end of year exam

Question 1

define biodiversity

Answer 1

biodiversity refers to the variety of life that exists, the genetic material they posses and the ecosystems the inhabit.

Question 2

what 2 factors make up an ecosystem

Answer 2

abiotic and biotic

Question 3

name 5 abiotic factors

Answer 3

1. climate
2. sunlight
3. humidity
4. shelter
5. pollutants

Question 4

name 5 biotic factors

Answer 4

1. humans
2. plants
3. bacteria
4. disease
5. predation

Question 5

name the 5 measures of species

Answer 5

1. simpsons diversity index
2. species richness
3. relative species abundance
4. percentage cover
5. percentage frequency

Question 6

define species richness

Answer 6

number of different species in an ecosystem

Question 7

define relative species abundance

Answer 7

how common/uncommon or even/uneven a species is relative to its surroundings

e.g.
gum trees = abundant in Australia
zebras = not abundant in Australia

Question 8

define percentage frequency

Answer 8

how often species occurs when a sample of the environment is taken
% frequency = no. of quadrats species found / total no. quadrats

Question 9

define percentage cover

Answer 9

estimate of what percentage of an enclosed area quadrat is occupied by each species

Question 10

define simpsons diversity index

Answer 10

defines how diverse an ecosystem
SDI= 1- (organisms of one species multiplied by (organisms of one species - 1) / organisms of all species multiplied by (organisms of all species - 1))

Question 11

how to use predation to compare ecosystems

Answer 11

compare rates of predation

Question 12

how to use competition to compare ecosystems

Answer 12

compare resources and strain

Question 13

how to use symbiosis to compare ecosystems

Answer 13

relationships where at least one benefits

Question 14

how to use disease to compare ecosystems

Answer 14

compare rates of transmission

Question 15

how to use substrate to compare ecosystems

Answer 15

surface/substance where organisms live. analysing substrate provides information about nutrients and composition of enviroment

Question 16

what is biological classification based on

Answer 16

different levels of similarity of physical features, methods of reproduction and molecular sequences.

Question 17

define morphologies

Answer 17

shape/structure of an animal. used to categorise animals.

Question 18

define taxonomy

Answer 18

organising organisms is called taxonomy and the groups are called taxonomic groups

Question 19

define species

Answer 19

organisms that can be interbreed under natural conditions while producing fertile, viable offspring

Question 20

describe the Linnaean system

Answer 20

the Linnaean system categorises organisms based on their physical features. their are 5 kingdoms that organisms can be grouped into.

1. animals
2. plants
3. fungi
4. monera
5. protists

Question 21

how are animals classified in the Linnaean system?

Answer 21

multicellular, capable of movement, internal digestion and heterotrophic

Question 22

how are plants classified in the Linnaean system?

Answer 22

plants: photosythetic, autotrophic and multicellular

Question 23

how are fungi classified in Linnaean system?

Answer 23

not capable of movement, usually multicellular and heterotrophic, external digestion

Question 24

how are monera classified in the Linnaean system?

Answer 24

unitcellular prokaryotes

Question 25

how are protists classified in the Linnaean system?

Answer 25

mostly unicellular and eukaryotic

Question 26

describe the method of reproduction. sexual and asexual

Answer 26

asexual: one parent, offspring identical to parent, quicker, low variation (only mutation can introduce variation) sexual: two parents, offspring not identical, slower, high variation.

Question 27

what are interspecific hybrids?

Answer 27

two different species breed and create new offspring that presents traits from each parent. offspring are often sterile and known as infertile hybrid species

Question 28

give an example of an interspecific hybrid

Answer 28

Equus Mulus: mule offspring of male donkey and female horse mules can be male or female they cannot reproduce as they inherit an odd amount of chromosomes donkey (62) and horse (64)

Question 29

how does light get converted to chemical energy?

Answer 29

small proportion of solar energy is captured by plants -> transformed via photosynthesis into chemical energy -> chemical energy released from the bonds of glucose molecules and used for metabolisms when broken down during cellular respiration

Question 30

how is biomass produced

Answer 30

solar energy is converted into biomass through the action of living things. autotrophs produce biomass

Question 31

what is biomass

Answer 31

total mass of living matter

Question 32

what are autotrophs?

Answer 32

photosynthetic organisms that capture the suns energy and produce their own organic compounds

Question 33

what is a trophic level?

Answer 33

a level of the food chain of an ecosystem based on feeding relations e.g. procurers herbivores

Question 34

what are heterotrophs?

Answer 34

organisms that need other organisms for food

Question 35

what is the competitive exclusion principle?

Answer 35

the idea that two species cannot be competing for the same resource while stably coexisting as they will compete until one species wins while the other is forced into extinction or adaptation

Question 36

what are keystone species?

Answer 36

species that influence their communities in a way that is not proportional to their abundance. they have a very big effect on the ecosystem even though they are a very small part of it often predators

Question 37

give an example of the flow on effects of a keystone species

Answer 37

- sea star prey of mussels - without sea stars muscle population increases - mussels eliminate other species form the community

Question 38

define carrying capacity

Answer 38

the size of the population that can be supported indefinitely on the resources available in that ecosystem

Question 39

calculate population growth rate and change

Answer 39

(birth + immigrants) - (deaths + emigrants)

Question 40

calculate population size using Lincoln index

Answer 40

size of pop (N) = M x n / m ``` M = originally marked n = total number captured in second sample m= total number of recaptured in second sample ```

Question 41

describe J-Curve

Answer 41

exponential boom and bust: population has unrestricted growth before they are above the carrying capacity or another factor (climate migration) dramatically reduces the population

Question 42

describe S-Curve

Answer 42

logistical growth: change in population density of an organisms where it initially increases slowly and then rapidly as it approaches an exponential growth rate. it decreases and levels off as the carrying capacity of the environment is reached

Question 43

define succsession

Answer 43

change in species composition when one community replaces another as a result of changing abiotic conditions by the previous species

Question 44

define ecological succession

Answer 44

process of gradual evolution of an ecosystem

Question 45

what are the 2 types of ecological succession?

Answer 45

primary and secondary

Question 46

describe primary succession

Answer 46

catastrophic event (volcanic eruption, tsunami) cause the development of bare sits

Question 47

describe secondary succession

Answer 47

caused by fires, still rich soil left. environment is not bare

Question 48

what is a pioneer species

Answer 48

brings back life to the environment

Question 49

define clades

Answer 49

organisms related by descent from a common ancestor

Question 50

Identify the features of a pioneer species

Answer 50

1. ability to fix nitrogen 2. tolerance to extreme conditions 3. rapid germination of seeds 4. ability to photosynthesise

Question 51

describe DNA

Answer 51

deoxyribonucleic acid is a double stranded molecule that occurs born d to proteins (histones) in chromosomes in the nucleus.

Question 52

recall the structure of DNA including nucleotide composition

Answer 52

- sugar - phosphate - nitrogenous bases

Question 53

recall the structure of DNA including complimentary base pairings

Answer 53

``` DNA guanine (G) always hydrogen bonds to cytosine (C) and adenine (A) to thymine (T) G C AT ```

Question 54

recall the structure of DNA including weak hydrogen bonds

Answer 54

link bases on DNA strands