ECOLOGY #2 Flashcards
What do food chains always start with
they always start with a producer
what are producers and give examples
producers make their own food using energy from the sun
examples are green plants or algae
what is biomass
the mass of a living material
what are producers eaten by
primary consumers
what are primary consumers eaten by
secondary consumers
what are secondary consumers eaten by
tertiary consumers
what is the food chain
Producers———primary—-secondary——-tertiary
examples of primary consumers
herbivores - sheep fish etc
examples of secondary consumers
carnivores - lions seals etc
what happens if the population of prey increases
the population of predators increases
what happens if the population of predators increases
the population of prey decreases
what are the environmental changes that can affect the distribution of living organisms
availability of water
temperature
atmospheric gases
the water cycle
- energy from the sun makes water evaporate from the land and sea turning it to water vapour. Water is also evaporated from the plants
- the warm water vapour is carried upwards when it gets higher up it cools and condenses to form clouds
- water falls from the clouds as precipitation onto land where It provides fresh water for plants and animals
- it then drains into the sea where the process starts again
how does the water cycle benefit plants and animals
by providing them with fresh water
examples of decomposers
bacteria and fungi
what causes materials to decay
microorganisms break them down
the carbon cycle
- photosynthesis removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere which can be used to make organic molecules.
- green plants and algae respire which returns the carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere
- animals eat the green plants and build carbon in their bodies
- when the animals respire some carbon is returned back into the atmosphere
- when plants algae and animals die organisms feed on their remains and carbon dioxide is returned into the atmosphere
- in addition to this aniamals also produce waste which is broken down by microorganisms
- the combustion of wood and fossil fuels also releases co2 back into the air
what is compost
decomposed organic matter
what is the rate of decay affected by
temp
oxygen availability
water availability
number of decay organisms
how does temp affect decay
temp- warmer temperatures make things decompose quicker because they increase the rate at which the enzymes work at
if its too hot the enzymes will be destroyed and the rate of decomposition will slow down
when its cold the rate of decomposition slows down too
how does oxygen availability affect rate of decay
many organisms need oxygen to respire which they need to do to survive
how does water availability affect rate of decay
decay happens faster in moist environments because the organisms involved in decay need water to carry out biological processes
how does the number of decay organisms affect rate of decay
the more microorganism or detritus feeders there are the faster the rate of decomposition
what are detritus feeders
Detritus feeders include things like earth worms and woodlice which help break up decaying material
what is biogas
made up of methane which can be burned as a fuel
how is biogas made
by the anaerobic decay of waste material
when plant and animal waste decay anaerobically what do they produce
methane gas
why do biogas generators need to be kept at constant temperatures
so that microorganisms can continue to respire