B7.2 Organisation of an ecosystem Flashcards
What is a producer?
A photosynthetic organisms that produces biomass.
What do all food chains begin with?
Producers
Give two examples of a producer.
Green plants and algae.
What does a producer make? How?
Glucose, through an exothermic chemical reaction known as photosynthesis.
Name 2 methods used by ecologists to determine the distribution and abundance of species in an ecosystem.
Random and systematic sampling.
Name 3 types of consumers and what they eat.
“1. Primary consumers eat producers.
- Secondary consumers eat primary consumers
- Tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers”
What is a predator?
A consumer that kills and eats other animals.
What are prey?
An animal that is killed and eaten by predator.
Why are all materials in the living world recycled?
To provide the building blocks for future organisms.
What uses carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
Plants during photosynthesis.
State three processes which return carbon from organisms to atmospheric carbon dioxide.
“1. Respiration – releases carbon dioxide.
- Release (carbon containing) waste – microorganisms decompose this and respire – releases carbon dioxide.
- Death – microorganisms decompose the body and respire – release carbon dioxide.”
Where does the fresh water for animals and plants on land come from?
Continuous evaporation of water from oceans and precipitation over land.
State 3 factors which may affect the rate of decay of biological material.
“1. Temperature
- Water
- Oxygen availability”
What is compost used for by gardeners and farmers?
Used as a natural fertiliser for growing plants and crops.
What is a biogas generator and how does it work?
A generator used to anaerobically decay biological material which produces methane gas as a fuel.
Name 3 environmental changes that affect the distribution of species in an ecosystem.
Temperature, availabilty of water, composition of atmospheric gases
State three causes of environmental change.
Seasons, geographic location, human interaction
How do humans reduce the amount of land available for other animals and plants?
By building, quarrying, farming and dumping waste
Why are peat bogs being destroyed?
To produce garden compost.
What effect does destruction of peat bogs have on an area?
What effect does destruction of peat bogs have on an area?
What happens as a result of decay or burning of peat?
Release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
What is biodiversity?
The variety of all the different species of organisms on earth, or within an ecosystem.
Why does having great biodiversity ensure stability in an ecosystem?
Because species have reduced dependence of one another for food, shelter and maintenance of the physical environment.
What is human activity reducing, which may be an issue for the future of the human species on Earth?
Biodiversity.
What is happening to the levels of resources we are using and the waste we are producing as human population rapidly grows?
Increasing (dangerously).
What is the increased release of waste and chemical materials causing?
(More) pollution.
How is water polluted?
Sewage, fertilisers or toxic chemicals.
How is air polluted?
Smoke and acidic gases.
How is land polluted?
Landfill and toxic chemicals.
Why does pollution reduce biodiversity?
It kills plant and animals.
