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IB Biology > C.1 Species and communities > Flashcards

C.1 Species and communities Flashcards

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1
Q

What is a limiting factor?

A

A component of an ecosystem which limits the distribution or numbers of a population

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2
Q

What does a limiting factor define?

A

Optimal survival conditions according to its effect on a species when in deficiency or excess

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3
Q

What are the two types of limiting factors?

A

Biotic or abiotic

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4
Q

What do abiotic factors include?

A

Interactions between organisms

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5
Q

What do biotic factors include?

A

Environmental conditions

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6
Q

What is the law of tolerance?

A

Populations have optimal survival conditions within critical minimal and maximal thresholds

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7
Q

What happens as a population is exposed to the extremes of a particular limiting factor?

A

The rates of survival begin to drop

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8
Q

What are the three regions of the distribution of a species in response to a limiting factor?

A

Optimal zone
Zones of stress
Zones of intolerance

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9
Q

How is the distribution of a species in response to a limiting factor represented?

A

As a bell shaped curve with 3 regions

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10
Q

What is the optimal zone?

A

Central portion of curve which has conditions that favour maximal reproductive success and survivability

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11
Q

What is the zones of stress?

A

Regions flanking the optimal zone, where organisms can survive but with reduced reproductive success

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12
Q

What is the zones of intolerance?

A

Outermost regions in which organisms cannot survive

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13
Q

What do the zones of intolerance represent?

A

Extremes of the limiting factor

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14
Q

What are glycophytes?

A

Plant species that are not particularly salt tolerant

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15
Q

What does plant growth vary greatly in response to?

A

Concentrations of salt within the soil

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16
Q

What are halophytes?

A

Plant species that are salt tolerant

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17
Q

Are most types of plant species glycophytes or halophytes?

A

Glycophytes

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18
Q

What does the cultivation of land for agriculture cause? (salt concs)

A

The water table to rise and concentrates salt at the the roots

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19
Q

How does salt concentrating at the roots affect glycophytes?

A

It makes it harder to extract water from the soil

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20
Q

What is critically important for effective crop farming?

A

Understanding salt tolerance for different plant species

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21
Q

What are coral species which form connected reefs greatly impacted by?

A

Changes in oceanic temperature

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22
Q

How do coral polyps receive nutrition?

A

From an algae that lives in the polyps endodermis

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23
Q

How do increasing ocean temperatures cause coral bleaching?

A

The algae that feeds them cannot survive in low temperatures so when it increases they leave the coral tissue?

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24
Q

What is the typical optimal growth range in temperate waters?

A

20 - 30 C

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25
Q

What can quadrats and transects measure?

A

The distribution of a plant or animal species in response to an incremental abiotic factor

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26
Q

What are quadrats?

A

Rectangular frames of known dimensions that can be used to establish population densities

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27
Q

What are transects?

A

A straight line along an abiotic gradient from which population data can be recorded to determine a pattern

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28
Q

What can using quadrats and transect lines simultaneously help generate?

A

Population data

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29
Q

What will quadrats show about population data?

A

The changing distribution pattern of a species in response to a change in an abiotic variable

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30
Q

What can using population data from quadrats and transect lines help identify?

A

Optimal conditions, zones of stress and zones of intolerance

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31
Q

What are transects used to assess?

A

Species distribution in correlation with any abiotic factor that varies across a measurable distance

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32
Q

What is a kite graph used to represent?

A

Changes in species distribution

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33
Q

What does the relative width of each kite represent?

A

The abundance of an organism at a particular point along a transect

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34
Q

What is an ecological niche?

A

The functional position and role of an organism within its environment

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35
Q

What components will an ecological niche have?

A

The habitat
Activity patterns of the organism
Resources it obtains from the environment
The interactions that occur with other species in the community

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35
Q

What does an ecological niche consist of?

A

All physical and biological conditions which determine the organisms survival and reproductive prospects

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36
Q

What happens if two distinct species share an identical niche?

A

There will be interspecific competition for available space and resources

37
Q

What will interspecific competition result in?

A

The fitness of one being lowered by the presence of the other

38
Q

Why will the less well adapted species be eliminated from the niche?

A

As it will struggle to survive and reproduce

39
Q

What are the two responses of interspecific competition?

A

Competitive exclusion and resource partitioning

40
Q

What is competitive exclusion?

A

One species uses the resources more efficiently driving the other species to local extinction

41
Q

What is resource partitioning?

A

Both species alter their use of the habitat to divide resources between them

42
Q

Why will some species not be able to occupy their entire niche?

A

Due to the presence or absence of other species

43
Q

So what happens if a species cannot occupy the entire niche?

A

They may occupy a smaller subset of their niche than is theoretically possible

44
Q

What is a fundamental niche?

A

Where an organism could live

45
Q

What is the fundamental niche also known as?

A

The theoretical habitat

46
Q

Why may a species not live in all of their fundamental niche?

A

Due to presence of competing species

47
Q

What is a realised niche?

A

Where an organism does live

48
Q

What is a realised niche also referred to as?

A

The actual habitat

49
Q

What is a keystone species?

A

A species that has a disproportionately large impact on the environment relative to its abundance

50
Q

What are the three types of keystone species?

A

Predators
Mutualism
Engineers

51
Q

What are predators?

A

They exert pressure on lower trophic levels to prevent them from monopolising certain resources

52
Q

What are mutualists?

A

They can support the life cycle of a variety of species within a community

53
Q

What are engineers?

A

They can refashion the environment in a manner that promotes the survival of other species

54
Q

What is an example of a predator?

A

Sea stars prey on urchins and mussels preventing mussel overpopulation and coral reef distruction

55
Q

What is an example of a mutualist?

A

Honey bees pollinate a wide variety of plant species continuing the plant life cycle

56
Q

What is an example of an engineer?

A

Beavers build dams that transform the environment in a manner that allows certain other species to survive

57
Q

What are keystone species not?

A

The dominant species

58
Q

What do keystone species not have to be?

A

Apex predators

59
Q

How can the interactions between species in a community be classified?

A

According to their effect on the organisms involved?

60
Q

What is herbivory?

A

The act of eating only plant matter

61
Q

What may herbivores employ?

A

Different feeding strategies

62
Q

What are the two ways herbivory may affect the plant species?

A

It may be harmful or beneficial

63
Q

What is an example of herbivory being damaging to the plant species?

A

Beetle may feed too hard on the leaves causing crop failure

64
Q

What is an example of herbivory being beneficial to the plant species?

A

Fruit-eating animals spread the seeds from fruit in their poo promoting seed dispersal

65
Q

What is predation?

A

A biological interaction where predator hunts and feeds on prey

66
Q

Why are predators and preys population levels inextricably intertwined?

A

Because the predator relies on the prey as their food source

67
Q

What happens if prey population drops?

A

Predator numbers will dwindle as intraspecific competition increases

68
Q

What happens if the prey population increases?

A

Predator population increases due to the over abundance of a food source

69
Q

What is symbiosis?

A

The close and persistent interaction between two species

70
Q

What are the two types of symbiotic relationships?

A

Obligative or faculative

71
Q

What are the three types of symbiotic relationships?

A

Mutualism
Commensalism
Parasitism

72
Q

What is mutualism?

A

An ongoing interaction between two species whereby both species benefit from the interaction

73
Q

What is an example of mutualism?

A

Plover birds pick food from between the jaws of crocodiles cleaning their teeth in the process

74
Q

What is commensalism?

A

An ongoing interaction between two species where on benefits and the other is unaffected

75
Q

What is an example of commensalism?

A

Remora attach to the underside of larger predatory fish and feed off the uneaten food scraps

76
Q

What is parasitism?

A

The ongoing interaction between two species whereby one species benefits at the others expense

77
Q

What is an example of parasitism?

A

Ticks infest the skin and fur of host animals feeding off the host and potentially causing disease

78
Q

What do reef building coral form a symbiotic relationship with?

A

Zooxanthellae

79
Q

What is zooxanthellae?

A

Photosynthetic unicellular algae

80
Q

What are coral?

A

Colonial organisms made up of individual polyps connected by a layer of living tissue

81
Q

Where does zooxanthellae live?

A

Within the cells of the corals endodermis

82
Q

What does the coral provide zooxanthellae?

A

A protective environment and source of inorganic compounds

83
Q

How does coral provide the algae with a protective environment?

A

It secretes calcium carbonate to build a skeleton which encases the polyps

84
Q

How does the coral provide the algae with a source of inorganic compounds?

A

The coral recycles the algaes waste product and supplies carbon dioxide

85
Q

How does the algae help the coral?

A

Provides the coral with a source of nutrition ( oxygen, glucose and other organic molecules?

86
Q

Excluding nutrition, how else does the algae help the coral?

A

It removes waste products

87
Q

What gives the coral its bright colour?

A

The algae

88
Q

What happens when there is a large scale loss of zooxanthellae from the coral?

A

Bleaching coral

89
Q

How does bleaching affect the coral?

A

The coral begins to starve and will dies unless the algae comes back

90
Q

What three conditions can cause coral bleaching?

A

Changes in light availability
Temperature increases
Ocean acidification

IB Biology (57 decks)

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