Unit 2 - AOS 2 Flashcards
Structural adaptations
Physical features an organism is biologically birthed with and allows it to survive in its ecosystem.
Behavioural adaptations
the way in which an organism behaves or acts in order to survive in its ecosystem.
Physiological adaptations
Internal body functions and processes which allows an organism to survive in its ecosystem.
torpor
change in metabolic rate in order to allow the organism to adapt and cope with climate changes (eg. extreme heat)
Hibernation
term described as ‘long-term torpor’, occurs during wet seasons (winter), and reduces:
- metabolism
- oxygen requirements
- heart rate
- respiration
Bioluminescence
Physiological adaptation process, where organisms produce light in order to attract preys.
Mesophyte
plants in mild/moderate environments.
During winter, leaves shed.
water lost through stomata is regained through environment.
eg. roses and daisies
Hydrophytes
Aquatic climates, plant is usually half or completely in water.
plants with floating leaves have their stomata located at the top of the leaf, with a thin cuticle.
roots underwater have air-filled spaces
eg. water lily and marine sea grass
Xerophyte
Arid climates,
aims to reduce water loss through:
thick cuticle
Hairs covering the leaves
Sunken stomata and fewer stomata (Wind)
Reduced leaf size
Leaves face away from the sun (Eucalyptus)
eg. cacti and eucalyptus
lignotubers
swelling at the base of stem or trunk which allows regeneration of the plant in arid climates.
epicormic buds
Bud tissue lie beneath bark which allows new shoots to grow after damage of previous ones due to extreme climates (fires).
Halophytes
plants which cope with high levels of salt.
features to survive in salty climates include:
- shedding leaves with high slat levels
- excreting salt through salt glands
- pumping salt out the roots
- increasing water uptake and growth.
Biosphere
all areas of earth supporting life.
biomes
major land communities distributed around the world with similar climates.
Ecosystems
all populations of an area interacting with each other as well as the environment.
abiotic and biotic factors.
Community
interacting populations in one area.
only biotic
Species
group of organism which can interbreed to produce offsprings with varied features.
population
group of same species living/interacting in one area.
organism
one single living being.
ecology
the study of relationships/interactions between living things and their surroundings.
Abiotic factors
non-living factors of life.
(eg, temp, oxygen, etc.)
Biotic factors
living factors of life.
(plants, animals)
Habitats
environment where particular species live and can survive in.
some organisms have several habitats, so they have a broad range of tolerance. these individuals are called Generalists.
other organisms can only live in one habitat. these individuals are called specialists.
Niches
role an organism plays in a community,
how they interact with other species and uses resources.
predators
organism who hunt and feed on their preys.
preys
who get hunted and fed on by their predators.
mutualism
when both organisms benefit.
eg. fungi and plants
commensalism
when on organism benefits, whilst the other is unaffected.
eg. possum nesting in tree hollows
parasitism
when the parasite benefits whilst the host is harmed.
eg. fleas on dogs
amensalism
one organism kills the other with no benefit to itself (unaffected and harm)
eg. cattle or brumies trample vegetation
predation
one organism feeds on the other (benefit and harm)
eg. lion eating zebra
producers
(autotrophs) make their own food through photosynthesis, eg. plants.
consumers
(heterotrophs) must eat other organism to receive their source of energy and nutrients.
herbivores
eat plants and vegetation.
carnivores
eat meat only.
scavengers
eat dead meat.
detrivores
eat dead organism and waste products in soil.
decomposers
release chemicals to break down dead matter (digest externally)
parasite
feeds on its hosts.
trophic levels
each feeding level in food chains/webs.
the greater the trophic level, the more species involved.
asexual reproduction
Asexual reproduction is the production of an offspring just from one parent. (unicellular organism).
sexual reproduction
the production of an offspring involving a mate where the fusion of two gametes, one from each parent produces a zygote.
fission
an organism is split into two to make two identical organisms of the same size and genetics. fission involves mitosis and cytokinesis.
budding
an unequal division where a new organism is formed by the outgrowth of a parent. (one longer than other)
fragmentation
involves an organism splitting into two or more fragments, each of which develops into a new organism.
spore formation
Many Spores are housed in sacs known as Sporangia. The plants produce hundreds of spores and the spore sac bursts.
vegetative reproduction
parts of a plant is made to undergo reproduction. rhizomes are when the roots of a plant reproduce new shoots and roots underground. runners are when plants also form horizontal stems.
parthenogenesis
virgin birth, which involves development of a female gamete (sex cell) without fertilization. to create an embryo without the need of a mate. (cloning method).
grafting
The stem of two plants are connected together by tying them up to fuse the stem tissues in order combine and create a new variation of the two plants. (breeding of plants)
tissue culture
fragments or cells from a parent plant are selected and grown in a culture medium.
horticulture
the production of new plants and vegetation through several methods.
cuttings
A part of a plant is cut and placed into new soil with all its abiotic factors, where then the plant undergoes fragmentation and begins to produce new roots in which a new plant is produced.
Embryo splitting
using several IVF techniques to form twins, triplets, etc. to create identical organism (clone)
SCNT
Somatic cell nuclear transfer
nvolves the transfer of the nucleus from a somatic cell (body cell) to an unfertilised embryo.
The egg is transplanted into a surrogate mother to develop. The resulting offspring is identical with the somatic cell donor.
keystone species
play a role in maintaining the structure of an ecosystem. (eg. shark)
distribution
geographical range of species and habitat.
abundance
total number of organism in a population.
immigration and emigration
immigration is moving into a country or region.
emigration is moving out a country or region.
exponential growth
a j shaped mathematical graph which displays the ideal growth of an organism without any limiting factors impacting its increase in population.
interspecific competition
organisms of different species compete for resources.
intraspecific competition
two organisms of the same species compete for resources.
law of tolerance
organisms which have a range of tolerance for abiotic factors. however in situations where the organism has a narrow range of tolerance and slight increases or decreases occur, can cause disruptions in the organisms survival.
Hermaphrodites
sexually reproducing organisms which have both female and male reproductive systems, and self-fertalize both gametes, to create a new individual.
genetic diversity
Genetic diversity is the variety of genes or alleles present within a species or population.
micropropagation
using extremely small pieces of plant tissue taken from a carefully chosen and prepared mother plant, and growing these under laboratory conditions to produce new plants.
tropism (nastic movement)
when a plant moves in response to an external stimulus in the environment:
positive tropism
negative tropism
postive geotropism
negative geotropism
thigmo(tropism)nasty
movment of a plant in response to touch
photo(tropism)nasty
movement of a plant in response to light intensity.
thermo(tropism)nasty
movement of a plant in response to changes in temp.