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N5 Biology > Unit 3: Life on earth > Flashcards

Unit 3: Life on earth Flashcards

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AP® Biology flashcards Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What the difference between inter and intra-specific competition?

A

Inter-specific competition- The competition which occurs between organisms of different species for a common resource.
Intra-specific competition- The competition between organisms within the same species.

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2
Q

What’s a habitat?

A

The place where organisms live.

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3
Q

What’s a population?

A

All of the members of a single species that live within a geographical area.

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4
Q

What is meant by the term ‘community’?

A

All the organisms that live in a habitat (plants and animals).

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5
Q

Give an definition for the term ‘abiotic and biotic factors’. Also give some examples for each.

A 
Abiotic factor(s)- Non-living factors affecting an ecosystem and living organisms. Some examples of these are:
-Sunlight 
-Temperature
-Moisture 
-Weather
-pH
-Natural disaster
-Wind speed
Biotic factor(s)- Living factors affecting an ecosystem and living organisms. Some examples of these are:
-Grazing
-Predation
-Diseases
-Competition
-Food availability
-Extinction of a species
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6
Q

What’s a niche?

A

An organism’s (ecological) niche is the role that it plays within the community of an ecosystem.

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7
Q

What’s a carnivore, herbivore and a omnivore?

A

Carnivore- A organism that only eats meat/other organisms.
Herbivore- A organism that only eats plants.
Omnivore- A organism that eats both other organisms and plants.

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8
Q

What’s a species?

A

A type of organism that is the basic unit of classification. Individuals of different species are not able to interbreed successfully.

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9
Q

What’s a species?

A

A species is a group of organisms able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

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10
Q

What’s always at the bottom of a food chain?

A

A producer (a plant).

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11
Q

What does the arrows in the food chain represent?

A

Direction of energy flow.

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12
Q

What does fertile and infertile mean?

A

Fertile- Capable of producing offspring

Infertile- Incapable of producing offspring

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13
Q

What’s a food chain?

A

A sequence (usually shown as a diagram) of feeding relationships between organisms, showing which organisms eat what and the movement of energy through trophic levels.

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14
Q

What’s a food chain?

A

A sequence (usually shown as a diagram) of feeding relationships between organisms, showing which organisms eat what and the movement of energy through trophic levels.

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15
Q

Why is a transect survey used?

A

A transect survey is used to find abundance of organisms.

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16
Q

What’s a predator?

A

A predator is an animal that hunts, kills and eats other animals for food.

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17
Q

What’s prey?

A

Prey is a term used to describe organisms that predators kill for food.

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18
Q

What’s prey?

A

Prey is a term used to describe organisms that predators kill for food.

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19
Q

Why is intra-specific competition more intense?

A

It’s because the organisms involved in intra-specific competition (same species) are competing for EXACTLY the same resource.

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20
Q

What gives an organism its niche?

A

The range of abiotic factors it can tolerate.
The resources in the ecosystem that it is able to make use of (eg the soil nutrients available to it).
Its interactions with other organisms (biotic factors).

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21
Q

What equipment can be used to measure an abiotic factor? Also, name the errors that could occur when measuring that abiotic factor.

A

Light meters can be used to measure light intensity. Errors can be made when measuring light intensity by accidentally shading the light meter.

Soil moisture and soil pH meters are also available. Both are used by simply pushing the probe into the soil and reading the meter. Errors can be made when measuring pH and soil moisture when probes are not cleaned between readings.

The temperature of the air can be measured with a thermometer. The temperature of the soil can be measured with a temperature probe.

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22
Q

What equipment can be used to measure an abiotic factor? Also, name the errors that could occur when measuring that abiotic factor.

A

Light meters can be used to measure light intensity. Errors can be made when measuring light intensity by accidentally shading the light meter.

Soil moisture and soil pH meters are also available. Both are used by simply pushing the probe into the soil and reading the meter. Errors can be made when measuring pH and soil moisture when probes are not cleaned between readings.

The temperature of the air can be measured with a thermometer. The temperature of the soil can be measured with a temperature probe.

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23
Q

What is a quadrat used for?

A

A quadrat is used to measure abundance of plants/non-moving organisms.

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24
Q

What is can be used to sample abundance of small insects?

A

A pitfall trap can be used.

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25
Q

What is an indicator species?

A

Indicator speciesare organisms that can tell us about the levels of pollution in an area by their presence or absence.

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26
Q

What organisms are used to detect air pollution?

A

Lichen

27
Q

What does a paired statement key look like?

A

Paired-statement keys are set out as a list and you simply start at number one on the list and work your way through until you reach the name of the organism.

28
Q

What is photosynthesis?

A

Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants use sunlight energy to make their own food.

29
Q

Where does photosynthesis take place?

A

It takes place inside the chloroplasts of plant cells.

30
Q

What is chlorophyll?

A

The green chemical inside the chloroplasts of plant cells. It enables photosynthesis to take place.

31
Q

What’s the word equation for photosynthesis?

A

(light energy)
Carbon dioxide+Water——->Sugar+Oxygen
(Chlorophyll + Enzymes)

32
Q

What is the first stage of photosynthesis called?

A

Light reaction stage.

33
Q

What is the second stage of photosynthesis called?

A

Carbon fixation

34
Q

What two molecules are made in the first stage of photosynthesis and are transferred to the second stage?

A

ATP and hydrogen.

35
Q

What is hydrogen added with to make the sugar (glucose)?

A

Carbon dioxide.

36
Q

What can the glucose produced in photosynthesis be converted into?

A

Cellulose and starch.

37
Q

What are the ways that energy is lost in the food chain?

A

Indigestible materials, movement, heat (released during respiration) and waste products.

38
Q

What is a pyramid of energy?

A

A pyramid of energy shows the total quantity of available energy stored in the biomass of organisms at each level in the food chain of an ecosystem per year. This can be estimated by burning samples of organisms and measuring the heat released.

39
Q

What is the units of measurement in the pyramid of energy?

A

KJ/M2/year

40
Q

What is a pyramid of numbers?

A

A pyramid of numbers shows the total number of individual organisms at each level in the food chain of an ecosystem.

41
Q

What do farmers use to increase crop yield?

A

Fertilisers

42
Q

What do farmers use to kill organisms affecting their crop yield?

A

Pesticides

43
Q

Why is nitrogen important to living organisms?

A

Nitrogen is important to living organisms because it is a component of all the different amino acids that are used to make proteins. It’s needed for protein synthesis.

44
Q

Why is nitrogen important to living organisms?

A

Nitrogen is important to living organisms because it is a component of all the different amino acids that are used to make proteins. It’s needed for protein synthesis.

45
Q

Why are fertilisers used to increase crop yield?

A

To increase the quantity of nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates available to plants.

46
Q

What is leaching?

A

Leaching is the loss of water-soluble plant nutrients from the soil, due to rain and irrigation.

47
Q

What is meant by the term ‘algal bloom’?

A

A marked increase in the population of algae in the waterways, usually caused by the leaching of fertilisers.

48
Q

Why are algal blooms bad for biodiversity?

A

Algal blooms reduce light levels in the water, which in turn kills aquatic plants. Bacteria feed on the dead plants and algae, using up large quantities of oxygen and reducing the concentration of oxygen dissolved in the water. This means less is available to other organisms and can result in the death of fresh water animals and plants.

49
Q

What is a pesticide?

A

Pesticides are substances that are sprayed onto crops to kill organisms that can reduce plant growth such as weeds, insects and fungi.

50
Q

Name an alternative way of killing insects on crops:

A

Biological control.

Genetic modification.

51
Q

What is biological control?

A

Biological control is an alternative to using pesticides and involves using one species or biological agent to control the population size of another species. The organism used is called a biological control agent.

52
Q

What is a problem with biological control?

A

By releasing a natural predator into the crop growing area, the number of pests can be reduced. This can have unforeseen consequences as the numbers of different organisms in the food web are changed. There have been examples of the predator becoming a more serious pest than the original problem.

53
Q

What is genetic modification?

A

Modifying the genetic code (by adding a gene from one species to another) of a species to make a more desirable feature.

54
Q

What is a mutation?

A

A mutation is a random change to genetic material.

55
Q

What can the rate of mutation be increased by?

A

UV radiation, X-rays, gamma rays and certain types of chemicals such as bromine.

56
Q

What is evolution?

A

Evolution can be defined as the change in the frequency of a phenotype in a population over many generations.

57
Q

What is an allele?

A

An allele is a variant form of a given gene, meaning it is one of two or more versions of a known mutation at the same place on a chromosome.

58
Q

Why is variation good?

A

Variation within a population makes it possible for a population to evolve over time in response to changing environmental conditions. They are more adapt.

59
Q

What does the term ‘‘selection pressure’’ mean?

A

A factor such as predation or disease that affect a population resulting in the death of some individuals and the survival of others.

60
Q

What is a selective advantage?

A

A favourable characteristic which gives an organism an increased chance of survival.

61
Q

What is a selective advantage?

A

A favourable characteristic which gives an organism an increased chance of survival. They may have a better ability to avoid predators, compete for food, or resist disease.

62
Q

What is speciation?

A

The formation of new and distinct species in the course of evolution.

63
Q

Other than a physical/geographical barrier which can be used to isolate a species to cause speciation. What other barriers can be ‘used’?

A

Behavioural or ecological.

64
Q

Give an example of each barrier that can be used:

A

Ecological- pH or salinity of water
Geographical- Mountain, body of water, etc.
Behavioural- Timing, location or complexity of their mating rituals.

N5 Biology (3 decks)

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