Ecology Flashcards
Put this in order of largest to smallest: ecosystem, organism, biome, population, community
Biome, ecosystem, community, population, organism
If I had an autotroph what role would it take in the food chain
Producer
What is a biome?
A set of ecosystems that share similar characteristics with their abiotic factors adapted to their environment
What are the 7 types of biomes?
Tundra, Coniferous forest, Temperate deciduous forest, Temperate grassland, Savanna, Tropical rainforest, Desert
What is an ecosystem
The interaction between biotic and abiotic factors in their environment
What is a niche
An organisms role in their enviornment
A group of organisms from the same species currently living in the same environment
Population
Populations that live together in a specific area
Community
What are the ecosystem interactions between biotic factors (5)
Parasitism, Mutualism, Commensalism, Predation, Competition
What ecosystem interaction is this, when one organism benefits and the other is either harmed or killed
Predation
What is the difference between an endo and an ectoparasite
Endo lives within the host and ecto is outside the host
Describe commensalism
When one organism benefits (commensal needs this relationship to survive) and the either neither benefits nor is harmed
Give an example of mutualism
Flowers and bees
Which ecosystem interaction is this, one organism hunts and kills the other
Predation
What are the 2 types of competition and describe them?
Intraspecific is competition for limited resources between the same species
Interspecific is between organisms of different species
When does competition occur
When there are limited resources and there is an overlap in the organisms niches
Organise this trophic level from highest to smallest, secondary consumer, producer, decomposer, primary consumer, tertiary consumer
Tertiary consumer, secondary consumer, primary consumer, producer, decomposer
What is a decomposer
Organism that breaks down dead organic matter in the environment
What is a decomposer that eats dead organic matter
Detritivore (e.g. flies)
What is the difference between a food chain and a food web
A food chain represents only 1 flow of energy but a food web represents many
Give me 3 reasons why not all sunlight is used in photosynthesis
Some of the light is reflected, the wavelength is not right, some sunlight doesn’t hit the leaves/chlorophyll
Approximately how much energy is passed between each trophic level
10%
How can energy be lost between trophic levels
Via respiration and used for metabolic processes, energy is lost to the surroundings, energy lost through bodily secretions
What is a pyramid of numbers
They represent the quantity of organisms at each level of a food chain, they can be drawn upright or be inverted
Which pyramid is this, tertiary consumers are at the top and it shows the amount of organic material produces at each trophic level
Biomass pyramid
What is a pyramid of energy
Producers at the bottom, it shows the energy flow between each trophic level
Chemical elements are recycled via the hydrogen cycle and ammonium cycle, true or false?
False
The carbon and nitrogen cycle
What are some examples of abiotic factors
Atmosphere pressure, water temperature, soil pH, wind speed
