Ecology Fundamentals Flashcards
What do animals compete for?
Food, water, territory, mates
What do plants complete for?
Light, water, minerals/nutrients, space for roots or in the canopy
Abiotic factors
Moisture levels, light intensity, temperature, carbon dioxide levels (plants), wind intensity and direction, oxygen levels (aquatic animals), soil pH and mineral content
Biotic factors
new predators arriving, competition, new pathogens, food availability
What is an abiotic factor?
Non-living factors of an environment e.g. temp
What is a biotic factor?
Living factors of an environment e.g. food
What is an ecosystem?
The interaction of a community of biotic and abiotic parts of the environment
What is a community?
The population of different species living in a habitat
What is population?
All the organisms of one species living in a habitat
What is a habitat?
The place where an organism lives.
What is interdependence?
In a population, each species depends on other species for things like food, shelter, pollination and seed dispersal
What is a stable community?
a stable community is maintained when all biotic (species) and abiotic (environmental) factors are in balance, the population remains roughly constant.
What is an adaptation?
a feature that allows an organism to live in the environment it usually survives in. these can be structural, behavioural or functional
What is a structural adaptation?
The physical features which allow organisms to compete successfully
What is a behavioural adaptation?
Something an animal or plant does to survive or gain a competitive advantage
What is a functional adaptation?
Processes that go on in the organism and can be related to survival
Examples of structural adaptations
-extensive root systems and small leaves for when water is scarce
-spines on cacti to reduce water loss
-horns or antlers for defence
-blubber to reduce heat loss
-sharp claws to catch prey
Examples of behavioural adaptations
-attractive mating rituals
-hunting in packs
-burrowing to seek shelter
-kangaroos licking their arms to increase heat loss
-warning signals to other members
-mussels opening and closing according to tides
-shoots grow towards light
-Venus flytrap closing to catch insects
Examples of functional adaptations
-spiders/snakes using venom to for defence and to kill prey
-limited urine production
-stinging nettles/deadly nightshade using poison for defence
Examples of functional adaptations
-spiders/snakes using venom to for defence and to kill prey
-limited urine production
-stinging nettles/deadly nightshade using poison for defence
What is an extremophile and give and example
An extremophile is any organism that is adapted to extreme environments such as: very high/low temps, extremely acidic or alkaline conditions, high altitudes
E.g. organisms in the north/south pole or in deep sea vents
What are the 2 types of data and what is the difference?
Qualitative and quantitative
Quantitative data gives a specific measure for your subject, but qualitative data only gives a rough idea
What is a quadrat?
A quadrat is a square frame enclosing a known area e.g. 1m2
What is distribution
Distribution of an organism is where an organism is found, biotic and abiotic factors often affect this
What can you use a quadrat for?
To study the distribution of small organisms that are slow moving or that don’t move around
What could you compare in a quadrat
The effect of a factor on a distribution of a species
Percentage cover of an organism in different environments
What is non-random sampling
Using a transect line to find a trend
What is non-random sampling
Using a transect line to find a trend
What is meant by sampling along a transect
By placing one quadrat each metre along a straight line you can find the amount of different organisms at different distances from the starting point
Define precise
A result that is close to the mean
Define accurate
A result that is close to the true answer
Define Reliable
Data is repeatable and reproducible
Define valid results
Repeatable, reproducible and answer the original question
what needs to be included in a method?
-identify variables
-number of steps you will take
-include number of repeats
-explain how you will process your results
what is biomass
mass of living organisms
what is a producer
they make their own food using energy from the sun, they are usually green plants or algae, they are eaten by primary consumers.
what is a pyramid of biomass
a pyramid of biomass shows the number of organisms in a food chain but does not show us how energy is transferred
why is not all sunlight used to make plant biomass
-miss the leaves
-reflect off the leaves
-go through the leaves but miss the chlorophyll
-hit the chlorophyll but the wrong colour.
why is energy lost along the food chain
-not all available food is eating
-not all food is digested, lost as waste
-movement of muscles
-respiration and heat loss
-respiration uses energy for thermo
regulation
-not all previous trophic levels are consumed
why is it important that water, carbon and nutrients are recycled in our ecosystem
to provide materials:
-for new organisms when old organisms die
-for organisms to grow and function
-to replace materials that has been removed from the environment
what are the carbon cycle steps
Carbon present in the atmosphere is absorbed by plants for photosynthesis.
These plants are then consumed by animals and carbon gets bioaccumulated into their bodies.
These animals and plants eventually die, and upon decomposing, carbon is released back into the atmosphere.
Some of the carbon that is not released back into the atmosphere eventually become fossil fuels.
These fossil fuels are then used for man-made activities, which pump more carbon back into the atmosphere.
what are the factors that affect the rate of decay
temperature, water availability, number of micro-organisms
how does temperature affect rate of decay
warmer temp increases the rate enzymes involved in decomposition work at. although if it is too hot decomposition slows down or tops because enzymes are destroyed and organisms die. really cold temperatures slow down decomposition as well.
how does water availability affect rate of decay
decay takes place faster in moist environments because the organisms involved in decay need water to carry out biological processes.
how does the number of micro-organisms affect rate of decay
the more micro-organisms and detritus feeders there are, the faster decomposition happens
name parts of a compost bin
-dark colour absorbs heat
-holes to allow oxygen in
-lid keeps it moist
-finely shredded waste is best as there is a higher surface area which means more micro-organisms can access waste at the same time.
-warmth generated by micro-organisms helps decomposition.
what is anaerobic decay
- is performed by anaerobic micro-organisms
-these organisms do not use oxygen when breaking down organic molecules
-they do not produce carbon dioxide, the produce methane instead.
explain the steps of anaerobic decay
-manure goes into a biogas generator
-anaerobic decomposition release methane
-methane burned for cooking or heating
-carbon dioxide released during burning is absorbed by plants during photosynthesis
