Organising an ecosystem

Question 1

What happen to the energy as it goes up the food chain

Answer 1

It gets lost

Question 2

predator-prey cycles

Answer 2

predator and prey are out of phase as it takes a while for one population to respond to the change

Question 3

Why do we get out of phase cycles?

Answer 3

Takes a long time for entire populations to increase or decrease
- multiple generations of breeding

Question 4

quadrats

Answer 4

Measure abundance

Question 5

Transects

Answer 5

Measure distribution

Question 6

What are the 3 environmental changes that affect an organism distribution?

Answer 6

• temperature
• water availability
• composition of atmospheric gases

Question 7

Water cycle

Answer 7

• Energy from the sun evapourates
  water from land and sea into water
  vapour (transpiration)
• Warm water vapour is carried
  upwards (as warm air rises)
• as it gets higher the vapour cools and
  condenses to form clouds
• water falls from clouds as precipitation
  onto land

Question 8

carbon stores

Answer 8

• air
• plants (biological molecules)
• soil (microorganisms)
• fossil fuels
• animals

Question 9

carbon cycle

Answer 9

• carbon dioxide from the air gets taken in by plants through photosynthesis and convert into biological molecules e.g. glucose
• some carbon is pass back into the atmosphere through respiration while it could also be passed onto animals by them eating plants
• animals respire to release co2
• when plant or animal die the organisms decay by microorganisms
  
  • warm, moist aerobic conditions
• microbial respiration
• anaerobic respiration = fossil fuels

Question 10

decomposition

Answer 10

the breakdown of organic matter by the action of decomposers

Question 11

what are detritus feeders

Answer 11

small animals like worms that feed on dead organic matter

Question 12

what are decomposers

Answer 12

microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria

Question 13

What are the 3 environmental factors that affect the rate of decomposition

Answer 13

• oxygen availability
• temperature
• water content

Question 14

oxygen factor

Answer 14

Higher oxygen = more aerobic respiration = more energy available = faster growth and decomposition

Question 15

temperature factor

Answer 15

higher temp = particle have more kinetic energy and enzymes closer to optimum temperature = higher rate of reactions = more decomposition

Question 16

water factor

Answer 16

decomposers need water to survive so decomposition increases in moist conditions

Question 17

what happens to the rate of decompression if the soil becomes waterlogged?

Answer 17

oxygen levels will fall as water fill the air gaps within soil meaning less aerobic respiration and fewer chemical reactions thus slower decomposition

Question 18

What are biogas generators?

Answer 18

where dead organic matter is left to decay anaerobically producing methane which when combusted it releases a lot of energy

Question 19

biogas generator conditons

Answer 19

• constant temp to keep microorganisms respiring away
• cant be stored as liquid