Topic 5 Ecology Flashcards
Define ecosystem
A community of organisms in conjunction with non living factors
Define Community
The various different populations found in an area
Define population
A group of individuals of a single organism
Define habitat
Area with distinct set of conditions where an organism lives
Give the definition of biotic and abiotic factors
Biotic: factors based on living things like plants and animal interactions
Abiotic: factors based on non living things like sunlight and rainfall
State when it would be appropriate to use a spearman’s rank correlation analysis. Give an example
When examining two sets of data to determine how correlated they are to one another, an example of this would be plant coverage and light intensity along a transect.
State how you would correctly write a conclusion for the spearmans rank correlation if the result was significant.
At 10 DF and 5% significance level, the critical value is 0.648, our value is X, X>0.648 therefore we reject the null hypothesis, so there is a significant correlation between the two figures.
State how you would select the correct critical value to compare to in spearmans rank correlation
Use the number of pairs in the data at the 5% significance level
Stare how you would correctly write a hypothesis for the spearmans rank correlation
Null Hyp = there is no significant correlation between the two sets of data
Alt Hyp = There is a significant correlation between the two sets of data.
Give the definition of primary succession
Primary succession is the progression of a habitat from rocks to a climax habitat as the biodiversity of the area increases
Give the definition of a pioneer species
A plant species that can withstand harsh conditions that grows with very little nutrients, usually the first species to grow on rocks. The species has to transfer seeds by wind. Has to be able to fix nitrogen
Explain how pioneer species change the abiotic conditions in an ecosystem
When they die they break down into nutrient rich soil which can allow new plants to grow in their wake
Give the definition of a climax community
A community that has finished succession with a vast array of niches, and that has a vast biodiverse community of plants and animals
Explain the stages of succession from colonisation to climax community
Pioneer species grow on bare rock such as lichen,
Pioneer species break down into soil which is then exploited by new plants to grow and supply roots to hold the soil in place
New plants break down and form more soil, as the layer of soil becomes larger and more nutrient dense, larger plants can survive off the soil
Climax community where all plants and animals have competition and there is a vast variety of niches, Very little change occurs in the species at this point.
Where do light dependant reactions occur in the chloroplast
Thylakoid membranes
Where do light independent reactions occur in the chloroplast
Stroma
Define phosphorylation
Adding phosphate to a molecule (e.g. ADP-ATP)
Define Photophosphorylation
Adding a phosphate group using light
Define photolysis
Splitting (lysis) of a molecule using light (photo)
Define Hydrolysis
splitting of a molecule using water
Define decarboxylation
The removal of a carbon dioxide from a molecule
Define Dehydrogenation
The removal of hydrogen from a molecule
Define redox reactions
Reactions that involve oxidation and reduction.
What three things can be described by ‘reduction’
Gain of electrons,
Gain of hydrogen,
Loss of oxygen
