Ecology

Question 1

Ecology

Answer 1

Ecology is the study of how living things interact with each other and with their environment

Question 2

Habitat

Answer 2

The habitat of an organism is the place where it lives

Question 3

Ecosystem

Answer 3

An ecosystem is a community of different plants and animals

Question 4

Producers

Answer 4

Producers make their own food (green plants)

Question 5

Consumers

Answer 5

Consumers cannot make their own food so they feed on other organisms (herbivores, carnivores, omnivores)

Question 6

Carnivore

Answer 6

Carnivores feed on animal material only (centipedes)

Question 7

Herbivore

Answer 7

Herbivores feed on plant material only (snails)

Question 8

Omnivore

Answer 8

Omnivores feed on both plant and animal material (human)

Question 9

Decomposers

Answer 9

Decomposers break down dead plant and animal material and the nutrients are put back into the soil (earthworms, bacteria, fungi)

Question 10

Food chain

Answer 10

A food chain is the way in which energy and nutrients are passed from one organism to another

Question 11

Food chain example

Answer 11

Nettle leaves -> caterpillar -> thrush -> sparrow hawk

Question 12

Food web

Answer 12

A food web is a series of inter connecting food chains

Question 13

Food web example

Answer 13

F

Question 14

Adaptation

Answer 14

Adaptation is when a organism has characteristic that make it well suited to its environment

Question 15

Competition

Answer 15

Competition takes place when organisms fight for the same resources in a habitat

Question 16

Competition examples

Answer 16

Honeysuckle and ivy compete for light in a hedgerow

Blackbirds and thrushes compete for berries

Question 17

Interdependence

Answer 17

Interdependence is when two different types of organism need each other

Question 18

Interdependence example

Answer 18

The grey squirrel needs the beech tree for shelter but the beech tree needs the squirrel to scatter it’s nuts

Question 19

Three environmental factors that may affect a habitat

Answer 19

Weather factors : light intensity, rainfall, wind, temperature
Physical factors : direction the habitat faces, height above sea level, slope of ground
Soil : soil pH, moisture content

Question 20

Pooter

Answer 20

A pooter is used to examine small insects.

One tube is placed over the organism and you suck through the tube with the gauze

Question 21

Beating tray

Answer 21

A beating tray is used to collect animals and insects that live on the leaves of shrubs and trees
You hold the tray under the leaves of a bush or tree and a stick shakes the tree

Question 22

Pitfall trap

Answer 22

A pitfall trap collects animals and insects
A jar is sunk into the ground and a stone that is supported by two smaller stones is placed on top to prevent rain from getting in

Question 23

Quadrat

Answer 23

A quadrat is a square frame used to estimate plant numbers

The quadrat is thrown in a random area in the habitat

Question 24

Line transect

Answer 24

A line transect is a rope marked out at regular intervals across a habitat. It is used to investigate the distribution of organisms

Question 25

Conservation

Answer 25

Conservation is the protection and careful management of our natural resources

Question 26

Pollution

Answer 26

Pollution is the addition of harmful substances to the environment

Question 27

Two causes and effects of air pollution

Answer 27

Sulfur dioxide prevents plants from being able to photosynthesise and mixes with rain to form acid rain which wears away stone buildings and kills plants
CFC’s reduce the ozone layer which protects us against UV light which can give us skin cancer

Question 28

Two causes and effects of water pollution

Answer 28

Excess fertiliser and slurry makes less oxygen and causes fish to die
Oil is poisonous to birds and fish. It coats the feathers of birds so they can’t fly

Question 29

Two sources of soil pollution

Answer 29

Pesticides and excess fertilisers get into the soil.

Chemicals from waster dumps and factories can pollute soils.

Question 30

Waste management

Answer 30

Waste management is the way we deal with our waste

Question 31

Three method of dealing with waste

Answer 31

We can put our waster into landfill sites
Waste can be recycled
Waste can be burned in an incinerator

Question 32

Advantages and disadvantages of landfill sites

Answer 32

They are convenient
The methane gas that is produced by the rotting rubbish can be used as fuel

Badly managed landfill sites can be unsightly, produce bad smells, attract rats
Poisonous chemicals from the waste can seep into the ground and damage water supplies
You can run out of space

Question 33

Advantages and disadvantages of incineration

Answer 33

It can deal with huge amounts of waste
It is clean and efficient
Incinerators don’t take up much land space

Incinerators produce a lot of ash
The burning of materials produce poisonous fumes which have to be dealt with

Question 34

Advantages and disadvantages of recycling

Answer 34

It is environmentally friendly and easy to do
It saves money and energy

Some of the material brought to bring banks may not be re usable and has to be brought to landfill sites

Question 35

Positive and negative examples of how human activity affects the environment

Answer 35

Humans protect the habitat of organisms so that they will be here for future generations
They implement anti pollution and waste management laws

Humans destroy habitats
They burn fossil fuels that contribute to global warming