Unit 3 Flashcards
Biodiversity
the variety of life in the world or a particular ecosystem
Species
organisms that can interbreed to produce fertile offspring
Population
the total number of one species or plant or animal in a habitat
site of photosynthesis
chloroplasts
Name of stage 2 of photosynthesis
Carbon fixation
Indicator species
A species that, when present, indicates the level of pollution in the area
By-product of photosynthesis
oxygen
Products of stage 1 of photosynthesis that move onto stage 2
Hydrogen and ATP
Examples of abiotic factors
temperature, pH and light intensity
examples of biotic factors
competition, predation and disease
Community
all of the organisms living in a habitat
A food chain
a series of organisms which depend on each other for food/energy represented by diagrams with arrows indicating the flow of energy
producer
plants that use the sun to make their own food
Consumer
any organism that doesn’t make it’s own food via photosynthesis
Herbivore
a consumer that only eats plant material
Omnivore
a consumer that eats both plant and animal material
Carnivore
a consumer that eats only other animal material
Niche
The role an organism play in its community
Interspecfic competition
Competition between members of different species for a few of the same resources
Intraspecific competition
competition between members of the same species for all of the same resources
Biotic factors
factors that affect biodiversity that relate to living organisms
Abiotic factors
factors that affect biodiversity that relate to non-living parts of the habitat
Human Influences
things that humans do which affect the biodiversity of a particular habitat
pH meter
a device with a probe that measure (soil) pH
Light meter
a device with a sensor that gives information about the light intensity
Quadrats
a square grid used to sample plants or very slow moving organisms
Pitfall traps
a plastic (save the turtles) container that is buried so that small invertebrates fall into it and can be counted
Photosynthesis
The process by which green plants produce their own food
Word equation for photosynthesis
carbon dioxide + water –> sugar + oxygen
Uses for energy
- an organism keeping itself warm
- moving around
- building tissue
How much energy is lost at each stage of the food chain?
90%
Advantage and Disadvantage of pyramid of numbers
Advantage - relatively simple to measure
Disadvantage - doesn’t take in account the biomass of each species
Advantage and Disadvantage of pyramid of energy
Advantage - it is more accurate than any other pyramid
Disadvantage - it is very difficult to get a reliable measurement of the energy content of some organisms
Effect of use of nitrates
increase in crop yield
Disadvantages of using fertilisers
if it rains and they leech into rivers/lochs etc algal blooms can form which reduces the oxygen available to other species in the water
Disadvantage of pesticides
they can accumulate in the tissues of the organisms that consume plants that has been sprayed with pesticides
