Topic 7a Organisms and Their Environment Flashcards
What is a community
The populations of different species living in a habitat
What is an Ecosystem
The interaction of a community of living organisms (biotic) with the non-living (abiotic) parts of their environment
Name four resources which animals compete for
Territory
Food
Water
Mates/Partner
What is a Habitat
Place where an organism lives
What is a Population
All the organisms of one species living in a habitat
What are the Abiotic factors of an environment
The non living factors of an environment:
- Water/moisture level
- Soil/ PH level and mineral content
- Sunlight/ Light intesity
- Temperature
- Air/ Oxygen or Carbon dioxide level
What are the Biotic factors of an environment
The Biotic factors of an environment:
- Plants
- Animals
- Fungi
- Bacteria
What is meant by a stable community
A stable community is a community where all species and environmental factors are in balance so that the population sizes are roughly constant (they MAY GO UP and down in cycles) examples are Tropical rain forests and ancient oak woodlands
What are adaptions
The features or characteristics that allow organisms to live in specific environments.
What are the three categories of adaptions
Structural = Features of an organisms body structure
Behavioural = Ways in which organisms behave e.g. migrating to a warmer environment during winter months
Functional adaptions = These are things that go on inside an organisms body that can be related to processes like reproduction or metabolism
Give an example of a structural adaption an organism may have
Animals living in a hotter climate have a thinner layer of fat and a large surface area to volume ratio to help them lose heat
Arctic animals like the arctic fox have White coloured fur to help camouflage into the surrounding snow thus helping them to avoid predators as well as sneak up on prey
Give an example of a functional adaption an organism may have
Brown bears hibernate over winter. They lower there metabolism which helps to conserve energy so they don’t have to when there is a lack of food available
Give an example of Behavioural adaptions an organism may have
Swallows migrating to warmer climates during the winter to avoid the problems associated with living in colder conditions
What is an Extremophile and give two examples of the conditions in which an extremophiles may live
An extremeophile is an organism that is adapted to living in extreme conditions. For instance Thermococcus is a form of bacteria which is adapted to survive and reproduce at extremely high temperatures (They live in deep sea hydrothermal vents)
What is a food chain
A food chain shows what is eaten by what in an ecosystem
Write down the basic order of organisms in a food chain
Producer - primary consumer - secondary consumer - TERRITORY CONSUMER
What is a producer in regards to the food chain
- Producers are at the beginning of the food chain
- Producers make their own food using energy from the sun
- They are usually green plants or algae and produce glucose of which some is used to make biological molecules known as Bio mass (Mass of living material)
The foloowing food cahin is observed in africa
Grass - Zebra - Chettah
- Suggest the effect that an increase in grass would have on the population of cheetahs
- After a certain amount of time the population of cheetahs would return to its normal level explain why
The population of any species is usually limited to the amount of food available. So if there is an increase in grass then there will be an increase in the amount of zebras as there is more grass for the zebras to feed on. This in turn will have an increase on the amount of cheetahs in the ecosystem as there will also be more zebras for the cheetahs to prey on.
As the cheetah population increases the zebra population will decrease because there are more cheetahs to eat them. This will lead to a decline in the cheetah population as there is not enough zebras to sustain there existence.
What is meant by the distribution of an organism
The distribution of an organism refers to the specific place where an organism is found e.g. Its habitat maybe a playing field the distribution refers to a specific part f the playing field.
What is a Quadrat and how can it be used to investigate the distribution of a species
A Quadrat is a square frame enclosing a known area e.g. a square 1m by 1m. It can be used to measure and compare how common an organism is in two sample areas e.g. shady and sunny part of a playing field usually plants or slow moving animals
Describe how you would use random sampling with a quadrat to compare the distribution of organisms in two sample areas
- Place the quadrat on the ground at a random position in the first sample area and count the amount of organisms within the quadrat
- Repeat this many times
- Repeat the whole process inn a 2nd sample area
- Work out the mean number of organisms per quadrat in each sample area and compare the results
What is a transect and how can it be used to measure the distribution of an organism
A transect is a line running across a given area where data is collected along the line in order to determine the distribution of organisms. This can be done by counting the organisms which touch the line or using quadrats placed along the line at specifc intervals.
Give three environmental changes that can affect the distribution of an species
Availability of water - Distribution of animals changes between the wet and dry seasons e.g. wildebeest migrate moving north and back south as rainfall patterns change
Temperature - Distribution of bird species in Germany is changing because of a rise in the average temperature
Composition of atmospheric gases - Distribution of some species can change due to the amount of air pollution
Give an example of three causes of environmental changes in distribution
Seasonal factors
Geographical factors
Human interaction
Describe the water cycle
- Refers to the earths water being recycled
- Energy from sun makes water from land/sea/plants evaporate and turn into water vapour
- Water vapour is carried upwards where it reaches a certain point and cools/condolences to form clouds
- Water falls from the clouds as precipitation where it provides fresh water to the land.
- It drains into the sea and the whole process starts again
How does C02 from the atmosphere first enter the food chain
Carbon dioxide is taken from the atmosphere by Green plants and algae (Photosynthesis) and used to make glucose which can be turned into fats, carbohydrates and proteins that make up the bodies of the plants and algae.
How is C02 returned to the atmosphere from dead leaves
Dead leaves are fed on by microorganisms and animals known as Detritus feeders. These organisms release C02 when they respire. It can also be released back to the atmosphere through the burning of wood and fossil fuels (Combustion)
A student said some water in trees eventually ends up in the sea, is the student right? explain your answer
Yes water evaporates from the tree during the Transpiration process and cools and condenses as it gets up higher. water falls from the clouds as precipitation onto the land. It the drains form the ground back into the sea.
What is responsible for decay (Decomposition)
Microorganisms such as Bacteria Fungi and detritus feeders are responsible for decay and the breakdown of tissue
What factors affect the rate of decay
Temperature - warmer temperatures increase the rate of decay as they increase the rate that enzymes involved in decomposition work at. If its too hot decomposition will slow down or stop because those enzymes are destroyed. Extreme cold slows the rate of decomposition
Oxygen availability - Many organisms need oxygen to respire which is essential to there survival.
Water availability - Decay takes place faster in moist environments because organisms involved in the decaying process need water to carry out biological processes.
Number of decay organisms - The more microorganisms and detritus feeders there are the faster decomposition will occur
Compost is the decayed remains of animals and plant matter. Why is compost used on gardens
It acts as a natural fertiliser for crops and garden plants by recycling nutrients back into the soil
What is Bio gas
Bio gas is a mixture of gases mainly consisting of Methane which is produced by the breakdown of organic matter Anaerobically (without oxygen). Lots of organisms are used to create bio gas, they decay plant material and animal waste producing methane gas.
What are the two main types of Bio gas Generators
Batch Generator - These make Bio gas in small batches and are manually loaded up with waste which is left to digest with the by products of digestion cleared away at the end of each session.
They don’t make bio gas at a steady rate
Continuous generators - Makes bio gas all the time with waste being continuously fed into the generator.
They are more suited to large scale bio gas projects
In an experiment analysing the distribution of organisms in a given area, why are quadrats placed randomly
To increase the validity of the results
What are the following: Habitat Community Ecosystem Population
Habitat = Place where organisms live Community = Different species living in a Habitat Population = All Organisms of the same species living in a Habitat Ecosystem = The interaction of Living organisms with the non living parts of their environment
