Biodiversity (Unit 3, Topic 1)

Question 1

the variety of plant and animal life in the world or in a particular habitat, a high level of which is usually considered to be important and desirable.

Answer 1

Biodiversity

Question 2

a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.

Answer 2

Ecosystem

Question 3

a measurement of the number of different species in an ecosystem

Answer 3

Species richness (S)

Question 4

measurement of how common or uncommon a species is relative to its surroundings

Answer 4

relative species abundance

Question 5

a measure of diversity which takes into account the number of species present, as well as the relative abundance of each species.

Answer 5

Simpson’s diversity index (SDI)

Question 6

how many individuals there are per unit of area or volume

Answer 6

Population density

Question 7

predation, competition, symbiosis, disease, climate, substrate, size/depth of area

Answer 7

Characteristics of comparing ecosystems

Question 8

organise and classify organisms into groups

Answer 8

Taxonomy

Question 9

members of a particular group of organisms that can interbreed, under natural conditions, and produce fertile, viable offspring.

Answer 9

Species

Question 10

kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species

Answer 10

Linnaean classification system

Question 11

the complete group of organisms (living or extinct) thought to have descended from a common ancestor

Answer 11

Clade

Question 12

1. any group of organisms are related by descent from a common ancestor
2. there is a bifurcating pattern of cladogenesis
3. changes in traits occur in lineages over time

Answer 12

Cladistics

Question 13

states that DNA and protein sequences evolve at a rate that is relatively constant over time and among different organisms

Answer 13

Molecular clock

Question 14

involves the fusion of gametes from two sources to produce offspring

Answer 14

Sexual reproduction

Question 15

involves the production of offspring that are identical to each other, from one parent organism

Answer 15

Asexual reproduction

Question 16

have the ability to produce large numbers of offspring (often asexually) with little parental investment. Usually small organisms

Answer 16

r-strategist

Question 17

species whose populations fluctuate at or near the carrying capacity (K) of the environment in which they reside. Tend to live in more stable environments and their population densities are as high as the ecosystem will allow

Answer 17

K-strategist

Question 18

the distribution of living organisms into specific zones (e.g. continents, longitude/latitudes, climate, altitudes, etc.)

Answer 18

Zonation

Question 19

the vertical layering of habitats according to where plants and other organisms grow

Answer 19

Stratification

Question 20

the use of measured squares to horizontally dissect an ecosystem and analyse the biodiversity within each quadrat

Answer 20

Quadrants

Question 21

the use of a straight line that traverses across a habitat so that we can observe and record the frequency and diversity of species along the line

Answer 21

Transects