energy transfer in ecosystems

Question 1

what does an ecosystem include

Answer 1

all the organisms living in a particular area and all the abiotic conditions

Question 2

what are producers

Answer 2

organisms that produce their own food

Question 3

some of the sugars produced from photosynthesis are used for respiration, to release energy for growth, what is all the other glucose used for

Answer 3

to make biological molecules, these molecules make up the plants biomass - mass of living material

Question 4

what can biomass be thought of as

Answer 4

chemical energy stored in plants

Question 5

how is energy transferred through living organisms in an ecosystem

Answer 5

when organisms eat other organisms

Question 6

what are the 2 ways biomass can be measured

Answer 6

1) dry mass

2) calorimeter

Question 7

how can you measure the dry mass of an organism

Answer 7

1) dry the sample in an oven at a low temperature

2) weigh the sample everyday until you get a constant weight every time so you know all the water has been removed

Question 8

how can you measure the biomass using a calorimeter

Answer 8

1) a sample of dry mass is burnt and the energy released is used to heat a known volume of water
2) the change in temperature can be used to calculate the chemical energy of the dry biomass

Question 9

what does GPP stand for and what does it mean

Answer 9

gross primary production, is total amount of chemical energy converted from light energy by plants

Question 10

what does R stand for and what does it mean

Answer 10

respiration loss, around 50% of GPP is lost to the enviroment when plants respire

Question 11

what does NPP stand for an what does it mean

Answer 11

net primary production, its the amount of energy availiable to the plant for growth and reproduction, the energy is stored in the plants biomass, its also the energy availiable to the organisms at the next trophic level

Question 12

what is primary productivity

Answer 12

when primary production is expressed as a rate