L28 Life in Extreme Environments: Adaptations Flashcards
where did life originate?
water
what are abiotic factors?
temperature, water and sunlight
what is the ideal temperature for plants?
above freezing and below dehydration 0-45 degrees
how has a plant evolved to persist through extreme conditions?
seeds
what plants experience low stress and low disturbance?
competitors
what plants experience low disturbance and high stress?
stress-tolerators
what plants experience high disturbance and low stress?
ruderals
what plants experience high stress and high disturbance?
none - not possible
how do trees avoid increased temperatures?
they lose their leaves
what are arousal points during hibernation?
animals wake up every few days
what happens when an animal wakes up during hibernation?
temperature increases - metabolic rate increases (energy costly)
during hot temperatures what happens stomata?
they close to prevent water loss/ transpiration
what does the ANR gene allow?
toleration of extreme dessication
what happened plants who lost ANR gene?
they developed stomata example flowering plants
what are serotinous seeds?
they can only germinate after being burnt example Banksia
what stress do mangroves experience?
oxygen and salinity
what are lenticels?
spongey material that allows oxygen in and out - allows life in water logged soils
why is there a superabundance of phytoplankton in Antarctica?
upwellings of deep waters combined with 24 hour days in summer
what are probablt the most abundanr animal on the planet?
Antarctic krill ~ 500 million tonnes
is the Antarctic Ocean an extreme environment?
No, the deep sea is
what is the atm pressure 10metres below sea level?
2atm
how do blobfish deal with being 1200m in deep sea?
small and gelatinous to deal with high pressures, no swim bladder or air spaces
what is bioluminescence?
animals portray bright colours due to the expression of a specific bioluminescence gene example angler fish
what is the advantage of bioluminescence?
easier to find mates and reproduce in deep dark sea
