Defenitions

Question 1

Food chain

Answer 1

Showing the transfer of energy from one organism to the next, beginning with a producer

Question 2

Food web

Answer 2

A network of interconnected food chains

Question 3

Producers

Answer 3

An organism that makes its own organic nutrients, usually using energy from sunlight, through photosynthesis

Question 4

Consumers

Answer 4

An organism that gets its energy by feeding on other organisms. They may be classed as primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary according to their position in a food chain

Question 5

Primary consumer

Answer 5

First consumer in a food chain, they eat producers

Question 6

Secondary consumer

Answer 6

Second consumer in a food chain, they eat the primary consumer

Question 7

Tertiary consumer

Answer 7

Third consumer in a food chain, they eat the secondary consumer

Question 8

Quarternary consumer

Answer 8

Fourth consumer in a food chain, they eat the tertiary consumer

Question 9

Herbivore

Answer 9

An animal that gets its energy by eating plants

Question 10

Carnivore

Answer 10

An animal that gets its energy by eating other animals

Question 11

Decomposer

Answer 11

An organism that gets its energy from dead or waste organic material

Question 12

Trophic level

Answer 12

The position of an organism in a food chain, food web or ecological pyramid.

Question 13

Arrows in a food web

Answer 13

Arrows represent the energy being transferred

Question 14

Ecosystem

Answer 14

A unit containing the community of organisms and their environment, interacting together

Question 15

Energy loss in food chains

How does this occur?

Answer 15

Through movement, respiration, excretion and not eating the whole organisms

Question 16

Respiration

Answer 16

Is a chemical process that involves the breakdown of nutrient molecules (specifically glucose) in order to release the energy.

oxygen + glucose → carbon dioxide + water

Question 17

Photosynthesis

Answer 17

Is a chemical reaction that requires energy, water and carbon dioxide to synthesise glucose. Oxygen is a by-product

Question 18

Decomposition

Answer 18

When living organisms die, cells are broken down. The decomposers use the material they gain to respire

Question 19

Combustion

Answer 19

The burning of fuels (like fossil fuels) to realise energy. Carbon dioxide is released too

Question 20

Fossilisation

Answer 20

Forming of fossils

Question 21

Describe the Carbon Cycle

Answer 21

Look on internet for diagram

Question 22

Describe the Nitrogen Cycle

Answer 22

Look on internet for diagram

Question 23

Nitrogen fixation

Answer 23

Convert nitrogen gas into nitrates. Examples; nitrogen fixing bacteria, lightning, fertiliser (haber process)

Question 24

Denitrification

Answer 24

Converting nitrates into nitrogen gas. Done by denitrifying bacteria

Question 25

Nitrification

Answer 25

Converting ammonium ions into nitrite and then nitrate

Question 26

Decomposition

Answer 26

Breakdown of plants and animal by microorganisms, forming ammonium ions

Question 27

Deamination

Answer 27

Happens in animal. Converting amino acids into urea.

Question 28

Lag phase

Answer 28

Organisms are adapting to the environment before they are able to reproduce; in addition, at this stage there are very few organisms and so reproduction is not producing larger numbers of offspring

Question 29

Log phase/exponential phase

Answer 29

Food supply is abundant, birth rate is rapid and death rate is low; growth is exponential and only limited by the number of new individuals that can be produced

Question 30

Stationary phase

Answer 30

Population levels out due to a factor in the environment, such as a nutrient, becoming limited as it is not being replenished; birth rate and death rate are equal and will remain so until either the nutrient is replenished or becomes severely limited

Question 31

Death phase

Answer 31

Population decreases as death rate is now greater than birth rate; this is usually because food supply is short or metabolic wastes produced by the population have built up to toxic levels