b7 Flashcards
(41 cards)
What is an ecosystem?
The interaction of a community of living organisms (biotic) with the non-living (abiotic) parts of the environment
What four things do plants compete for?
Light
Space
Water
Mineral ions
What is a community?
A group of animals and/or plants of different species
What are extremophiles? Give examples of conditions they might live in.
Organisms which live in extreme environments
e.g. high temperature, pressure or salt concentration
What is a population?
A group of animals or plants of the same species
What three things do animals compete for?
Food
Mates
Territory/space
List three biotic factors which can affect a community.
Any three from:
Availability of food
New predators arriving
New pathogens
One species outcompeting another (so numbers are no longer sufficient to breed)
List three abiotic factors which can affect a community.
Any three from:
Light intensity
Temperature
Moisture levels
Soil pH and mineral content
Wind intensity and direction
CO2 levels for plants
O2 levels of aquatic animals
Give two examples of producers
Plants and algae
What gases are contributing to global warming?
- Carbon dioxide
- Methane
- Water Vapour
Name three processes in the carbon cycle
Any three from:
- Photosynthesis
- Respiration
- Decay
- Burning/combustion
- Carbon locked up in fossil fuels
- Animals eating plants and other animals
What are the reasons for people doing deforestation?
- To provide land for cattle and rice fields
- Growing crops for biofuels
Give two examples of factors that reduce biodiversity.
- Deforestation
- Global warming
Give three things that are in place to reduce the negative impact on biodiversity?
Any three from:
- Breeding programmes for endangered species
- Protection / regeneration of rare habitats
- Reintroduction of field margins
- Reduction of deforestation and CO2 emissions
Recycling resources
What are the four main stages in the water cycle?
1) Evaporation
2) Condensation
3) Precipitation
4) Transpiration
What is biodiversity?
The variety of all the different species of organisms on Earth.
What environmental problem does sulfur dioxide cause?
Acid rain
What environmental problem does soot/solid particulates cause?
Global dimming
Give an example of interdependence in a community.
Examples include:
Species depending on each other for:
- Food
- Shelter
- Pollination
- Seed dispersal
What are the three different types of adaptations?
- Structural
- Behavioural
- Functional
Give three ways humans have used land and, as a result, reduced biodiversity?
Any three from:
- Quarrying for metals
- Building
- Farming
- Deforestation
- Landfill sites
What environmental problem does carbon dioxide cause?
Global Warming
What is a stable community?
Population size remains fairly constant
(because the species and environmental factors are in balance)
Name the primary consumer in the food chain below:
Grass -> Rabbit -> Fox -> Eagle
Rabbit