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Ecology Flashcards

(69 cards)

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1
Q

habitat

A

a place where an organism lives

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2
Q

ecology

A

the study of living organisms and their interaction with each other and their environment

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3
Q

Ecosystem

A

a group of organisms that interact with each other and with their non-living environment in a particular area e.g. grassland

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4
Q

Pollution

A

a harmful addition to the environment

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5
Q

adaptations techniques: predators

A

catching whatever is easiest and not wasting energy;
being able to change diet
living in group;
being able to migrate
camouflage

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6
Q

waste management role of microorganisms

A
  1. Break down organic wastes e.g. in compost heaps
  2. Water treatment plants
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7
Q

Factors affecting Human Population Growth

A
  1. War. Reduces population
  2. Famine. Malnutrition, death
  3. Contraception. Reduced birth rates.
  4. Disease. Vaccines, sanitation, anaesthetics all reduce deaths and increase human population
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8
Q

edaphic factor

A

soil factors e.g. pH, air content, water content
Relating to the soil

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9
Q

waste management problems

A
  1. Toxic chemical entering drinking water,
  2. Unsightly landfills
  3. Scavengers attached
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10
Q

Pyramids of numbers construction involves

A
  1. Counting the primary producers and place at base of the pyramid.
  2. Counting each consumer and include them according to their status in the pyramid.
  3. The apex should include tertiary consumers.
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11
Q

biotic factor

A

living factors e.g. food, competition

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12
Q

food web

A

a series of interconnecting food chains

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13
Q

trophic level

A

the feeding level in a food chain/ the position of an organism on the food chain
there are no more than 4 or 5 levels due to the great loss of energy (90%) at each transfer stage.
Only 10% of energy passed on.
The energy is used by the organism or lost as heat, waste or detritus.

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14
Q

waste management example

A
  1. Slurry stored in waterproof pits and
  2. Only spread slurry on dryland
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15
Q

symbiosis

A

a relationship between species where at least 1 benefits
e.g. bacteria in the human large instestine;
Symbiosis increases the numbers of both species involved in the relationship.

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16
Q

limitations of pyramid of numbers

A
  1. Do not take into account the size of the organisms.
  2. Not possible to represent large numbers of organisms correctly.
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17
Q

scramble competition

A

a struggle for a scarce resource and all organisms get some
eg overcrowding of seeds in a flowerbed

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18
Q

waste management

A

the wise management of natural resources in order to conserve environment and prevent pollution.

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19
Q

waste management control

A

1.Reduce e.g. unnecessary packaing
2.Reuse e.g. bottles can be reused for water
3.Recycle e.g. paper, glass

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20
Q

contest competition

A

A struggle for a resource in which only one wins
e.g. thrush and swallow fight for a place to nest

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21
Q

population definition + give 4 factors that define population

A

all the members of a species living in an area
factors that controls populations:
Competition, Predation, Parasitism, Symbiosis

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22
Q

Pyramid of numbers

A

shows the number of organisms at each feeding stage.

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23
Q

Pollution and Eutrophication

A

Excess nutrients enters water from fertiliser or silage effluent

#This causes an algae bloom to grow in the water.
#This bloom dies and then causes an increase in bacteria’
#As bacteria decomposes the algae bloom.
#This then causes a depletion in oxygen in the water as the bacteria are using the oxygen.
#The lack of oxygen causes a fish kill

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24
Q

Population dynamics

A

predator/prey graph.
e.g. ladybird and greenfly
Explantion of shape:
Availability of food.
Large numbers of prey cause an increaase in predators.
As prey killed, less food for predators and their numbers fall.
Allows the prey to rise again.
Concealment
When prey are low in numebrs, they can conceal themselves easily.
And they have time to reproduce.
If the prey are low in numbers, predators move to an area where there are more prey.

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25
pollution control
#Only spread fertiliser on land when it is a dry day. #Store slurry and silage in leak proof pits
26
predation
the catching, killing and eating of another animal for food e.g. ladybirds and greenfly ... predator and prey the role in nature of predator-prey relationships is population control Used in an area of biological control.
27
competition
the struggle between organisms for a scarce resource e.g. light, water
28
Niche
the functional role an organism plays in an ecosystem
29
food chain
a sequence of organisms where each organism is eaten by the next organism in the sequence. energy is lost at each stage. one species at each trophic level
30
Conservation Fishing industry
1. Apply fishing quotas. 2. Change the size of fishing nets so smaller fish are allowed to breed. 3. Re-stocking
31
abiotic factor
non-living factors e.g. altitude, slope
32
biosphere
the part of the planet earth where there is life
33
adaptations techniques: prey
plants have developed thorns; nasty taste; staying in large groups; warning colouration
34
community
all of the organisms found in an ecosystem
35
parasitic pyramid of numbers
one producer is supporting thousands of primary consumers the number of organisms increases aas you go up
36
Conservation Benefits
1. Prevents extinction 2. Possible sources of food 3. Possible sources of drugs
37
parasitism
**a relationship between 2 species where one benefits by harming the other** e.g. fleas on foxes Therefore, parasites usually do not significantly reduce the numbers of the host.
38
conservation
wise management of the environment
39
climatic factor
long term weather conditions e.g. light, temperature, day length. weather is short term
40
nutrient recycling
Re-using nutrients/ the way in which elements are constantly exchanged between the living and non living parts of the ecosystem
41
Carbon cycle
The way in which carbon is taken from the environment used and added back to the environment. Plants remove carbon from the environment in the process of photosynthesis and return it in the process of respiration. Animals obtain carbon from eating plants and release it as CO2 in respiration. Micro organisms return carbon with decomposing.
42
Global warming
Concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rising
43
Causes of global warming
1. increased combustion of fossil fuels. 2. Destruction of world's forests. deforestation
44
Effects of global warming
1. Sea levels rising 2. Flooding 3. Weather patterns alter
45
Nitrogen cycle
All living organisms need nitrogen to make proteins DNA and RNA. Although nitrogen gas makes up 80% of the atmosphere it cannot be used by plants and animals in that form. Nitrogen fixing bacteria convert nitrogen gas to ammonia and nitrates. N2 ——> NO3 This is called nitrogen fixing. These bacteria Are found free living in the soil. They are also found in the nodules of legumes. (Clover,peas beans) This is an example of symbiosis. Nitrates can be absorbed by roots of plants and are recycled to make plants and proteins. Animals eat the plants.
46
Nitrogen cycle in detail
Nitrogen fixing bacteria convert nitrogen gas to ammonia and nitrates. N2 ——-> NO3 This is called nitrogen fixing Decomposing bacteria convert the decaying nitrogen waste from the dead plants and animals to ammonia. NH3 Nitrifying bacteria convert ammonia to nitrites and nitrates. NH3 ————->NO2—————>NO3 This is called nitrification. Denitrifying bacteria convert nitrates to nitrogen gas. NO3—————>N2 This is called denitrification. This keeps nitrogen gas in air constant.
47
A key
Is a means of naming organisms by answering a series of questions with alternative answers
48
quantitative study
Gives an indication of the number of a certain plant present
49
Qualitative study
Shows if a particular organism is present or absent in an ecosystem
50
conservation
is the wise management of our existing natural resources in order to allow as many species as possible to survive
51
nitrifying bacteria
Bacteria that change dissolved ammonia into nitrite compounds or nitrites into nitrate compounds.
52
denitrifying bacteria
Bacteria that convert the nitrates in soil or water to gaseous nitrogen and release it back into the atmosphere.
53
sewage treatment
*sewage is liquid waste* **sewage treatment: a process that uses bacteria to remove harmful components** 1. primary treatment- screening and sedimentation 2. secondary treatment- aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are used to break down organic matter 3. Tertiary treatment- involves removing nitrates and phosphates from water.
54
producers
organisms that carry out photosynthesis
55
Flora
all the plants in an ecosystem
56
consumers
organisms that take food from another organism
57
fauna
all the animals in an ecosystem
58
how much energy is passed on to each trophic level
10%
59
why does the number of organisms decrease as you move up the foodchain?
* High energy loss at each trophic level * organims usually increase in size the further they are along the food chain
60
carbon cycle definition
carbon from the environment is converted to carbon in living things. It is later returned to the environment.
61
# plants, animlas + micro organisms Role of organisms in the carbon cycle
* Plants remove carbon from the environment by photosynthesis and reuturn it by respiration * Animals obtain carbon by eating plants and release carbon by respiration * microorganisms return carbon to the environment when they decompose dead plants and animals.
62
Main causes of global warming
* Increased combustion of fossil fuels * deforestation
63
consequences of global warming
1. rising sea levels- flooding 2. alteration of weather patterns- affect wildlife and agriculture 3. may cuase the gulf stream to reverse its direction of flow- cold waterf lowing passed ireland and a change in climate.
64
function of nitrogen cycle
atmospheric nitrogen is unreactive To take nitrogen in the air and make it available to use by living things.
65
nitrogen fixation
the conversion of nitrogen into ammonia, ammonium or nitrate
66
nitrification
conversion of ammonia and ammonium compounds to nitrite and then nitrate
67
denitrification
conversion of nitrates to nitrogen gas
68
role of organisms in nitrogen cycle
* **bacteria** 1. nitrogen fixing: atmospheric nitrogen- nitrates 2. bacteria of decay: nitrogen waste- ammonia 3. nitrifying: ammonia- nitrates 4. denitrifying: nitrates- nitrogen gas * fungi: dead plants and animals + their waste - ammonia in soil *** plants:** absorb nitrates from soil and use the nitrogen to form proteins * **Animals:** consume plants and use their nitrogen to form animal protein
69
3 types of pollution
* domestic pollution- household wastes * agricultural- sprays to control pests and weeds * industrial- smoke causing acid rain

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