ecosystems woo Flashcards
what are producers
photosynthesis organisms- plants and algae- as they produce most of the oxygen and glucose required by earth
what are primary consumers
herbivores that eat the plants- ranging from sheep and hippos to little bugs, as well as many small sea animals that eat algae
what are secondary/ tertiary consumers
people who eat the herbivores so carnivores-foxes, blue tits and turtles all count
they may be eaten by a tertiary eg blue tits by foxes
issues faced by a prim consumers diet vs a secondary/tertiary
primary consumers need to find enough protien and nutrients in plants to feed them
secondary/tertiary need to catch their prey who are nutrient rich but dif to find
rise and fall of pred and prey in a community
if theres lots of producer food the prey will eat it, grow and reporduce
the pred are able to eat them if they are in large numbers so they can eat, grow and reproduce
the -prey numbers decrease as theyre being eaten
the pred numbers decrease as theres less food for them
the prey rise again as they are left more alone
what are the decomposers
a group of microorganisms like bacteria and fungi that feed on dead organisms and faeces
how do the decomposers clean up and return everything to the environment
they digest everything, dertirtivores, dead animals and faeces and use some of the nutrietns to grow and reproduce and as a waste they release co2, nutrients and water
the ions and nutrients are released to the ground and absorbed by trees whilst the co2 is put back in the atmosphere for photosynthesis
whats preroculation
when water trickles through gaps in soil and rocks to the ocean
whats transpiration
loss of water to the atmosphere
explain water cycle
so the water in the oceans, lakes etc is evapourated by the sun into a vapour, as well as this some may have transpired from plants, they then condesnate as it cools to form clouds which are just water vapour
the clouds cool more until they are predcipitated and fall as rain
what are carbon sinks
carbon that is locked in rocks as fossil fuels, in carbonate rocks like limestone and in oceans and lakes, and is released when burnt
how is carbon taken out of the enviroment
plants and algae use it to photosynthesise and turn it into glucose and food, this makes their biomass that is then consumed by prim/sec/tertiary consumers.
how is carbon returned to the atmosphere
living organisms use glucose and oxygen to respire to create energy but it creates co2 as a waste rproduct which is then breathed out- decomposers respire co2 as they decompose the plant
how does combustion increase carbon emissions
trees store loads of co2 from years of photosynthesis which are burnt and released
fossil fuels are made of millions of years of organisms photosynthesising and are burnt as fuel
what is biodiversity
a measure of the diversoty of all the orgnaisms on earth or within an ecosystem
