The Australian Ecosystems

Question 1

what are the 8 types of ecosystems we find in Australia?

Answer 1

deserts
tropical and sub tropical regions
meditrtein woodlands
temperate forests and grassland
montane lands
tundra

Question 2

The vast size of Australia means that…

Answer 2

there is a large area for a variety of vegetation and wildlife

Question 3

what is Australian grassland classified as?

Answer 3

70% of semi- arid, arid or desert

Question 4

what does 70% of semi- arid, arid, desert make Australia…

Answer 4

driest inhabited conteient on earth

Question 5

rainfall is…

Answer 5

unpredictable

Question 6

how many mm of rain does Alice Springs have?

Answer 6

270mm a year

Question 7

what is Alice Springs a land of?

Answer 7

drought and flooding rains

Question 8

soils are…

Answer 8

anceint and infertile

Question 9

what are the invertebrate herbivoures that domniate in deserts?

Answer 9

grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, grubs and most importantly, termites

Question 10

what animals were introduced into deserts?

Answer 10

rabbits, cattle, horses and camels

Question 11

what has the introduction of rabbits, cattle, horses and camels caused?

Answer 11

out competed native herbivores for food

pushed native herbivores numbers to critically low

become vulnerable to predation by feral cats and foxes.

Question 12

rainforests are the most..

Answer 12

diverse ecosystem on earth

Question 13

what is an example of a tropical rainforest?

Answer 13

Daintree rainforest

Question 14

how many speices is the Daintree rainforest home to?

Answer 14

over 30,000 spieces of plants

395 spieces that are rare or threanted

Question 15

what are the percentage of animals in Australia are in the Daintree rainforest?

Answer 15

28% of frogs, 40% of birds, 34% of mammals and 65% of ferns

Question 16

how many types of insects are in the Daintree Rainforests?

Answer 16

12,000

Question 17

which one the biggest tropical tress is in the daintree rainforest?

Answer 17

Bull Kauri

Question 18

what are threats to the daintree rainforest?

Answer 18

global warming

climate change

residental development in North Queensland

weeds

introduction of feral animals

Question 19

grasslands are dominated by..

Answer 19

grasses

Question 20

what are grasslands covered with?

Answer 20

10% of natural tree and shrubs

Question 21

grasslands dominate in….

Answer 21

vegetation communities of the sub-humid zone, between the high rainfall coastal strip and the arid inland

Question 22

what happened after European settlement of grasslands?

Answer 22

been removed or modified by agriculture and other development

Question 23

what are grasslands now known as?

Answer 23

most depleted Australian ecosystems

Question 24

what were introduced into grasslands?

Answer 24

fertilisers and exotic pasture plants

Question 25

what did pastures change in grasslands?

Answer 25

growing conditions and competitive relationships between plants in the grassland areas

Question 26

Australia had the worlds..

Answer 26

largest coral reefs

Question 27

Australia had the third largest...

Answer 27

areas on mangroves

Question 28

marine environments contains...

Answer 28

dugongs, dolphins, seals, whales, and thousands of different fish and shellfish species

Question 29

how many sea snake speiceies are there in Australia?

Answer 29

Thirty of the world’s 50 species

Question 30

what is impacting the marine life in AUstralia?

Answer 30

climate changes

Question 31

what is making sea water more acidic?

Answer 31

more carbon dioxide (CO2) being absorbed by the oceans

Question 32

what can increases in ocean temperature cause?

Answer 32

push species to the limit of their physical functions which has a harmful effect on their growth, reproduction, foraging, immunity, behaviour, and competiveness

Question 33

how far does the great barrier reef stretch?

Answer 33

2300 kilometers

Question 34

what is home to the great barrier?

Answer 34

600 types of soft and hard corals 100 species of jellyfish 3000 varieties of molluscs 500 species of worms 1625 types of fish 133 varieties of sharks and rays 30 species of whales and dolphins

Question 35

what are threats that the Great barrier reef faces?

Answer 35

climate change extreme weather declining water quailty costal development illegal fishing crown of thorns starfish outbreak marine debris

Question 36

what do floods provide with?

Answer 36

water and impact plant growth and seed germination

Question 37

how do marine ecosystems suffer from floods?

Answer 37

brings sediment, pesticides and fertilizers into the environment

Question 38

who are floods hazards too?

Answer 38

animals

Question 39

what can floods increase?

Answer 39

fish and water birds

Question 40

what can droughts do to animals?

Answer 40

migrate, they might try to hold on or they might die

Question 41

how can drought impact the environment?

Answer 41

severe erosion which causes the loss of top soil

Question 42

why are bushfires helpful to some plants?

Answer 42

some plants depend on them for germination

Question 43

why are bush fires increasing?

Answer 43

changes in weather patterns and extended droughts

Question 44

why are bush fires caused?

Answer 44

high temperatures and drought conditions

Question 45

what is succession?

Answer 45

scientific term for a sequence of communities in which one community creates the conditions for another to grow

Question 46

what are the two types of succession?

Answer 46

primary and secondary

Question 47

what is primary succession?

Answer 47

type of ecological succession that happens to the area that is devoid of vegetation, and is barren or lifeless

Question 48

what is secondary succession?

Answer 48

happens to the area that has the preexisting soil and had previously inhabited before the disturbance or intervention that led to reduction and devastation of initial inhabitants and their habitat.

Question 49

what are some things that make Australia plants survive drought?

Answer 49

ephemeral have the ability to store water small narrow leaves grey or silver foliage furry texture water retaining less leaves

Question 50

what is ephmeral?

Answer 50

have a short life cycle when water is available and seeds lay dominant until next rain fall

Question 51

what is a types of plant that had the ability to store water?

Answer 51

cactus

Question 52

how to cactuses store water?

Answer 52

open their stomata at night to collect CO2 so that they don’t loose water during the heat of the day

Question 53

what are some of the things that help Australian animals survive in droughts?

Answer 53

putting off reproduction water collection structures producing concentrated urine collects water at night from dew nocturnal

Question 54

what is an example of water collection structures?

Answer 54

camel hump

Question 55

what is an animals that produces concentrated ursine?

Answer 55

koala

Question 56

what is an animals that collected water from dew at night?

Answer 56

throny devil

Question 57

what is noctrunal?

Answer 57

hide underground in the heat of the day, come out at night

Question 58

what are features that nocturnal animals have?

Answer 58

large eyes, themoreceptors

Question 59

what are some of the things that help australian plants survive fires?

Answer 59

thick bark Epicormic buds beneath the bark Lignotubers within the roots

Question 60

how does thick bark help?

Answer 60

insulates and protects the growing and transporting tissue of the plant

Question 61

what do Epicormic buds beneath the bark regenerate?

Answer 61

regenerate the branches when the fire has passed

Question 62

what do Lignotubers within the roots grow?

Answer 62

new shoots when fire is passed

Question 63

what are some things that Australian animals have to survive fires?

Answer 63

good at sensing a fires is coming doubling back through a fire front to find safety in areas already burned borrow underground and use wombat borrows for protection refuge in rocks

Question 64

what are killed during a fires?

Answer 64

insects and invertebrates

Question 65

why can a migration of an animal change during a fire?

Answer 65

composition of an ecosystem change in vegetation soil conditions change food and shelter changes