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ESS > ecology > Flashcards

ecology Flashcards

1
Q

species

A

a group of organisms that share similar characteristics that are able to breed and create fertile offspring

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2
Q

population

A

number of organisms of a specific species in a specific time and place

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3
Q

community

A

collection of all organisms in a specific time and place

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4
Q

habitat

A

the environment that a particular organism requires to survive

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5
Q

ecosystem

A

all of living and non-living components of a defined area

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6
Q

biome

A

large geographical area that has common characteristics
for example climate

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7
Q

what is a niche

A

the place in the world where an organism fits
- finding own niche within species makes for less competition

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8
Q

what are two different types of niche?

A

interspecific and intraspecific

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9
Q

what is an interspecific niche?

A

competition between different species

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10
Q

what is an intraspecific niche?

A

competition within same species

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11
Q

autotroph

A

any organism capable of producing its own organic molecules (food)
this includes plants, some bacteria, phytoplankton

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12
Q

heterotroph

A

any organism that eats other plants or animals
includes humans and most other animals

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13
Q

detritivore

A

eats dead or decaying matter and takes their food inside the body to digest
eg insects eating fallen leaves

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14
Q

saprotroph

A

eats dead or dying matter but it lets the food digest outside their body
for example fungi

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15
Q

how does fungi digest food

A

outside their body by secreting enzymes and breaking it down

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16
Q

biodiversity

A

the variety of life in the world or in particular habitat or ecosystem

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17
Q

sampling techniques?

A

static
- quadrats and transects
mobile
- traps

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18
Q

quadrats

A

used for plants and some animals
are used when habitat is uniform

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19
Q

how do transects work?

A

rope or tape is stretched across the habitat in a straight line

20
Q

when are transects used?

A

when it has a continuous change
- river
- mountains
- ocean

21
Q

whats entropy?

A

the point in the universe at which everything becomes disordered

22
Q

how is energy lost in animals?

A

homeostasis
- regulation of things like body temp
muscle contraction
- to keep warmth, it comes with respiring
active transport
biosynthesis

23
Q

what does an example food web consist of?

A

tertiary consumers - 0.1J
secondary consumers - 1J
primary consumers - 10J
primary producers - 100J

24
Q

succession?

A

the change in living things in an ecosystem over time
- its the process of starting with nothing, uncolonised ground into a very stable ecosystem

25
Q

what are the three stages of succession

A

pioneer
intermediate
climax community

26
Q

what is the pioneer stage?

A

plants start to colonise a new environment
usually liches, mosses and small herbs
as they die they decompose into organic matter

27
Q

what is the intermediate stage

A

more grasses and small shrubs
addition of more species, increases organic matter in soil

28
Q

what is the climax community

A

a stable environment with an equilibrium allowing species to exist together without changing a lot

29
Q

what is a diverted seres?

A

when an ecosystem doesn’t reach the climax
humans and natural factors (grazing, fire and deforestation) prevent an ecosystem from reaching its climax community

30
Q

what is biomass

A

the mass of the living organism in a given area, expressed as dry weight of mass per unit of area, GM2

31
Q

what is efficiency?

A

% of the energy transferred from one trophic level to another

32
Q

the equation for efficiency?

A

(energy used for growth x new biomass / energy supply) x 100

33
Q

how do you find net primary production?

A

NPP = GPP - R

34
Q

what is productivity?

A

conversion of energy into biomass over a given period of time, rate of growth
units - GM2YR

35
Q

what is primary succession?

A

when it starts with bare uncolonised ground which never had any vegetation growing on it
- include glaciers, sand dunes, volcanic lave

36
Q

what is secondary succession?

A

when it happens on areas that used to have vegetation but it has been destroyed by fire or floods or volcanic ash, or deforested
because soil and plants already existed it becomes recolonised faster

37
Q

r-strategists

A

species that produce many offspring and do not care and nurture them

38
Q

where do r strategists live?

A

in hostile, unstable and unpredictable environments, hence producing lots of offspring

39
Q

k-strategists

A

species that produce few offspring and will nurture their few offspring into maturity

40
Q

where do k-strategists live?

A

in environments that are more stable

41
Q

what is DDT?

A

synthetic insecticides, combats malaria, typhus and other insect borne human diseases

42
Q

what is DDT known for?

A

to be persistent in the environment
accumulate in fatty tissues
can travel long distances in the upper atmosphere

43
Q

what is bioaccumulation?

A

accumulation of toxins in one living thing, build-up of toxins in a singular organism

44
Q

what is biomagnification?

A

magnification is a massive increase in the concentration of toxins as you move up the trophic levels
the bigger animals eat many smaller ones so it builds up

45
Q

disadvatanges of DDT?

A

human health effects
insoluble in water
very persistent in environment

46
Q

advantages of DDT?

A

cheap and useful when treating crops so they don’t get eaten
combats malaria, typhus, and other insect-borne diseases

47
Q

zonation?

A

changes in community along an environmental gradient due to factors such as changes in altitude, latitude, tidal level or distance from shore

ESS (10 decks)

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