ecology Flashcards
biodiversity
variety of living organisms
carrion
decaying flesh and tissue of dead animals
community
made up of the populations of different species living in a habitat
competition
negative interaction between 2 or more organisms which require the same limited resource
consumers
feed on other organisms from their energy
decomposers
organisms which feed on dead and decaying organisms, breaking down the biomass and releasing nutrients into the soil
deforestation
removal and destruction of trees in a forest and woodland
ecosystem
the interaction between living organisms and the different factors of the environment
global warming
increase in average global temperature
habitat
where a living organism lives
interdependence
interaction between 2 or more organisms, where it is mutually beneficial
population
number of individual organisms of a single species living in a habitat
predators
organism which kill for food
prey
animals eaten by the predators
producers
convert the sun’s energy into useful compounds through photosynthesis. they are green plants or algae
scavengers
organisms which feed on dead animals (carrion)
species
organisms of similar morphology which can interbreed and produce fertile offspring
abiotic factors
non living factors of an environment e.g. moisture , light, temp
biotic factors
living factors of an environment e.g. predators, competition, pathogens
adaptation
specific features of an organism which enable them to survive in the conditions of their habitat
structural adaptations
features of an organisms body e.g colour for camouflage
behavioural adaptations
e.g migration to a warmer climate during colder seasons
functional adaptations
ways the physiological processes work in the organism e.g lower metabolism during hibernation to preserve energy
a plant or animal will not physically change to adapt in its lifetime..
instead, there is natural variation
who described the process of adaptation as ‘survival of the fittest’
charles darwin
first part of the food chain
producer
what does the arrow represent in a food chain
the direction of the flow of energy
mutualism
occurs when both species benefit from a relationship
parasitism
occurs when a parasite only benefits from living on the host
what do animals compete for
food, water, space, shelter, same species compete for mates
what do plants compete for
light, water, space, minerals
why do plants not need to compete for food
plants make their own food through photosynthesis
what do humans use land for
buidlings, quarrying, mining, agriculture and landfill.
what is deforestation
cutting down trees and forests to make land possible to build on
how is a peat bog produced
when decomposition occurs over a long time
what does peat store
carbon
what happens as a result of deforestation
less carbon dioxide is taken in from the atmopshere
why is peat extracted
for energy and use by gardeners (they use it for mainting soil moisture)
what happens when trees are burned
they release carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere, this excess carbon dioxide can lead to global warming and the changes to the ecosystem cause reduced biodiversity
what happens as a result of an increase of human population
there is less space for other organisms to live
what is convection
the movement cause within a fluid as the hotter, less dense material rises and the colder, denser material sinks due to gravity. Resulting in the transfer of heat
evaporation
occurs when heat energy from the surroundings is transferred to water particles as kinetic energy, These particles begin to move more rapidly and can turn from a liquid to a gas
condensation
occurs when a gas cools into a liquid
precipitation
occurs when rain, snow, sleet or hail falls (or condenses) to the ground
transpiration
process by which water is carried through plants from the roots to stomata , and evaporates into the surroundings
greenhouse effect
NATURAL process where some of the suns radiation is trapped within the insulating layer of the atmospher. Maintains a temp suitable to support life on earth
what happens to most of the suns radiation (greenhouse effect)
most is absorbed by earth when it reaches the surface
what happens to the rest of the radiation in the greenhosue effect
the rest is reflected from the surface and absorbed by the greenhouse gases and clouds in the atmosphere. This is then re-emmited in all directions
what happens as a result of global warming
melting ice caps, rising sea levels, changes to climate, changes in migration patterns, changes in species distribution, and reduction in biodiversity
what is a quadrant used for
to measure the frequency of an organism in a gicen area
how do you conduct rp with quadrants
count the number of organisms collecting data from at least 2 areas to make a comparison. Quadrants must be placed randomly
what is a transect used to measure
the change of distribution across an area.
how do you use transects in the rp
could either count the number of organisms touching the transect at regular intervals, or use a quadrant placed at regular intervals along the transect
EQUATION for rp with quadrants
mean = total number of organisms / number of quadrants
how is carbon transferred to the atmosphere
respiration of animals, plants and bacteria, as well as the combustion of fossils fuels (coal, oil, methane)
biodiversity
variety of living organisms
why do we need biodiversity
in order to help maintain a stable ecosystem
why has human population increased
due to modern medicine and farming methods, reducing famine and dead from disease
why is an increased human population bad
more waste and emissions are created
what reduces biodiversity
sewage, toxic chemicals, waste, gas emissions all pollute water, land and air, killing plants and animals
1st way in which biodiversity and ecosystems are maintained
breeding programmes can help protect enfangered species species from extinction
2nd way in which biodiversity and ecosystems are maintained
conservation programmes can help protect and preserve specialised ecosystems and habitats such as peat bogs and coral reefs
3rd way in which biodiversity and ecosystems are maintained
reintroduction of hedgerows and field margins on agricultural land can help improve biodiversity by breaking up monoculture crops
4th way in which biodiversity and ecosystems are maintained
sustainable forestry programmes help manage woodlands and reduce deforestation to a sustainable rate
5th way in which biodiversity and ecosystems are maintained
societies actively encourage recyling and reusing of products to reduce waste
negative of the programmes to help maintain biodiversity
- expensive
- hard to regulate
optimum condition for decay
warm , moist, plentiful supply of oxygen
why does decay require oxygen
there are microorganisms that need oxygen to decompose the larger material into smaller pieces. These conditions measn the decomposers can digest material efficiently
what is produced during fermentation
biogas, which can be used as a fuel
biogas
-produced in a generator
- uses many microorganisms to ferment the carbohydrates in plant and animal waste.
- by producrs of the fermentation process can be used to fertilise crops
what are the 2 main types of generators
batch
continuous
what is a batch generator
it is manually loaded with the waste and emptied by hand after, only running for a short while each time
what is a continuous generator
more automated and the waste is continually fed in. The products made are removed at a steady, continuous rate. Used for mainly large scale projects
what do we find biomass
by multiplying the mass of a individual organism by the number of organisms
what does a pyramid of biomass show
shows amount of biomass in each trophic level. Should be drawn to scale so each bar accurately represents the amount of biomass
where does energy go in a pyramid of biomass
either lost from the trophic levels as heat energy when the organism respires of moves or used by the organism fro life processes such as homeostasis and growth
EQUATION for efficiency in the pyramid of biomass
efficiency = (energy available to the next trophic level / energy that was available to the previous trophic level) X 100
abundance
a very large number of organisms
distribution
the way in which the organisms are spread over an area
changes in an environment can be…
seasonal, geographical or caused by human interaction with the environment
intensive farming
techniques which reduce the amount of energy lost between trophic levels
1st technique of intensive farming
animal enclosures are covered and heated to regulate temp of the surroundings, reducing heat loss and energy use for homeostasis and growth
2nd technique of intensive farming
plant growing spaces are covered and heated to regulate temp. Improves growth and enables the environmental conditions to be controlled more closely
3rd technique of intensive farming
some animals are fed high protein foods and supplemnts to their usual diet ro increase their growth and produce higher yields of milk, meat of eggs
why is intensive farming an ethical issue
due to the crowded nature of the enclosures, animals are given antibiotics to prevent disease, which can be transferred to humans. Scientists believe this is a possible cause of increasing resistance to antibiotics
why may a species become exinct due to fishing
if over fishing is increased further, then the population of fish will deplete and breeding rate will no longer sustain a stable population… extinct
why are fishing regulations enforced
to help promote the recovery of natural rish stocks in the oceans and maintain populations at sustainable levels
IV of decay rp
temperature of water bath
DV of decay rp
time taken for colour change
what is lipase in decay rp
an enzyme that will break down the fat in milk
independent variable for decay rp
temperature
dependent variable for decay rp
total time taken for indicator to change colour
why do we use biotechnology and agriculture
- mass production of mycoprotein for vegetarians
-genetically modified bacterium which produce insulin - genetically modified crops which produce higher yields or greater nutrition per unit
mycoprotein fermenters
- mycoprotein is made by the fungus Fusarium
- the fungus is grown in 40m high fermenters which run continuously in 5 week cycles
-the fungus is then harvested, purified and dried for food products
how can genetic modification be useful
- improve food production
-genes can be transferred to give plants increased resistance to herbicides - though may be a hazard to human health
what does recombinant dna technology involve
the transfer of genes from one species to another, can be used to make another organism, usually bacteria, produce protein
how is dna technology useful
can be used to make another organism, bacteria, produce protein.
these bacteria and grown in fermenters and can produce huge amounts of protein
Human insulin is also not produced using this tech
food security
a whole population have access to enough nutritious food to sustain a healthy lifestyle
how is food security achieved
using method which the planet can continue to sustain for further generations of the population
how is food security affected
- increasing birth rate
- changing diets
- new pests and pathogens
- famine
- drought
- costs
- war and conflicts
