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Biology > Ecology > Flashcards

Ecology Flashcards

1
Q

what is biodiversity

A

the amount of variation shown by organisms in an ecosystem

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2
Q

what is a food chain

A

a chart showing the flow of energy from one organism to the next beginning with a producer

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3
Q

what is a producer

A

an organism that makes its own organic nutrients usually using energy from sunlight through photosynthesis

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4
Q

What is a consumer

A

an organism that gets its energy by feeding on other organisms

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5
Q

what is a community

A

All the populations of different species living in a habitat

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6
Q

what are habitats

A

the place where an organism lives

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7
Q

what are decomposers

A

an organism that gets its energy from dead or waste organic matter

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8
Q

what is an ecosystem

A

a unit containing all living organisms and their non biological environment, interacting together, in a given area

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9
Q

what are trophic levels

A

the position of an organism in a food chain or food web

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10
Q

what is a population

A

the total number of organisms of the same species living in a habitat

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11
Q

what is a biome

A

areas of our planet that have similar climates, landscapes, organisms. It is a large ecosystem consisting of many habitats

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12
Q

what are food pyramids of numbers

A

number of organisms in each trophic level in a food chain

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13
Q

what are food pyramid of biomass

A

total mass of organisms on a trophic level, representing the amount of chemical energy that is stored in living tissue

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14
Q

what is fresh biomass

A

living organisms

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15
Q

what is dry biomass

A

mass of plant/animal after water has been removed

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16
Q

what are pyramids of energy transfer

A

shows the rates of energy flow through trophic levels, not absolute amounts of energy stored. It can have energy units, such as kCAL/m²/yr

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17
Q

how is energy transferred along a food chain

A

-sunlight energy is converted into chemical energy by plants via photosynthesis
-chemical energy is stored as living matter(biomass)
-when an organism is consumed, biomass is passed along a food chain which means that energy is passed along too
-pyramids of biomass are almost always pyramid shaped as not all biomass is moved from one trophic level to another, so biomass is lost at each stage of the pyramid

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18
Q

why is only 10% of energy from each trophic level passed on to the next

A

-respiration
-lost in faeces and excretory compounds such as urea. this is passed on to detritivores and saphrotrophs
-energy is used in life processes like moving
-lost as some parts of organisms are not eaten

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19
Q

what is the method for using a quadrat

A

-randomly assign random coordinates
-place quadrates at chosen coordinates
-count the number of plants in each quadrat
-find average number of plants from quadrat samples
-work out how many quadrats would fit in marked out area
-used this to estimate the number of plants in your marked out section by scaling up your average

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20
Q

how is respiration related to the carbon cycle

A

it produces carbon dioxide from organic compounds as they are broken down to release energy

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21
Q

How is photosynthesis related to the carbon cycle

A

photosynthesis fixes carbon atoms from CO2 into organic compounds

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22
Q

how is fossilisation related to the carbon cycle

A

it occurs when living thing don’t decompose completely. Fossil fuels are formed (coal, oil, natural gas)

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23
Q

how is combustion related to the carbon cycle

A

combustion releases CO2 into the atmosphere when fossil fuels are burned

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24
Q

how is feeding and assimilation related to the carbon cycle

A

feeding and assimilation pass carbon atoms already in organic compounds along the food chain

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25
Q

how is decomposition related to the carbon cycle

A

it occurs in aerobic situations, decomposers break down dead organisms and the carbon is released through respiration

26
Q

how are excretory products related to the carbon cycle

A

the excretory products are broken down by decomposers

27
Q

how is decay and excretion related to the carbon cycle

A

Decay and excretion pass carbon atoms from one organism to the next

28
Q

what is an abiotic factor

A

a physical or chemical factor affecting an ecosystem

29
Q

what is a biotic factor

A

A living factor affecting an ecosystem

30
Q

what are examples of biotic factors

A

-predation
-paratism
-diseases
-presence of pollination insects
-availability of nest sites

31
Q

what are examples of abiotic factors

A

-climate(temp, light intensity, water availability etc)
-hours of daylight
-soil conditions
-pollution

32
Q

how is assimilation related to the nitrogen cycle

A

-animals eat plants, taking on their compounds that are usually in the form of protein
-most of this goes into increasing the animal’s biomass(and for tissue growth/repair

33
Q

how is death and excretion related to the nitrogen cycle

A

-in animals some nitrogen is excreted in the faeces(as urea and ammonia).
-All living organisms die, so their nitrogen compounds are recycled

34
Q

how is decomposition related to the nitrogen cycle

A

-dead organisms are broken down by decomposers.
-This includes bacteria that live in the soil
-Turns nitrogen(N2) in protein to ammonium

35
Q

how is nitrification (oxidation by nitrifying bacteria) related to the nitrogen cycle

A

-some bacteria in the soil convert ammonia into Nitrite(NO2-), then Nitrate(NO3-)
-These bacteria are known as nitrifying bacteria

36
Q

how is denitrification (break down by denitrifying bacteria) related to the nitrogen cycle

A

-Other bacteria break down ammonium in the soil to form nitrogen gas
-This are then released into the air

37
Q

how is nitrogen fixation by free soil bacteria and lightning related to the carbon cycle

A

-nitrogen gas is inert, but lightning can provide enough energy for it to react with oxygen-forming nitrous oxide(dissolves in rain)
-There are also free-living bacteria with enzymes capable of converting nitrogen gas into nitrates

38
Q

how is nitrogen fixation by root nodule bacteria related to the carbon cycle

A

-some plants have nitrogen-fixing bacteria that live in their roots inside nodules-plants that have these are called legumes (e.g. peas)

-The nitrogen fixing bacteria can capture the unreactive nitrogen gas in the atmosphere and convert it into a form the plants can use

39
Q

absorption by the roots

A

-nitrates can be absorbed into the plant via the roots (through a process called active transport). The plants can use -these to make protein as they are more reactive than nitrogen
-root hair cell

40
Q

what is deforestation

A

the clearing of natural forest by burning or logging to allow an alternative use of the land

41
Q

what are reasons for deforestation

A

-agriculture
-construction/housing
-making paper + furniture
-fuel to burn
-make way for roads

42
Q

what are the effects of deforestion

A

-desertification
-fewer trees and less natural habitats
-reduction in food for species
-disturbance of the water cycle(less transpiration can lead to flooding/drought)
-contributes to global warming as there are less trees which would be photosynthesizing
-soil erosion

43
Q

how can deforestation be mitigated

A

-reforestation
-implementation of laws to limit deforestation

44
Q

What is a food web

A

A network of interconnected food chains showing the energy flow through part of an ecosystem

45
Q

what is the greenhouse effect

A

-short wave length ultraviolet radiation radiates from the sun and reaches earth
-Some is absorbed by Earth’s surface and emitted again as longer wavelength infrared radiation
-Greenhouse gases absorb and re-emit some of this long infra-red radiation, which would otherwise escape into space
-This then heats up the surface of the Earth
-Human activities are polluting the atmosphere with extra greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide

46
Q

what are the effects of Global Warming:(only a few degrees rise)

A

-polar ice caps would melt, sea levels rise
-change in major ocean currents = warm water flowing into previously cooler area
-change in global rainfall patterns, as there is more evaporation in the atmosphere = more rainfall in some areas, less rainfall in some areas
-change nature of many ecosystem, meaning animals become extinct
-pests become more abundant, so its bad for farming

47
Q

soil erosion

A

-tree roots hold soil together
-when tress are removed, soil can be washed away by the rain, leaving infertile land, due to the loss of soil minerals and nutrients

48
Q

leaching

A

-trees take up nutrients from the soil before they can be washed away by the rain, but return to the soil when leaves die
-when trees are removed nutrients get leached away but do not get replaced, leaving infertile soil

49
Q

disturbance of evaporation by deforestation

A

-evapotranspiration includes both the processes of water evaporating from the Earth’s surface and from plant transpiration
-this water falls back to the Earth as rain
-when trees are cut down, evapotranspiration is reduced, which can make the local climate drier

50
Q

how does deforestation disturb the balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen

A

-forests take up CO2 by photosynthesis, stores it in wood and slowly releases it when they decompose
-when trees are cut down and burnt, the stored carbon is released at once as CO2, disturbing the carbon cycle and contributes to global warming
-fewer trees in the forest also means that less photosynthesis takes place, releasing less oxygen, this causes the oxygen level in the atmosphere to drop

51
Q

why do farmers frow legume plants such as clovers then plough them into the soil before growing other crops

A

-root nodules in the legumes
-nitrogen fixing bacteria fixes nitrogen gas into nitrates/ammonia
-these are used to make proteins/amino acids for growth.
-the decomposition of the legumes also turn the legumes into ammonia

52
Q

eutrophication

A

-fertilisers are washed off the land by rain
-fertilisers containing nitrates end up in freshwater ponds or rivers
-algae form algal bloom as nitrates level rise. algae reproduce rapidly
-algae prevent light reaching the plants at the bottom of the pond
-plants cannot photosynthesise and therefore die
-algae also die as they run out of nitrates
-bacteria decompose large quantities of dead plants and algae
-bacteria reproduce. Level of respiration increases due to large microorganisms
-bacteria use up all oxygen in water(water become anoxic). Other pond life dies

53
Q

How is carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere

A

-car exhausts
-industrial processes like burning fossil fuels
-cutting trees down affects carbon dioxide levels

54
Q

How is methane gas produced

A

-rotting plants in marshland
-rice growing and cattle rearing

55
Q

How is nitrous oxides released

A

-released by bacteria in soils and the ocean
-more released from soils after fertiliser used
-released from vehicle engines and industry

56
Q

How are CFC produced

A

-chlorofluorocarbons
-old fridges and aerosol sprays

57
Q

How is carbon monoxide form

A

Burning of fossil fuels without enough air supply

58
Q

Negative impacts of carbon monoxide

A

-combines with haemoglobin in red blood cells and prevents them from carrying oxygen
-cars fitted with catalytic converters to turn carbon monoxide produced in cars into carbon dioxide

59
Q

How is acid rain formed

A

-Sulfur dioxide formed from sulfur impurities in fossil fuel sources and
-it mixes with rain clouds to form dilute sulfuric acid
-falls as acid rain
-internal combustion engines in cars and power stations are main causes of acid rain

60
Q

Carbon flux

A

The movement of carbon from one carbon sink to another

61
Q

Carbon sink

A

An object or environment that can absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, absorbing more than it releases

Biology (12 decks)

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