Biodiversity Flashcards
What is biodiversity?
The variety of living organisms in an area
What is species?
A group of similar organisms able to reproduce to give fertile offspring
What is habitat?
The area inhabited by a species
What are biotic factors?
Living factors
What are abiotic factors?
Non-living factors
What are areas of high biodiversity?
Those with lots of different different species
What is habitat diversity?
The number of different habitats in an area (sand dunes, woodland, meadows, ect)
What is species diversity?
The number of different species and the abundance of each species in an area (woodland many different species of plant, insect and animals)
What is genetic diversity?
The variation of alleles within a species (variation of alleles without the dog species that gives rise to different breeds)
What is abundance?
A very large quantity of something
What is a pitfall trap? What is it ideal for?
A small pit insects can’t get out of - insects
What is kick sampling? What is it ideal for?
Gently kick bottom of the stream, then use to collect organisms that have been disturbed - aquatic organisms
What is a sweep neck? What is it ideal for?
An net that is swept across long grass - organisms in long grass
What sampling technique should you use to avoid bias?
Random sampling
How can you do random sampling?
Divide the area into a grid and use a random number generator to select coordinates
What are the three non-random sampling techniques?
1) systematic
2) opportunistic
3) stratified
What is systematic sampling?
When samples are taken at fixed intervals along a line
What is opportunist sampling?
When samples are chosen by the investigator on the day
What is stratified sampling?
When different areas in a habitat are identified and sampled in proportion to their part of the habitat
What is species richness? How can it be higher or lower?
The number of different species in an area - the higher the number of species, the greater the species richness
What is species evenness? How can it be higher or lower?
A measure of the relative abundance of each species in an area - the more similar, the population size of each species, the greater the species evenness
What does n, N and backwards Z stand for in simpsons index?
n = Number of individuals of one species
N = Number of organisms of all species
Z = Sum of
What do the results of Simpsons index show? (0-1)
The closer to one it is, the more diverse the habitat
What happens when a population has a low genetic diversity?
They might not be able to adapt to a change in the environment and may die
Give an example of a population, which genetic diversity may be low
Zoo
What are alleles?
Different versions of a gene
What is the name for a point on a chromosome?
Locus
What is polymorphism?
A locus that has two or more alleles
What is the formula for the proportion of polymorphic gene loci?
Number of polymorphic gene loci /
Total number of loci
What three factors affect global wide diversity?
1) human population growth
2) increased use of monoculture in agriculture
3) climate change
How does human population growth affect global biodiversity? (4 points)
1) habitat loss (Decreases habitat diversity)
2) over exploitation (decreases, genetic and species diversity)
3) urbanisation (Decrease its genetic diversity)
4) pollution (decreases biodiversity)
How does increased use of monoculture in agriculture affect global biodiversity? (2 points)
1) Habitats lost to make way for large fields (reduces habitat diversity)
2) Local plants and animals seen as weeds and pests, so are killed (reducing species diversity)
How does climate change affect global biodiversity?
The temperature and rainfall patterns of places change
What does interdependent mean?
They depend on each other to survive
Why is it important to protect keystone species?
The loss of these species would mean the disruption of both food chains and nutrient cycles
What are genetic resources?
Any material that contains genes that we find valuable
Why is it important to maintain genetic resources?
They provide us with a variety of everyday products and allow us to adapt to changes in the environment
What is monoculture?
Growing a single variety of a single crop
What does continuous monoculture cause?
Soil depletion - the nutrients are used up
Why do farmers rotate their crop?
To allow nutrients to be replaced
What economic cost has soil depletion led to?
Using fertilisers
Why is it important to protect landscapes?
For aesthetic reasons
What are the three factors that maintaining biodiversity is important for?
Ecological reasons, economic reasons, and aesthetic reasons
What does in situ conservation mean?
On site - protecting species in their natural habitat
What are five methods of in situ conservation?
1) Establishing protected areas - National parks and wildlife reserves
2) Controlling the introduction of new species that threaten local biodiversity
3) protecting habitats
4) Promoting a food source
5) giving legal protection to endangered species
What is one advantage and one disadvantage of in situ conservation?
One advantage is that it is less destructive than moving them, and one disadvantage is that it is difficult to control threatening factors such as poaching and disease
What is ex situ conservation?
Off site - protecting a species by placing it in a new location
What are the four methods of ex situ conservation?
1) relocating
2) reading in captivity, then re-introducing
3) botanic Gardens
4) seed banks
What is one advantage and one disadvantage of ex situ conservation?
One advantage is predation and hunting can be managed more easily, and one disadvantage is, it can be expensive to sustain the right environment
What are two successful international cooperation examples?
Rio convention on biological diversity (CBD) and CITES agreement
What is the rio convention on biological diversity? (CBD)
-How to use animal and plant resources in a sustainable way
-Conserving biodiversity is everyone’s responsibility
-Provides guidance on how to conserve biodiversity
What is the CITES agreement?
-increase international corporation in regulating trade
-Makes it illegal to kill endangered species
- Limits trade through licensing
-Raises awareness through education
What is a local conservation agreement in the UK?
The countryside stewardship scheme (CSS)
What is the CSS?
Government pay land owners who follow management techniques, they were suggesting - regenerate hedgerows - leave grassy margins around the edges of fields for wildflowers to grow
