biodiversity/ species diversity

Question 1

define the term habitat

Answer 1

the place in which organisms live e.g. pond or rocky shore

Question 2

define the term community

Answer 2

all organisms of all different species within the habitat

Question 3

define the term population

Answer 3

all the organisms of one species in a habitat

Question 4

define the term biodiversity

Answer 4

the variety of living organisms in a community/habitat

Question 5

define the term species richness

Answer 5

the number of different species in a habitat

Question 6

what does the diversity of a community reflect?

Answer 6

• the number of different species present

- the number of individuals in each species

Question 7

what does the index of diversity enable us to do?

Answer 7

make an objective assessment of diversity in any community

Question 8

what is the formula for index diversity?

Answer 8

sum of n(n-1)

Question 9

explain why it is more useful to calculate the diversity index rather than just record the number of species present

Answer 9

it measures the number of individuals in each species (species evenness) as well as the number of different species (species richness )
Also takes into account the fact that some species may be represented in very low or high number (higher or lower) represented

Question 10

describe low index diversity

Answer 10

unfavourable or harsh environment

• few species present and often populations are small
• -unstable environment
• only few species are adapted to survive harsh condition

Question 11

describe high index diversity

Answer 11

• many species and populations are usually large
• usually stable environments
• complex food webs so a change in population of one species is likely to affect other populations