Chapter 13: Environmental Factors and Adaatations Flashcards
Environment
provides organism with essential requirements
Definition of…
Biotic and Abiotic
Biotic: Relates to biological/ living parts of the environment
Abiotic: Relates to physical/ non living parts of the environments
Tolerance range
range of environmental conditions an organism can survive in.
Definition of Adaptation
inherited characteristics that increases and enables the survival and reproduction in changing environments.
> result of natural selection. hence evolution
What are the three types of adaptation and give an example of each…
Physiological: sweating
Structural: shell on a turtle
Behavioural: fly south for winter
What are the environmental factors that limit species distribution
Abiotic and Biotic factors
Definition for Acclimatising or ‘Adapting to’
to change behaviour or physiologically cope with changes in the internal or external environment
> Short term adaptive changes that are not evolutionary. no genetic change.
5 examples of Abiotic Factors
pH: measures acidity or alkalinity
Gases: limiting factor to animals
Temperature: heat holding/absorbing capacity of water is high
Light: penetration decrease with depth, transparency permits light to travel through
Salinity: Salt level of water
Hydrophytes and their disadvantages
Aquatic vascular plant with few stomata, large intercellular air spaces to provide buoyancy, and retains gases
Adaptations of submerged marine Seagrass
Roots underwater
Flat leaves, few stomata, thin cuticle
Gasses diffuse better with water
What are the four zones in a sea shore
Sub-tidal
Intertidal
Spray zone
Supra tidal zone
Sub-tidal zone
- Lies below normal low watermark, least stressful zone
- most abundant algae
- some species have air-filled bladders to float
- small red algae, epiphytes, attached to brown kelps
Intertidal zone or Littoral Zone
Barnacles: don’t move, attached to rocks in upper part of intertidal zone
Low tide: close hard valves of shell
High tide: open & filter feed, extract plankton from water supply.
Spray Zone
- Above average high toed, receives spray & splash rom waves
- most exposed and stressed
- wet by extreme high tide and spray
- low temperatures at night
- few organisms, tolerant of dry conditions
Supra-tidal zone
Completely out of range of sea water above spray zone
