Option G.

1 Ecology of Species
G.1.1 Outline the factors that affect the distribution of plant species including temperature, water, light, soil pH, salinity, and mineral nutrients. High temperatures denature enzymes and retards growth of plants; the rate of transpiration is also increased. Low temperatures decrease enzyme activity and freezing temperatures inactivate enzymes. Most plants live in moderate temperature zones. Water is needed for enzyme activity, transport, photosynthesis, support, and many other things. There is a low diversity of plants in deserts and polar regions. Light is important for photosynthesis and flowering. Dark areas have small amounts of plants. Soil pH is important for absortion of nutrients. If the soil is acidic, desertification can occur, the use of limestone can neutralize the soil. Salinity has an affect on the absorption through osmosis. High salinity causes plants to lose water through osmosis. Halopohytes live in high salinity. Mineral nutrients are needed for many vital functions. Nitrogen is needed to manufacture proteins, enzymes, nucleotides, vitamins, and other compounds.

G.1.2 Explain the factors that affect the distribution of animal species including temperature, water, breeding sites, food supply and territory. High animal distribution according to temperature is found in the tropical rain forest due to the suitability of temperature and high availiability of producers as starters of food chains and webs. Water is needed for vital functions, so there is low animal distribution is deserts. Breeding sites are needed for growth and protection of young. High animal diversity is found in areas with varied topographical nature. Food supply is important for survival since animals are heterotrophs. High animal diversity is once again found in the rain forest. Some animals are territorial and need large areas for feeding, mating, and protecting their young. Some are territorial during breeding season and occupy areas to prevents others from approaching them. There is high animal distribution where there is room to occupy territoryand defend against other members of the species.

G.1.3 Deduce the significance of the difference between two sets of data using calculated values for t and the appropriate tables. The t-test can be used to compare two sets of data and measure the amount of overlap.

G.1.4 Explain what is meant by the niche concept, including an organism's spatial habitat, its feeding activities and its interactions with other organisms. No two species can live in the same niche, therefore there is competition for the resources of the land and only one species will survive. A niche is the total factors, biotoic and abiotic to one species.

G.1.5 Explain the principle of competitive exclusion. First proposed by Lokta and Volterra, competitive exclusion is where two species need the same resources and will compete until one species is removed. Inevitably, one would be more capable of gathering more resources or reproducing more rapidly until the other was run out of existence. Later experiments with bacteria populations in the lab of Russian ecologist G.F. Gause demonstrated this concept scientifically. This principle was termed competitive exclusion.

Option G.2 Ecology of Communities

G.2.2 Explain the following iunteractions between species, giving two examples of each: competition, herbivory, predation, parasitism, and mutualism. Competition is when two species need the same resource such as a breeding site or food. It will result in the removal of one of the species. Bacteria will display this manner. Herbivory is the relation between an animal and a plant. Different animals feed on different plants. Deer feed on tree leaves, rabbit feed on grass, giraffes on trees. Predation is the relation between the predator, which is usually bigger, and the prey, which is usually smaller. An example would be a fox and a rabbit. Parasitism is the relation between the host and the parasite. The parasite causes harm to the host to get food and other resources. Examples of parasites are some viruses, fungi, worms, bacteria, and protazoa. Mutualism is where two members of different species benefit and neither suffers. Examples include rumen bacteria/protazoa that digest cellulose in the digestive systems of cows, providing the cow with an energy source and the bacteria with a stable habitat. Lichens and Chlorella/Chlorohydra, an algae, also exhibit such a relation. The lichen provide an means of attaching to the surface, and the algae photosynthesize to produce a added source of sugars and nutrients.

G.2.2 Define gross production, net production, and biomass. Gross production is the amount of material fixed by plants in the process of photosythesis. Net production is the amount of material that stays in the body of the plant after spending some material on respiration. Biomass is the dry weight of organic matter comprising a group of organisms in a particular habitat.

G.2.3 Calculate values for gross production, net production, and biomass from given data. Gross Production - Respiration = Net Production

G.2.4 Discuss the difficulties of classifying organisms into trophic levels. It is difficult due to the fact that some organisms can be secondary, tertiary, and may be quaternary consumers at the same time, such as humans. It is difficult to place them on a certain level of the food pyramid. For this reason, an alternate method of classification- the food webhas been developed. The food web displays relationships not as a simple hierarchy but rather a complex network, with the various feeding relationships between species existing as connections and the animals themselves existing as the hubs.

G.2.5 Explain the small biomass and low numbers of organisms in higher trophic levels. There is small amount of organisms in the higher trophic levels because as the levels get higher, the amount of energy from feeding on the level below them is very low, making it difficult to survive. Energy is lost between levels in the form of heat (respiration), waste, and death.

G.2.6 Construct a pyramid of energy given appropriate information. The lowest bar of the pyramid of energy represents gross primary productivity, the next bar is the energy ingested as food by primary consumers, and so on. The units are energy per unit area per unit time.

G.2.7 Describe ecological succession using one example Ecological succession is the gradual change in the composition of a community with time in an ecosystem. If succession occurs in a lifeless area, it is primary succession. It can start after things such as volcanoes, fire or flood. Lichens inhabit a rock and over time, the face of the rock changes. This makes the rock now inviting to mosses. Later, ferns arrive through the activity of their roots, causing furthur changes to the rock, so soil formation starts to occur. Then flowering trees grow, then conifers, and other larger trees.

G.2.8 Explain the effects of living organisms on the abiotic environment with reference to the changes occurring during ecological succession to climax communities. Living organisms can help with soil development, as a plant grows, their roots grow deeper down and break rock into small particles, helping soil formation. Plants enrich the soil with minerals as they die and decompose. The plant roots hold the soil particles together, preventing soil erosion. Plants can grow heavily in a certain area that might result in blocking river flow and altering its direction. Plants can contribute to the water cycle through the process of transpiration. The water that evaporates from the leaves condenses and comes down in the form of rain. The presence of organic materials in the soil and the presence of roots and root hair help in the retention of water and slows down drainage.

Option G.3 Biodiversity and Conservation

G.3.1 Discuss reasons for the conservation of biodiversity using rainforests as an example. Reasons should include ethical, ecological, economic, and aesthetic arguments. Biodiversity is highest in the tropical rainforests. Ethical reasons for conserving biodiversity are that all species have a right to live on this planet. Ecological reasons are that species live with great interaction and dependence on each other. If one species dies out, a food chain is disrupted, therefore disrupting all of the other species as well. Aesthetic reasons are that the tropical rain forest is one of the most beautiful attractions on this planet. There is variety everywhere in the rainforest. Economic reasons are that the rainforest is a source of materials important to human life. Medicinal substances can be taken from a veriety of plants in the rain forest, and ecotourism offers a new source of funds for the many impoverished nations these forests exist in.

G.3.2 Outline the factors that caused the extincion of one named animal and one named plant species. The Arizona Jaguar became extinct due to an increased demand for its fur. As the human population increased in the areas inhabited by the jaguar, the hunting and shooting increased and the last of this rare animal was shot in 1905 in New Mexico. The Fluffy groundsel is a kind of herbal plant with clusters of yellow flowers. It became extinct because of farming, building, road construction and other sorts of human impact in the American Soutwest.

G.3.3 Outline the use of the Simpson diversity index. D = (N(N-1))/(summation of n(n-1)). D is the diversity index, N is the total number of organisms of all species found, n is the number of individuals of a particular species. The Simpson diversity index is a measure of species richness. A high value of D suggests a stable and ancient site and a low D value could suggest pollution, recent colonization or agricultural management. The index is mormally used in studies of vegetation but can also be applied to comparisons of animal (or even all species) diversity.

Outline how population size can be affected by natality, immigration, mortality, and emigration. If (natality + immigration) > (mortality + emigration) then a population is increasing. These factors determine whether a population is increasing or decreasing.

Explain reasons for the exponential growth phase, the plateau phase, and the transitional phase between these two phases During the Exponential phase the population increases exponentially because the natality rate is higher than the mortality rate. The resources needed by the population such as food and space are abundant, and diseases and predators are rare. During the Transitional Phase, the birth rate begins to decrease. Natality is still larger than mortality, but the difference between them is slowly decreasing. During the Plateau phase, available resources become so low that no further reproduction can take place. Mortality starts to become larger than natality. A species may have reached its Carrying Capacity. Define carrying capacity Carrying Capacity: The maximum number of organisms of a species, or the maximum population size which an environment is able to support. List three factors which set limits to population increase. Available resources. Disease Space available Predators Define random sample A sample where every individual in a population has an equal chance of being chosen. No Bias Describe one technique used to estimate the population size of an animal species based on a capturemark-release-method. One method of estimating the population size of an animal species is the capture-mark-release method. 1. As many individuals of a population are caught. These individuals are marked. 2. The individuals are released back into their environment. 3. The total number is taken note of and the number of those caught which are marked This is known as the "Lincoln Index" The formula (n1 n2) / n3 is then used where:

 n1 = the number of individuals caught in the first trial. n2 = the number of individuals caught in the second trial. n3 = The number of individuals in the second trial which were marked.