Environment Flashcards
Abundance
a measure of how common a particular organism is in a given environment
Adaptations
special features organisms have which make it easier to survive in their habitat
Behavioural Adaptations
adaptations to do with behaviour
Functional Adaptations
adaptations to do with how an animal functions
Structural Adaptations
adaptations to do with structure, such as stem and leaf size
Anaerobic Decay
decomposition in the absence of oxygen (commonly occurring in
waterlogged soils) that produces carbon dioxide and methane gas
Apex Predator
predator at the top of the food chain
Biofuel
methane gas
Biogas
type of biofuel produced by anaerobic decay in biogas generators
Biomass
the dry mass in grams of living organisms, shows how much energy can be passed onto the next tropic level
Biomass Transfer
amount of biomass transferred down to the next trophic level
Biotechnology
the exploitation of biological processes for industrial and other purposes
Blubber
fat under animals’ skin
Blue Tongue
a disease common amongst European cattle, that spread across the channel to England when the climate warmed up, as it is spread by midges
Breeding Programmes
programmes done in places like zoos to encourage breeding between animals, ensuring there is as much genetic variation as possible, documenting everything
Bycatch
fish accidentally caught by trawlers
Camoulage
structural that prevents predators from seeing prey
Carnivores
get their nutrients by only consuming animals, so need teeth that can rip meat apart
Chemical Defences
releasing a chemical to deter a herbivore
Community
different species living in the same place at the same time
Competition
develops between species when niches overlap
Compost
dead or decaying organic matter, commonly used as a fertiliser
Courtship Display
a way of competing for mates by looking good
Demographic Transition Model
a graph showing the relation between the birth rate and death rate of a species
Distribution
where a particular organism is found within an environment
Ecosystem
the parts of an environment in the same place at the same time
Extremophiles
plants which survive and reproduce in the most difficult conditions
Factory Farming
also known as intensive farming, where the main aim is to have input and output levels as high as possible
Food Production
how food is produced and distributed
Food Security
having reliable access to sufficient amounts of affordable nutritious food