Unit 3 Flashcards
Absorbed
The light which is taken into a plant leaf by pigments
Aesthetic
Branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty and art
Agriculture
The process of producing feed and other desirable products by the cultivation of certain plants and the raising of domesticated animals
Allele
A form of a gene - in pea plants the gene for petal colour has 2 different alleles giving either pink or white petals. Alleles are usually written as ‘A’ or ‘a’
Animal welfare
Physical and psychological well-being of animals. The term animal welfare can also mean human concern for animal welfare. Welfare is measured by indicators including behaviour/physiology/longevity/reproduction.
Annual weed
Plant which grows/flowers/sets seeds/ dies within the space of 1 year.
Anthropomorphism
The tendency to attribute to animals human qualities such as mental/social/emotional characteristics.
Artificial selection
Intentional breeding controlled by humans for particular traits/characteristics
ATP
Adenosine triphosphate, coenzyme used as an energy carrier in the cells of all known organisms.
Biodiversity
Degree of variation of life forms within a given species/ecosystem/biome/planet.
Biological yield
Royal plant biomass
Bottleneck
An evolutionary event in which a significant percentage of a population/species is killed/prevented from reproducing
Calvin cycle
A series of biochemical reactions that makes place in the chloroplast and does not require light
Carnivore
Animal which eats meat and which derives its energy requirements from a diet consisting mainly/exclusively of animal tissue whether through predation/scavenging
Chlorophyll
The green pigment which is found in almost all plants/green algae. It absorbs the light which is essential for photosynthesis.
Chloroplast
The photosynthetic unit of a plant cell, containing all the chlorophyll
Colonial
Relating to a colony
Competition
An interaction/struggle between organisms/species for a resource such as food/territory/mates, in which the fitness/numbers of one is reduced by the presence of another
Co-operative hunting
Animals such as lions hunt as a group to increase their chances of successfully killing prey
Crossbreeding
A crossbreed usually refers to an animal with purebred parents of 2 different breeds/varieties/populations. Crossbreeding refers to the process of breeding such an animal, often with the intention to create offspring that share the traits of both parent lineages/producing an animal with hybrid vigour
Cross pollination
When pollen is delivered to a flower of a different plant
Cultivar
Plant/group of plants selected for a particular characteristic
Degradation
Process by which ecosystems or habitats are broken down/fragmented
Economic yield
The mass of desired product
Endemic
An organism is unique to a defined ecological/geographical location such as an island/nation/other zone/habitat. For example, lemurs are endemic to Madagascar - they are not native anywhere else.
Ethogram
A catalogue/inventory of all behaviours/actions exhibited by an animal
Eukaryote
An organism whose cells contain complex structures enclosed within membranes
Extinction
The complete loss of a species from the planet
Food security
The ability of human populations to access food of sufficient quality and quantity
Fragmentation
Habitat fragmentation describes the emergence of discontinuities/fragmentation in an organism’s environment/habitat, causing population fragmentation
Fungicide
A chemical compound/biological organism used to kill/inhibit fungi/fungal spores
G-3-P
Glycerate-3-phosphate, which is a substance found in the calvin cycle
Genetic diversity
Comprises the genetic variation represented by the number and frequency of alleles in a population
Genetic uniformity
When the genes/alleles of a population are similar and show little variation
Genome
The entirety on an organism’s hereditary variation
Genotype
A statement of an organism’s alleles for a particular characteristic usually given as symbols - a pea plant could have the genotype cc if it were homozygous for pink petal colour or the genotype Cc if it were heterozygous for pink colour
Harvest index
A measure of yield, calculated by dividing the dry mass of economic yield by the dry mass of biological yield
Herbicide
A chemical compound used to kill unwanted plants.
Herbivore
An organism adapted to eat plant-based foods, such as deer/cows/sheep
Heterozygotes
Having 2 different alleles for a characteristic - a pea plant heterozygous for petal colour has two different petal colour alleles ‘Cc’
Hierarchy
An organisation arranged in a graded order with member(s) at the top who are dominant over subordinate individuals
Homozygotes
Having 2 identical alleles for a characteristic - a pea plant homozygous for petal colour has two identical colour alleles, both pink ‘CC’ or both white ‘cc’
Immigration
Movement into a country/area to take up permanent residence
Inbreeding
The reproduction from mating 2 genetically related parents
Inbreeding depression
The reduced fitness in a given population as the result of breeding of related individuals
Insecticide
A chemical compound used to kill insects
Invasive
Introduced/non-indigenous/non-native species that adversely affect the habitats they invade economically/environmentally/ecologically
Keystone species
A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative to its abundance. An ecosystem may experience a dramatic shift if a keystone species is removed, even though that species was a small part of the ecosystem by measures of biomass or productivity
Legume
A plant which is able to fix atmospheric nitrogen to synthesis amino acids which can then be built up to plant proteins. This is due to the symbiotic relationship with bacteria in the root nodules of these plants.
Light reaction
The photosynthetic process in which solar energy is harvested and transferred into the chemical bonds of ATP; can only occur in light
Livestock
1 or more domesticated animal raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food/fibre/labour. The term does not usually involved farmed fish
