Ecology Flashcards

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1
Q

Define species

A

A group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

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2
Q

Define population

A

A group of organisms of the same species who live in the same area at the same time.

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3
Q

Define community

A

A group of populations living and interacting with each other in an area.

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4
Q

Define ecosystem

A

A biological community of interacting organisms and their abiotic environment.

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5
Q

Define ecology

A

the study of relationships between living organisms and between organisms and their environment.

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6
Q

Define trophic level

A

The position of an organism in a food chain.

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7
Q

Define interdependence

A

How different organisms in an ecosystem interact and are dependent upon each other .

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8
Q

Define food chain

A

A simple diagram to track the flow of energy within an ecosystem.

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9
Q

Define food web

A

A set of related food chains with connections to track the interconnectedness of the organisms in the ecosystem.

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10
Q

Define a producer

A

Organisms that make their own food from their non living environment using photosynthesis.

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11
Q

Define a consumer

A

Organisms that eat producers or their products, or eat each other.

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12
Q

What is a population?

A

A group of organisms that interbreed and live in the same place at the same time

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13
Q

What is a community

A

All the living organisms in an ecosystem

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14
Q

What are species?

A

A species is a group of organisms that are able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring

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15
Q

Name the species that are able to make their own food from inorganic materials.

A

Autotrophs

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16
Q

What is the name of consumers that feed on living organisms by ingestion i.e. they obtain their food from organic matter e.g. Herbivores, carnivores.

A

Heterotrophs

17
Q

Name two types of heterotrophs

A

Detritivores

Saprotrophs

18
Q

Outline the characteristics of detritivores

A

Organisms that ingest dead organic matter such as fallen leaves or the bodies of dead animals e.g. earthworms, woodlice and millipedes

19
Q

Outline the characteristics of a saprotroph

A

Saprotrophs secrete digestive enzymes onto organic matter and then absorb their nutrients in a digested form e.g. bacteria and fungi. (egestion).

Saprotrophs are therefore responsible for the decomposition of organic matter and are often referred to as decomposers – they are crucial to the recycling of inorganic nutrients such as nitrogen compounds.

20
Q

What does the chi-squared test measure?

A

A mathematical way in which you can determine if the data you have observed is due to chance – by comparing it to the data you would have expected to produce.

21
Q

Define biomass

A

The total mass of a group of organisms. It consists of the cells and tissues of those organisms, including carbohydrates and other carbon compounds they contain. Carbon compounds have chemical energy so therefore biomass has energy.

22
Q

Outline how energy in food chains can be lost.

A

Not consumed – All parts of an organism may not be consumed and the parts that are not consumed still have energy stored

Not assimilated or lost through death – Not all parts of what is consumed is digested and absorbed so some passes out in the faeces.

Also if an organism dies and is not eaten by a predator but instead decayed by detritivores and saprotrophs then the energy in its body is lost to this food chain instead.

Cell respiration – Organisms need energy for cell activities and this energy (ATP) comes from cell respiration.

The only energy available to organisms in the next trophic level is chemical energy in carbon compounds that have not been used up in cell respiration or lost as heat.

23
Q

Explain how energy enters, flows through and is lost from marine food chains.

A

Light energy is converted to chemical energy (in carbon compounds/sugars) by photosynthesis.

Chemical energy in carbon compounds flows by means of feeding through food chains and webs.

Only approximately 10% of energy is passed to the next trophic level.

Energy is released as heat by respiration.

After death, energy may remain trapped as undigested detritus/fossil.

24
Q

Explain the transformation of carbon compounds in the carbon cycle.

A

Autotrophs convert carbon dioxide into carbon compounds eg. glucose in photosynthesis.

Carbon dioxide diffuses from the atmosphere into autotrophs.

Decomposers release carbon dioxide during decay/putrefaction.

Peat forms when organic matter is not fully decomposed because of acid/anaerobic conditions in waterlogged soils.

25
Q

Oxygen and nitrogen are not greenhouse gases because they do not absorb longer-wavelength radiation. True or false?

A

True

26
Q

Discuss the relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration and global temperature.

A

The greenhouse effect keeps the Earth warm.

Changes in human activity have led to increase in carbon dioxide concentration.

Carbon dioxide absorbs infrared/ long wave radiation + trapping heat.

Deforestation removes carbon sinks.