EN: Farming Practices and Production Flashcards
Foodchains
Show simple lines of energy transfer.
Trophic level
Each stage in a food chain.
Food webs
Show lots of food chains in an ecosystem and how they overlap.
Decomposers
Break down dead or undigested material, allowing nutrients to be recycled.
What two ways do farming practices aim to increase the amount of energy available?
Reducing the energy lost to other organisms.
Reducing the energy lost through respiration.
Insecticides - how do these help?
Kill insect pests that eat and damage crops.
Means less biomass is lost from crops, so they grow to be larger, increasing NPP/
Herbicides - how do these help?
Kill weeds.
Removes direct competition with the crop for energy from the sun.
Removes preferred habitat or food source of the insect pests, reduces their numbers and simplifies the food web.
What biological agents can also reduce the numbers of pests?
How?
Parasites live or lay eggs on pest insect - kills the insect or reduces its ability to function.
Pathogenic bacteria and viruses kill pests.
How can farmers reduce the number of pests?
Using chemical pesticides or biological agents.
Give one way farmers can increase the net production of their livestock:
Controlling living conditions so that more energy is used for growth and less is lost through respiration.
How can farmers reduce respiratory losses in animals?
- Restricting the movement of animals
- Using indoor pens to keep animals warm, so less energy is wasted generating body heat.
What are the benefits of reducing respiratory losses in animals?
More food can be produced in a shorter space of time, often at lower costs.
What are some disadvantages of reducing respiratory losses in animals?
Raises ethical issues - some people think the conditions intensively reared animals are kept in cause the animals pain, distress and restricts their natural behaviour.
