The Adaptation of Organisms

Question 1

what is adaptation defined as?

Answer 1

-a combination of the behavioral, physiological and morphological ways in which an organism meets a particular environmental challenge

Question 2

what is behavioral adaptation mean and what is an example of it?

Answer 2

-something an animal does usually in response to some type of external stimulus in order to survive
-reptiles bask in the hot sun to warm up during the day and they burrow into the sand at night to keep warm

Question 3

what does physiological adaptation mean and what is an example of it?

Answer 3

-Internal and/or cellular features of an organism that enable them to survive in their environment
-endotherms can sweat and vasodilate in hot weather and vasoconstrict in cold conditions

Question 4

what does a morphological adaptation mean and what is an example of it?

Answer 4

-the physical forms taken by an organism e.g. polar bears are white

Question 5

what are 3 features of a xerophytes?

Answer 5

-sunken stomata that lie in grooves of upper surface
-leaves roll which reduces water loss
-spines protect from animals

Question 6

what are 3 features of hydrophytes?

Answer 6

-large, thin, floating leaves
-little to no waxy cuticle
-no lignin in vascular tissues

Question 7

give an example for each of the following morphological, behavioral and physiological adapations?

Answer 7

-morphological= fish have fins to help them swim
-behavioral= spider spins web to catch food
-physiological= cows produce milk to feed their offspring

Question 8

what are the three main ecological factors that influence the distribution of an organism ?

Answer 8

-climatic factors
-edaphic factors
-biotic factors

Question 9

what are the 5 abiotic factors of the climatic factors?

Answer 9

-temperature ranges
-water availability
-light intensity
-light quality
-day length

Question 10

how can temperature ranges effect the distribution of an organism? give some example of organisms that have adapted to diff temp ranges

Answer 10

-many organisms are adapted to survive within certain temp ranges
-species can be adapted to live between the day and night (diurnal) or either or, they can also be adapted to better in different seasons e.g. bird migrate in the winter
-temp affects body temp and thus the biochemical reactions of the body
-polar bears are adapted to live in cold climate whilst cacti are adapted to live in hot climates

Question 11

how can water availability affect the distribution of organisms? give some examples of organisms that are affected by water availability

Answer 11

-water is essential for life and very few organisms are adapted to live in environments that are practically water free
-some plants are hydrophytes that live in water, xerophytes are adapted to live in places with little water
-water is needed in plants for transpiration, turgor and photosynthesis
-mammals have waterproof skin and a gas exchange surface and so they are protected from water loss by evaporation

Question 12

how can light intensity affect the distribution of organisms?

Answer 12

-necessary for photosynthesis so all plants are dependent on it
-some plants are adapted to grow in low light intensity e.g. forest where light intensity is low because of the canopy layer formed by leaves
-most water plants close to the shore where light can penetrate through the shallow water or float on the surface layers in deeper water

Question 13

how can light quality affect the distribution of organisms?

Answer 13

-certain plants absorb light of different wavelengths meaning they have a large source of energy for photosynthesis
-this is important for species of seaweed which live in deeper water

Question 14

how can day length affect the distribution of organisms?

Answer 14

-certain hormones in plants respond to changes in day length
-these hormones commonly affect flowering and thus reproduction

Question 15

what does edaphic factors refer too? what are the 4 different edaphic factors?

Answer 15

-edaphic factors refer to the soil and it is particularly important at local levels
-pH values
-Availability of nutrients
-water contents
-soil aeration

Question 16

what is the effect of pH on soil?

Answer 16

-soil pH affects the availability of certain ions and this affects the range of plant species that can grow
-the optimum pH for most plants is around neutral with smaller number of species adapted for acidic or alkaline conditions

Question 17

how does the availability of nutrients effect the soil? what are the two macronutrients that are needed by plants?

Answer 17

-nitrate which is necessary for amino acids and calcium which is necessary for cell formation, are required by plants in large amounts
-micronutrients are ions that are required in very small amounts but they are still critical in plant distribution

Question 18

how does the water content of soil affect the distribution of plants?

Answer 18

-has a major influence
-most British plant species are adapted for moist but well drained soils, smaller amounts are adapted for favoring water logged soils that contain very little oxygen or very dry soils

Question 19

why does soil aeration affect the distribution of organisms?

Answer 19

-most soils contain air in the spaces between the soil crumbs
-much of the oxygen diffuses into the cells in the plant roots and is used in respiration
-most soil microbes involved in the decomposition of organic matter also require oxygen

Question 20

what are the three types of biotic factors? what are biotic factors?

Answer 20

-biotic factors are living
-competitors
-predators and prey
-accumulation of waste

Question 21

what are the two types of competitors?

Answer 21

-interspecific and intraspecific

Question 22

why do competitors affect the distribution of organisms and the size of a population? what is the principle of competition? give an example of this

Answer 22

-organisms which compete with each other for any resource that is in limited supply
-the general principle of competition is that some win and others lose out
-young chicks compete for their mothers attention and the food that this will bring with the weaker ones often losing out at the expense of the stronger ones

Question 23

what does intraspecific competition means?

Answer 23

-the type of competition where organisms of the same species are competing is intraspecific competition

Question 24

what does interspecific competition mean?

Answer 24

-interspecific competition is where organisms of different species are competing for a recourse e.g. range of scavengers feeding off a dead carcass or different light species competing for light on the woodland floor

Question 25

why do predators and prey affect the distribution and size of a population?

Answer 25

-number of predators and prey are influenced by the numbers of each other
-when prey numbers are high, predator numbers are often high and they converse applies, a fall in prey numbers often results in a fall in the number of predators
-this is particularly true when a predator has only one main species of prey

Question 26

why does the accumulation of waste affect the distribution and size of a population?

Answer 26

-the growth of microorganisms of often restricted by the accumulation of toxic waste but the principle applies to any species

Question 27

what do ecologists study?

Answer 27

-they study the number and the distribution of different organisms in various ecosystems

Question 28

what does ecosystems mean?

Answer 28

-this is the inter relationships between living organisms (biotic) and their non living surroundings (abiotic)

Question 29

what are the 3 abiotic and biotic factors?

Answer 29

-biotic are plants, animal and fungi
-abiotic are air, sunlight and water

Question 30

what does the term ecological niche?

Answer 30

-the specific role played by a particular organism in a habitat
-this term also includes the specific needs of the organism e.g. shelter and food supply, and how it influences the lives of other organisms and the environment
-it is a precise description of the way an organism fits into its environment

Question 31

what does the term abiotic factor mean?

Answer 31

-physical or chemical factors which affect the organisms ability to survive within the habitat such as climate, soil, humidity or light

Question 32

what does the term biotic mean?

Answer 32

-factors associated with the other animals or plants sharing the same habitat e.g. competition for food, nests and predation