B4.1 Adaptations to environment Flashcards
What is a habitat?
a habitat is the place where an organism lives, which could be both in terms of its geographical as well as its physical location within an ecosystem.
What is the distribution of organisms depend on?
The distribution of an organism in a specific environment depends on both, abiotic & biotic factors. However, it’s mostly abiotic factors to which organisms show specific adaptations.
What is a biotic factor?
Biotic factor = “living” factors which have impact on feeding, predator-prey, symbiotic, mutualistic or other forms of interdependent relationships.
What is an abiotic factor?
Abiotic factor = “non-living” physical factors. They have an influence on specific adaptations or organisms to live in their respective habitats.
What are the condition plants adapt for in high altitude habitat?
Plants growing in high altitude are exposed to many diff types of abiotic stress, e.g. UV radiation, low temp, water scarcity & frozen soil (permafrost) which makes rooting & absorption of nutrients & water difficult.
What are the condition plants adapt for in dry habitat?
Plants growing on beach dunes have challenge of water conservation & tolerance of high salt conc which hinders water uptake by osmosis. sand retain little water & it contains little organic matter (which normally helps to store water).
What are the condition plants adapt for in waterlogged habitat?
Mangroves swamps develop in tropics & subtropics where they grow under sheltered conditions & where mud accumulates. Soil is waterlogged, anaerobic & with high salt conc (due to evaporation of water).
How is the alpine edelweiss adapted for it’s high altitude habitat?
- woolly hair traps air & insulates the plant against low temps
- white hair or pigmentation protects plant against sun & UV radiation
How is the alpine moss campion adapted for it’s high altitude habitat?
- small leaves to prevent excessive evaporation of water from the leaves by transpiration
- stunted growth to stay low to the ground protects them from harsh weather conditions
How is the alpine cobweb houseleek adapted for it’s high altitude habitat?
- thick and fleshy leaves helps with conservation for the plant growing on rock or when the soil is frozen
How is the marram grass adapted for it’s dry habitat?
- thick waxy cuticle reduced water loss through transpiration
- rolled up leaves create a humid chamber and reduces exposure to wind (reducing transpiration)
- underground stems (rhizomes) provide stability and can extend deep into the ground to obtain water
- accumulation of carbohydrates in root and leaf cells –> storage of sugars increases osmotic potential & helps to absorb water
How does pneumatophores and cable roots help mangroves adapt to their waterlogged habitat?
- Pneumatophores are vertical roots which grow into air & absorb oxygen
- Cable roots provide stability & often grow close to ground to absorb oxygen
How does stilt roots (growing in downwards arch from stem) help mangroves adapt to their waterlogged habitat?
- Anchor the trees into ground & increases stability
How does buoyant seeds help mangroves adapt to their waterlogged habitat?
- Can be carried away by ocean currents & allow dispersal to fertile soil
How does salt glands in leaves help mangroves adapt to their waterlogged habitat?
- Excess salt removal due to high salt water uptake
What is a distribution map?
a distribution map show the distribution of a species where it lives. It reflects the factors that affect species, especially abiotic factors.
what abiotic factor which affect distribution by shown on a distribution map?
Animal distribution are affected by abiotic factors e.g. water availability, temp, light intensity, soil pH, soil salinity & availability of mineral nutrients. E.g. butterfly (Glanville Fritinary, Melitaea cinxia) prefers living in hot & dry places. On a distribution of Switzerland, the meadow of lowland areas or narrow valley are preferred habitats.
How can one measure a plants range of tolerance of an abiotic factor?
To investigate range of tolerance of an abiotic factor e.g. pH, temp or light intensity, a transect can be used. Diff types of sampling data with transects, two most important = line transect (organisms found at regular sample point are recorded) or belt transect (quadrats are placed at regular sample points & abundance of organisms within each is recorded)
What are coral reeds?
Coral reefs are biodiverse marine ecosystems which are only able to develop where conditions are suitable for hard corals. Corals = animals, which share a mutualistic relationship with tiny algal cells called zooxanthellae, form rocky structure of reef. Zooxanthellae perform photosynthesis, so light is required.
what are the conditions required for coral reef formation?
- Low depth: less than 50m so that light can penetrate & photosynthesis carried out
- pH: above 7.8 to allow deposition of CaCO3 in coral skeleton
- Salinity: between 32-42 parts per thousands of dissolved ions to avoid osmotic problems
- Clarity: turbidity would prevent penetration of light so water must be clear
- Warm temp: 23-29°C so both coral & its zooxanthellae remain healthy
What is a biome?
A biome = biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community, that has formed in response to physical environment in which they are found, & a shared regional climate.
What are the two main abiotic factors which determine distribution of terrestrial biomes?
Earth temp & annual rainfall ear two main abiotic factors which determine distribution of terrestrial biomes.
What happens to species that live in the same biome?
Species composition of organism living in biomes will vary depending on geographical location, but adaptations are likely to be similar.
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the tropical biomes?
Precipitation: High
Seasonal variation: Minimal
Temperature: High
Type of plants community: Very high plant biodiversity
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the temperate biomes?
Precipitation: Medium/High
Seasonal variation: Warm summer, cold winters, spring & autumn
Temperature: Medium
Type of plants community: Deciduous broad-leafed trees which loose leaves in colder season
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the taiga (boreal) biomes?
Precipitation: Medium/high
Seasonal variation: Short summers, long cold winters
Temperature: Low
Type of plants community: Evergreen forests dominated by conifer trees
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the desert biomes?
Precipitation: Very low
Seasonal variation: Minimal variation
Temperature: High
Type of plants community: Little vegetation, often with spines for leaves, adapted for water conservation
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the grassland biomes?
Precipitation: Medium/High
Seasonal variation: Dry & cold seasons
Temperature: high/Medium
Type of plants community: Crass species, little significant trees growth bc of lack of water
What is the precipitation, seasonal variation, temp and type of plant community of the tundra biomes?
Precipitation: Medium/Low
Seasonal variation: Short summer, very cold winter
Temperature: Very low
Type of plants community: No trees bc of lack of water & short growing season. Soil is frozen for most of yr –> little growth
What are the similar adaptations to the abiotic environment that all plant growing in the tundra share?
- close to ground
- small in height
- slow growing
- have hairs to trap heat
- germinate, flower & set seeds within very short growing season
- waxy leaves help preserve water
- shallow root system helps to avoid permafrost
What adaptations do cacti show to life in hot desert?
- wide-spreading root system to collect water up to 30m from stem
- deep tap roots that collect water from up to 1m down on subsoil
- fat stems with storage tissue to conserve water after infrequent desert rains
- pleated stems that allow shrinkage in droughts & swelling after rain
- vertical orientation of stems to reduce interception of sunlight at midday & maximize it at cooler times of day
- thick waxy cuticle on stem epidermis to reduce transpiration
- leaves reduced to spines, to reduce SA for transpiration & prevent herbivores from eating slow growing cactus
- CAM metabolism allowing stomata to open at night & close during heat of day, reducing transpiration
What adaptations does fennex fox show to life in hot desert?
- nocturnal: it avoids highest temp during daylight hrs
- build underground den where it can stay cool during day
- long thick hair to provide heat insulation both for cold nights & hot days
- hairs covering pads of feet to provide insulation when walking on very hot sand
- pale-coloured coat that reflects sunlight ( darker coat = absorb light)
- large ears radiate heat & help keep body temp down
- variable ventilation rate that can be increased to more than 600 breaths/min (panting) to cause heat loss by evaporation
What adaptation does the spider monkey show for life in tropical rainforest?
- long arms & legs for climbing & reaching for fruit
- flexible shoulders allowing swinging from tree to tree
- large hook-like hands without thumbs that can grasp branches & lianas & pick fruit
- feet that can act like extra hands, grasping branches & allowing arms to be used for feeding or other purposes
- long tail that can grip onto branches & act like a fifth hand
- highly developed larynx allowing a wide range of sounds to be made to communicate in the dense rainforest canopy
- sleeping at night & active in daytime when vision is most acute & distances can be judged between branches
- breeding at any time of yr as there is a constant supply of fruit, nuts, seed, buds, flowers, insects & eggs
What adaptations does Philodendron show for life in tropical rainforest?
- climbing habitats, allowing them to reach sunlight in understory - climb over other plants or climbing trunks of tress with aid of aerial roots
- growing habitat can be epiphytic: growing on other plants, hemiepiphytic: growing both on other plants & from soil, rarely terrestrial as epiphytes typically grow on a host plant, absorbing moisture & nutrients from air, rain or surrounding debris
-aerial roots: attach itself to tree & collect water & nutrients - drip trips: allow water fall off quickly so can capture as much sunlight as possible
- wide/large leaves: helps capture the little light available in dark environment since understory only gets 5% of rainforest sunlight
- waxy cuticle: causes water to form discrete droplets rather than spreading out
