Ecology
No description yet. This curated deck is ready for daily study.
Card preview (24)
What is an ecosystem?
The interaction of a community of living organisms with the non-living parts of their environment
Give 4 things plants compete for
• Light • Space • Water • Mineral ions
Give 4 things animals compete for.
• Space • Food • Water • Mates
What is interdependence?
The idea that a major change in an ecosystem can have large knock-on effects
Give 4 abiotic factors.
• Light intensity • Temperature • Wind intensity • Oxygen level
Give 4 biotic factors.
• New predators • Competition • New pathogens • Availability of food
What are structural adaptations?
A change in an organism’s shape or colour e.g coloured fur for camouflage
What are behavioural adaptations?
Change in the way organisms behave e.g migration
What are functional adaptations?
Change in processes inside an organism’s body e.g lowered metabolism during hibernation
What are extremophiles?
Often microorganisms which have adapted to live in extreme conditions
What is biomass?
Energy stored in a plant/ mass of living material
What happens when an organism eats another
Energy is transferred
3 environmental changes which can affect distribution of organisms?
• Availability of water • Temperature • Change in atmospheric gases
Explain predator prey cycles (4)
• The population of species is limited by food availability • If population of prey increases, so do the predators • But if the population of predators increase, prey decrease • They are always out of sync as the other needs time to catch up
Explain the water cycle (4)
• The Sun causes water from seas and the land to evaporate into water vapour • The warm water vapour travels upwards, until it condenses to form clouds • Water falls from clouds as precipitation back to Earth • It drains into seas where the cycle repeats
How does decay recycle elements? (4)
• Organisms release elements into their surroundings when they die and decay • Materials decay when microorganisms break them down • Decay puts useful materials and nutrients for plants back into the soil • In a stable community materials taken out of the soil are balanced by the ones going back in
How is carbon dioxide removed from the air?
Photosynthesis
Give 4 ways carbon is returned to the atmosphere.
• Respiration • Animals and food chains • Microorganisms breaking down dead matter • Burning of fossil fuels
What is compost?
Decomposed organic matter used as a natural fertiliser
Give 4 factors that affect rate of decay.
• Temperature (warmth = quicker, too hot or too cold = slower) • Oxygen availability • Water availability • Number of microorganisms
Give 2 ways biogas is made.
• Plant and animal waste decayed anaerobically to produce methane • Sludge waste
Why must biogas be used immediately?
It cannot be stored as a liquid
What is the difference between batch generators and continuous generators?
Batch generators make biogas in small batches and manually loaded and cleaned away after every batch. Continuous generators are constantly making biogas.
What are the 3 parts of a biogas generator?
• An inlet for waste material • An outlet for digested material to be removed • An outlet for biogas to be pumped where it’s needed