(2025) YEAR 9 AUSTRALIAN EARTH SCIENCE AND ECOSYSTEMS

Continental Drift

The idea that continents are continually moving and have significantly change positions over millions of years

Seafloor spreading

Overtime, as more and more basalt (oceanic crust) is produced, the seafloor spreads out on either side of the mid-ocean ridge that is producing it.

Convergent/Destructive plate boundary

When plates collide toward each other

Wadati-Benioff Zone / Subduction zone

A zone of the upper mantle in which earthquakes occur when a lithosphere plate is subducted.

Orogenesis

The process in which a section of the earth’s crust is folded and deformed by lateral compression to form a mountain range: the destruction of lithosphere and deformation.

Divergent/Constructive plate boundary

When plates separate from eachother, which creates an opening at the surface which is filled with new igneous rock material rising from the Earth’s mantle. - Continuous upwelling of magma creates new crust.

Transform boundary/fault

When plates slide past one another, aka tectonic regions where two lithospheric plates slide horizontally past each other. Maintains existing crust but can cause significant deformation.

Strike-slip faults

A fault in which rock strata are displaced, mainly in a horizontal direction, parallel to the line of the fault.

Ecosystem

A community of living organisms and their non-living surroundings AKA any group of biotic and abiotic things interacting with each other in a self-sustaining way is an ecosystem.

Biotic

A living organism

Abiotic

A non-living surrounding

Habitat

The place where a population of organisms live,

Biosphere

The living world, where any life can exist on earth

Atmosphere

gases

The hydrosphere

water

Lithosphere

land

Environment

Considered as the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal or plant lives operates.

The seven major types of biomes:

Tropical Rainforest, Temperate Forest, Desert, Tundra, Taiga (Boreal Forest), Grassland and Savanna

Collaboration

When organisms cooperate with each other to ensure their survival.

Mating (AKA Reproduction)

When members of the same species produces offspring.

Symbiosis

Characterised as a close and long-term relationship between the individuals of two (or more) different species

Non-Symbiotic relationship

A relationship that is short-term that is between two species that are not close to eachother.

Mutualism

A ‘mutual’ relationship where both species benefit ++

Commensalism

A relationship where one organism benefits and the other is not affected +o

Parasitism

A relationship where one organism (parasite) lives in or on the body of the other (host). The parasite benefits and the host is harmed +-

Predator-Prey relationship

Where one species eats the other.

Competition

Where different species compete for the same resource.

Ecology

The study of living things and how they interact with their environment

Biome

Large geographical region with specific climate, vegetation and animal life.

Food chain

A linear set of links which show energy moves between different organisms in an ecosystem.

Composite/Cone Volcano

These volcanoes have broad bases and sides that get steeper and steeper as you get closer to the top. They frequently have a large crater at the top created during its last eruption.

Shield Volcano

They have a very wide base and are much flatter on the top than composite volcano. Although they are not steep, they may be very large.

Cinder Volcano

This volcano resembles a composite volcano but on a much smaller scale. They rarely reach even 300 meters in height but have even steeper sides than a composite volcano.

How much energy is lost through each trophic?

~10%

Why does the trophic level become smaller?

The width of each step represents the rate of energy flow through each trophic level. The steps get smaller further up the pyramid because some of that energy is changed to a form that cannot be consumed by organism at the next higher step in the food chain. This happens at every step of the pyramid.

How much heat is released to the environment?

~90%