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National 5 Biology > Life On Earth > Flashcards

Life On Earth Flashcards

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AP® Biology flashcards Biology 101 flashcards
0
Q

What is an adaptation?

A

A feature of an organism that helps it survive eg thick, hollow fur for insulation in Polar Bears

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1
Q

What is an Abiotic factor?

A

Refers to a physical (non-living) factor that affects an ecosystem eg temperature, light intensity, pH etc

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2
Q

What is an algal bloom?

A

A rapid growth in population of algae in ponds/lakes caused by an increase in inorganic nutrients from fertilisers.

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3
Q

What is an allele?

A

A particular form of a gene.

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4
Q

Where is ammonia found in the Nitrogen cycle?

A

After death and decomposition and before nitrite.

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5
Q

What is bio accumulation?

A

Build up of toxic substance in an organism because it is hard to break down. Toxin absorb from the environment or thought food.

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6
Q

The definition of biodiversity.

A

It is the number and abundance of different species within an ecosystem.

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7
Q

What is a biological control?

A

A natural control of pests using natural predators, parasites or disease.

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8
Q

What is a biome and what can influence there distribution?

A

A biome is a region of the plant with characteristic climate, plants and animals. It is influenced by temperature and rainfall.

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9
Q

What is a Biotic factor?

A

A biological (living) factor that affects an ecosystem eg predication or competition.

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10
Q

What is a carnivore?

A

A consumer that gets its energy from eating other animals.

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11
Q

What is the definition of a community?

A

All the populations of different species living in a habitat.

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12
Q

What is intraspecific competition?

A

Competition for resources between individuals of the SAME species.

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13
Q

What is interspecific competition?

A

Competition for resources which occurs between individuals of DIFFERENT species.

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14
Q

What is the more severe form of competition intraspecific or interspecific?

A

Intraspecific because because the requirements for individuals are identical.

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15
Q

What is a consumer?

A

An organism which gets its energy by feeding on other organisms.

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16
Q

What is a decomposer? Name one.

A

A decomposer is an organism involved in the breakdown of dead organic material and waste. Examples are bacteria or fungi.

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17
Q

Definition of deforestation?

A

Large scale removal of trees from an area.

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18
Q

What do denitrifying bacteria do?

A

They convert nitrates in the soil into nitrogen gas, which is released into the atmosphere.

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19
Q

What is desertification?

A

The process by which arid land becomes desert. May be a result of climate change.

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20
Q

What is an ecosystem?

A

An ecological system consisting of a habitat and it’s community of organisms.

21
Q

What is evolution?

A

The change in inherited characteristics of an organisms from generation to generation. It leads to gradual change in the characteristics of a species and the divergence into a new species.

22
Q

What is a fertiliser?

A

A chemical added to soil to improve plant growth and crop yield. Contains nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus.

23
Q

What is a food chain?

A

A linear sequence of organisms showing the feeding relationship between them. Starts with a producer and ends in the top predator.

24
Q

What does Genetically Modified (GM) mean?

A

An organism/cell that has had its genetic code altered by the addition of a gene from another organism. Gives it a new characteristic.

25
Q

What is a habitat?

A

An area in which a population of organisms live.

26
Q

What is habitat destruction?

A

Human destruction of natural habitat by activities such as deforestation/over grazing.

27
Q

What is a herbivore?

A

An animal that gets its energy by eating plants.

28
Q

What is an indicator species?

A

Organisms (eg lichen) that by the presence, abundance or absence give information such as pollution levels in the environment

29
Q

What is a monoculture?

A

Large scale growing of a single crop. Good economic benefits due to large yields BUT can cause soil depletion and disease.

30
Q

What is a mutation?

A

A random or spontaneous change of a gene, chromosome or number of chromosomes. The only source of new alleles!

31
Q

What is a mutagen?

A

Something that increase the rate of mutation. Example include UV light, radiation, x-rays, nicotine, etc

32
Q

What is a niche?

A

The ROLE an organism has within its community in an ecosystem.

33
Q

What do nitrifying bacteria do?

A

Convert ammonia into nitrite. Then convert nitrite into nitrate.

34
Q

What does nitrogen fixing bacteria do?

A

Bacteria free living in the soil or root nodules of some plants that covert nitrogen gas into nitrate.

35
Q

What is natural selection?

A

Process when variation may increase or decrease in frequency in a species because the variation affect the chance of survival of individuals that possess them.
Advantageous variations are selected due to living organisms surviving and reproducing.

36
Q

What is a pesticide?

A

A pesticide is a chemical used to kill pests.

37
Q

What is a pitfall trap?

A

A sampling technique used to catch ground-living invertebrates.

38
Q

The definition of a population.

A

All the members of a single species in a given area.

39
Q

What is a producer?

A

Green plants that produce their own food through photosynthesis. First organism in a food chain.

40
Q

What is parasitism?

A

An interaction between 2 organisms in which one benefits and the other is harmed.

41
Q

What is a pyramid of numbers?

A

Diagram that shows the relative numbers of organisms at each level in a food chain.

42
Q

What is a pyramid of biomass?

A

A diagram that shows the relative total masses of the organisms at level in a food chain.

43
Q

What is a pyramid of energy?

A

Diagram that shows the relative quantities of energy at each level in a food chain.

44
Q

What is best a pyramid of numbers, biomass or energy.

A

A pyramid of energy gives a truer picture because it is scaled to equivalent units of area and time for each level in a food chain.

45
Q

What is a quadrat and what is it used for?

A

A sampling tool used to measure the abundance and distribution of slow or non-moving organisms.

46
Q

Definition of radiation.

A

An energy wave form such as light, sound, heat, x-rays, gamma rays. Can cause mutations.

47
Q

What is a root nodule?

A

Small swelling on the roots such as peas, beans and clover that contains nitrogen fixing bacteria.

48
Q

What is selection pressure?

A

Factors such as predication or disease that affects a population, resulting in the death of some individuals and survival of others.

49
Q

What is speciation?

A

The formation of 2 or more species from an original ancestral species due to isolation of the 2 or more species. Leading to a point where the new species are unable to interbreed.

50
Q

What is a species?

A

Organisms with similar characteristics and with the ability to interbreed to produce fertile offspring.

51
Q

What is a transect?

A

A sampling technique which involves taking samples at regular intervals along a straight line. Can be used to study the effect of a variable (eg light intensity) in a given area.

National 5 Biology (3 decks)

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