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biology > ecology > Flashcards

ecology Flashcards

1
Q

ecosystem definition

A

a distinct, self-supporting system of organisms with each other in a physics environment

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2
Q

producers definition

A

plants which photosynthesise to produce food

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3
Q

consumers definition

A

animals that eat plants or other animals

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4
Q

primary consumer definition

A

animal that eats producer

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5
Q

secondary consumer defintion

A

animal that eats primary consumer

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6
Q

tertiary consumer defintion

A

animal that eats secondary consumer

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7
Q

top carnivore definition

A

animal that eats tertiary consumer

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8
Q

decomposer definition

A

bacteria and fungi that get their energy from feeding off dead and decaying organisms and undigested waste (such a faeces) by secreting enzymes to break them down. Helps recycle nutrients

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9
Q

physical environment definition

A

sum of the total non-biological components of the ecosystem; water, soil, air, rocks

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10
Q

habitat definition

A

places where specific organisms live

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11
Q

population definition

A

all the organisms of a species found in an ecosystem at any one time

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12
Q

biomes definition

A

large areas dominated by a specific type of vegetation

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13
Q

food chain definition

A

simplest way of showing a feeding relationship within an ecosystem

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14
Q

food web definition

A

gives a clearer idea of all the feeding relationships within an ecosystem

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15
Q

what is an ecosystem

A

a community of living and non living things

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16
Q

living

biotic factors:

A
  • predation
  • grazing
  • disease
  • competition
  • parasitism
  • mutualism
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17
Q

non-living

abiotic factors

A
  • climate
  • salinity
  • temperature
  • soil pH
  • topography
  • light intensity
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18
Q

what is a species?

A

a group of individuals that can reproduce to give off fertile offspring

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19
Q

what is a population

A

all the members of one species living in a habitat

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20
Q

what is a habitat

A

the place where an organism lives

21
Q

what is a community

A

all the living things, animals and plants, living in a particular habitat

22
Q

what is an ecosystem

A

a community of living and non living things

23
Q

what is the best way of estimating populations

A

quadrats

24
Q

why is it important to take a random sample in quadrats

A

so its an unbiased measurement

25
Q

to work out the total number of species in an area you need to:

A
  • work out the size of the area you are studying
  • calculate how many quadrats fit into the area: area x size of quadrat
  • calculate the population: mean number of individuals in one quadrat x numbers of quadrats
26
Q

why is quadrats a suitable method and better than counting every single organism in an area

A

it takes less time and is cheaper

27
Q

in quadrats how do you ensure the quadrat you choose is random? why is this important?

A

use a random number generator/dice
avoids bias - avoids over/under representation

28
Q

advantages of quadrats

A
  • requires few materials
  • simple to use
  • affordable
  • allows researches to study plant and animal populations spread out over large areas
  • causes no harm to organisms
29
Q

disadvantages of quadrats

A
  • have to be able to identify all organisms there accurately
  • can take a long time
  • quadrats that are too large, to small or spaced inappropriately can result in errors
  • not useful for very fast moving animals
  • researches can be inconsistent when counting
30
Q

what must you include when you get asked about sampling in an exam:

A
  1. use several quadrats
  2. random
  3. use a random number generator
  4. count how many are in each square
  5. multiply up to calculate total in large field
31
Q

biodiversity definition

A

measure of the variety of different species in a habitat

32
Q

is biodiversity good

A

yes because it means a habitat is more stable
-> theres a greater variety of species so if theres a change in conditions, theres less chance the whole population will be affected

33
Q

what is a predator

A

an animal that eats other animals

34
Q

what is prey

A

an animal which is eaten by another animal

35
Q

what is a herbivore

A

an animal that eats only plants

36
Q

what is a carnivore

A

an animal that only eats meats

37
Q

what is an omnivore

A

an animal that only eats plants and animals

38
Q

what do arrows between the images in food chains represent?

A

the direction of energy transfer

39
Q

what do food webs show

A

the energy flow through part of an ecosystem

40
Q

animal feeding kingdom

what do pyramids of numbers represent

A

the number of organisms in each trophic level (without considering their mass)

41
Q

as you go up trophic levels why are there fewer organisms

A

energy is lost to the surroundings between each trophic level

42
Q

what do pyramids of biomass represent

A

the biomass of organisms in each trophic level (without considering their numbers)

43
Q

what is biomass

A

the dry of one animal or plant species in a food chain or food web

44
Q

why can it be difficult to get valid data for a pyramid of biomass?

A
  • measuring dry biomass means all water has to be removed from the organisms (difficult to do)
  • an organsim may belong to more than one trophic level, so cannot be easily represented by one bar
45
Q

what ways can energy be lost from each trophic level?

A
  • movement
  • respiration -> releases heat to surroundings
  • not digested + absorbed -> faeces
  • not eaten
  • death + decompostion -> decomposers
46
Q

what % of energy is passed onto next trophic level

A

only about 10%

47
Q

how do you calculate the percentage efficiency of energy transfer?

A

(energy transferred to next level / total energy in) x 100

48
Q

photosynthesis word equation:

A

carbon dioxide + water -> glucose + oxygen

49
Q

photosynthesis symbol equation:

A

6CO2 + 6H2O -> C6H12O6 + 6O2

biology (21 decks)

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