Ecology

Question 1

What is ecology?

Answer 1

the study of organisms and the environment in which they live as well as how they both interact

Question 2

What is a habitat?

Answer 2

a place where an organism lives

Question 3

What is a population?

Answer 3

all the organisms of one species living in a habitat

Question 4

What is a community?

Answer 4

the populations of different species living in a habitat

Question 5

What is an ecosystem?

Answer 5

the interaction of a community of living organisms with the non-living parts of an environment

Question 6

What is infraspecific competition?

Answer 6

competition for a shared resource between two individuals of the same species

Question 7

What is interspecific competition?

Answer 7

competition for a shared resource between two individuals of different species

Question 8

What do plants compete for?

Answer 8

• light
• space
• mineral ions
• water

Question 9

What do animals compete for?

Answer 9

• food
• water
• territory
• mates

Question 10

What are abiotic factors?

Answer 10

non living factors that can effect a community

Question 11

What are some examples of abiotic factors?

Answer 11

• light intensity
• temperature
• moisture levels
• soil ph
• wind intensity
• CO2 levels

Question 12

What are biotic factors?

Answer 12

living factors that can effect a community

Question 13

examples of biotic factors?

Answer 13

• availability of food
• new predators arriving
• new pathogens

Question 14

What is a trophic level?

Answer 14

feeding stage within a food chain

Question 15

What is the first trophic level?

Answer 15

producers - plants and algae

Question 16

What are producers?

Answer 16

organisms that make their own food and obtain energy from the sun. - plants and algae

Question 17

What are primary consumers?

Answer 17

herbivore that only eat plants and algae

Question 18

What are secondary consumers?

Answer 18

carnivores that eat herbivores

Question 19

What are tertiary consumers?

Answer 19

carnivore that eat other carnivores

Question 20

What are apex predators?

Answer 20

carnivores that have no predators and can be found at the top of the food chain

Question 21

What are carnivores?

Answer 21

organisms that only eat animal material

Question 22

What are Omnivores?

Answer 22

organisms that eat both plants and animals

Question 23

What are the trophic levels starting with 5?

Answer 23

quaternary consumers
tertiary consumers
secondary consumers 
primary consumers
producers

Question 24

What are decomposers?

Answer 24

break down dead plant and animal matter , they secrete enzymes into the environment that break down the organic matter into small soluble molecules which then diffuse into he decomposer for its own growth, repair and reproduction

Question 25

What is biomass?

Answer 25

the mass of organic material that makes up living or recently deceased organisms

Question 26

What do pyramids of biomass represent?

Answer 26

the relative amount of biomass in each level of a food chain

Question 27

What happens at each step along the food chain?

Answer 27

biomass is lost between trophic levels

Question 28

Where is the least energy in a biomass pyramid?

Answer 28

at the top

Question 29

What are losses of biomass due to?

Answer 29

• not all engested material Is absorbed
• some absorbed material is lost as waste
• large amounts of glucose are used in respiration

Question 30

What is interdependence?

Answer 30

within a community each species depends on other species for food, shelter, pollination etc.

Question 31

What can happen due to interdependence?

Answer 31

if a major change happens to an ecosystem it can effect the whole community

Question 32

What are stable communities?

Answer 32

when all the species and environmental factors are in balance so that the population sizes remain fairly constant

Question 33

What do stable communities have?

Answer 33

a high amount of interdependence

Question 34

What are predators?

Answer 34

organisms that hunt and kill other animals for food

Question 35

What are prey?

Answer 35

animal that is hunted and eaten

Question 36

Why is the typical predator prey relationship rarely seen?

Answer 36

because most predators have more then one food source and prey have more then one predator

Question 37

Explain the 4 steps in a predator prey relationship?

Answer 37

1) population of prey increases, population of predators will increase over a leg time
2) the increase in predators causes decrease in prey
3) causes decrease in number of prey so the number of predators falls
4) decrease in predators means the number of prey then increase, back to beginning

Question 38

What are adaptations?

Answer 38

features that enable an organism to survive in the conditions in which they normally live

Question 39

What are the three types of adaptations?

Answer 39

structural, behavioural, functional

Question 40

What are structural adaptations?

Answer 40

changes in the organisms body structure

Question 41

What are behavioural adaptations?

Answer 41

changes in how organisms behave - migration patterns, hibernation

Question 42

What are functional adaptations?

Answer 42

internal changes within an organisms body - ability to produce little urine

Question 43

What are some extreme environments?

Answer 43

• high temp
• high pressure
• high salt concentrations

Question 44

What are organisms that live in extreme environments called?

Answer 44

extremophiles