Populations and Ecosystems Flashcards

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1
Q

What is an ‘ecosystem’?

A

all of the living and non-living components of a particular area

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2
Q

What is meant by the term ‘abiotic factors’?

A

an ecological factor that makes up part of the non-biological environment

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3
Q

What is meant by the term ‘biotic factors’?

A

an ecological factor that makes up part of the living environment

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4
Q

What is meant by the term ‘population’?

A

a group of individuals of the same species that occupy the same habitat at the same time

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5
Q

What is meant by the term ‘habitat’?

A

the place where an organism normally lives and which is characterised by the physical conditions and the types of organism present

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6
Q

What is meant by the term ‘species’?

A

a group of similar organisms that can breed to produce fertile offspring

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7
Q

What is meant by the term ‘community’?

A

all of the living organisms present in an ecosystem at a given time

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8
Q

What is meant by the term ‘niche’?

A

describes how an organism fits into its environment. (includes: what the species is like; how it responds; how it behaves; where it occurs)
NO 2 SPECIES CAN OCCUPY THE SAME

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9
Q

Give 4 things that can impact population size

A
  • intraspecific competition
  • interspecific competition
  • predation
  • abiotic factors (e.g, water, pH, temp.)
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10
Q

Give 3 things that can be competed for between different species

A
  • water
  • food (nutrients if talking about plants)
  • space/territory
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11
Q

Give 3 things that can be competed for between organisms of the same species

A
  • mates/breeding sites
  • food
  • space
  • water
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12
Q

Why might a correlation not show the casual effect (on a graph showing time and population size)?

A

correlation ≠ causal effect
it could be caused by other biotic factors, such as interspecific competition.
One species could have outcompeted the other for (a specific resource)

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13
Q

Why does interspecific competition take longer to influence population size?

A
  • lots more factors involved
  • death and birth rates
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14
Q

How might an increase in intraspecific competition drive natural selection?

A

if caused by change in environment, may lead to one species having a selected advantage for a particular species

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15
Q

In relation to competition, how would less resources impact population size?

A

less resources (food, space, water)
means more competition
would reduce population size if the species which is outcompeted

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16
Q

How is temperature a limiting factor of the carrying capacity of a population?

A
  • enzymes in plants, bacteria and reptiles will denature (no thermoregulation)
  • in mammals; more energy is needed to maintain body temperature so less energy is available for growth and reproduction
17
Q

What biotic factors could limit carrying capacity?

A
  • diseases
  • predation
  • intra and interspecific competition
18
Q

What is meant by the term ‘carrying capacity’?

A

the maximum stable population size of a species that an ecosystem can support

19
Q

Why is the population size of predator and prey limited in stable communities?

A

as the numbers of prey are increasing and decreasing in cycles

20
Q

Why might nutrients leaking into lakes cause fish populations to decrease?

A
  • algal bloom blocks sunlight
  • reduced photosynthesis causes plants to die
  • saprobionts respire aerobically
  • less oxygen for fish to respire
21
Q

How might digesting other organisms allow plants to grow in places with little nutrients available?

A
  • nutrients such as proteins can be broken down
  • provides amino acids that can be used to make proteins in the plant
22
Q

disease X is caused by an insect. How would introducing infertile insects reduce the transmission of disease X?

A
  • intraspecific competition for mates, food and space
  • insects do not reproduce
  • fewer insects
23
Q

disease X is caused by an insect. Why might introducing infertile insects NOT reduce disease X?

A
  • impacts courtship behaviour
  • affects survival