A

1 - producers
2 - primary consumers
3 - secondary consumers
4 - tertiary consumers

41
Q

How do decomposers break down dead matter

A

secreting enzymes into the environment, then small soluble food diffuses back into the decomposer

42
Q

What is biomass
- how is it measured

A

the mass of material in an organism
- the dry m ass of biological material in grams

43
Q

how is biomass passed through the food chain

A

by eating

44
Q

how do we show amount of biomass at each trophic level

A

a pyramid of biomass

45
Q

in a pyramid of biomass, where is trophic level 1

A

at the bottom

46
Q

how does biomass vary at each level of the pyramid of biomass

A

the higher the trophic level, the less the total biomass

47
Q

why does biomass decrease at each trophic level

A
  • not all the plant or animal can be eaten
  • some is passed out as waste
  • some animals or plants die
  • lots of biomass is used for respiration
  • homostasis
48
Q

approximately how much of the energy from the Sun is used for photosynthesis by plants and algae

A

around 1%

49
Q

around what percentage of biomass is transferred to the next trophic level

A

around 10%

50
Q

why is biomass lost in faeces

A

animals cant digest all the biomass that it ingests
- herbivores cannot digest cellulose
- carnivores can’t eat claws, bones, teeth etc.

51
Q

How is biomass lost as waste

A

glucose is used for respiration
- excess proteins become amino acids, lost in urine
- movement requires energy

52
Q

why is biomass lost for keeping a constant body temperature

A

biomass is used to get energy for warmth

53
Q

why does the biomass of decomposers affect the pyramid of biomass

A

it is not usually included

54
Q

what is food security

A

having enough food to feed a population

55
Q

what happens when there is no food security

A

people suffer from malnutrition or starve

56
Q

What are 6 factors affecting food security

A
  • increasing birth rate
  • changing diets in developed countries
  • new pests and pathogens
  • environmental changes
  • cost of agriculture
  • conflicts
57
Q

how does an increasing birth rate affect food security

A

more people means more food needs to be produced

58
Q

how do changing diets affect food security

A

people in richer areas always want new foods
- this must be transported around the world
- this deprives people in the poor area of food

59
Q

how do new pests and pathogens affect food security

A

kills or damages foods and reduces yield

60
Q

how do environmental changes affect food security

A

droughts and flooding affect farmland

61
Q

how does the rising cost of agricultural inputs affect food security

A

GM crops are produced, and this raises costs meaning farmers can’t afford as much

62
Q

How does conflict affect food security

A

rising food prices, damaged infrastructure

63
Q

what are 3 sustainable ways of producing food

A

maintaining soil quality
- looking at efficient ways of producing food
- taking care of fish stocks in oceans so they do not run out

64
Q

how could food production be more efficient (food chains)

A

having a shorter food chain so less biomass is lost

65
Q

how can we reduce biomass lost by animals such as pigs

A
  • controlling the temperature of surroundings so less biomass is wasted for warmth
  • limiting movement so less respiration happens
66
Q

What are the benefits and drawbacks of intensive farming methods indoors, over rearing them outdoors

A

-control temperature
- reduce movement
- fit more in a smaller space
- no dependency on weather

  • easy for disease to spread
  • have to pay for lighting and heating
67
Q

how is intensive farming done modernly

A

with lots of space for animals to roam, but indoors under ideal conditions

68
Q

How are fish farmed
- how is this good

A

live in cages and fed from ground up wild-caught fish, specially bred for fast growth

  • helps protect wild stocks, produces cheap food
69
Q

what is the issue with overfishing

A

fish take time to grow, and they are killed before they fully grow, meaning there are no fish to breed and replace the dead

70
Q

how is the issue of overfishing tackled

A

fish quotas reduce amount of fish caught
- bans on fishing in the breeding season
- large fishing nets that only trap grown fish - others can escape freely

71
Q

why are GM crops used instead of normal crops

A

added nutritional value or greater yield

72
Q

What are two ways biotechnology is used for sustainable food production

A
  • GM crops
  • genetic engineering
73
Q

What is one way genetic engineering is used to help people

A

grow lots of insulin using bacteria, that can be used for people with diabetes

74
Q

how is mycoprotein produced

A
  • a fungus (Fusarium) reproduces on glucose syrup in special containers
  • biomass is harvested and purified
  • this can be shaped in many ways

GCSE Biology (19 decks)

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