4.5-4.7- taxonomy + biodiversity

what is a hierarchy?

what is phylogenetic?

large groups divided into smaller groups, with no overlap between groups

based on evolutionary history i.e common ancestry

mnemonic to remember classification?

did king phillip come over for good soup

domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species

how to write binomial name?

Genus, species e.g. Fucus spiralis

what does a phylogenetic system show?

what does it mean if the branches are closer?

evolutionary relationships between organisms

closer the evolutionary relationship, therefore the more recently they shared a common ancestor

what are the five ways to measure genetic diversity within or between species?

frequency of measurable or observable characteristics

base sequence of DNA

base sequence of mRNA

amino acid sequence of the proteins encoded by DNA and mRNA

immunological techniques

why are observable characteristics not so useful in investigating genetic diversity?

what will the DNA, mRNA and amino acid sequences show if the organisms are similar?

how can immunological techniques be used?

1) observable characteristics coded for by more than one gene

environment can influence some characteristics

2) less differences in the sequences

3) antibodies specific to antigens from a particular species can be mixed with antigens from a different species to see if they are also complementary

if the antigens of the two species are similar, there will be a large number of antigen-antibody complexes formed- more closely related

what is a species?

group of organisms with similar characteristics that are able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring

what is courtship behaviour?

innate; genetically determined

all members of the same species are genetically programmed to show exactly the same courtship behaviour as they share the same genes

what are the different functions of courtship behaviour?

species recognition- only members of same species can produce fertile offspring

synchronising reproductive behaviour- ensures individuals are fertile

identify a mate that is capable of breeding- both partners need to be sexually mature + receptive to breeding

formation of a pair bond- increases survival chances of offspring

becoming able to breed- i.e. stimulating production of gametes

what is biodiversity?

what is a habitat?

what is a community?

variety of living organisms in a habitat/community

place where an organism lives

all the organisms of different species in a habitat

what is species diversity?

measure of the number of different species and the abundance of individuals in each of these species within a community

what is species richness?

measure of the number of different species in a community at a given time

measure of species diversity

what is index of diversity?

what is the equation to calculate it?

reflects the number of different species present + number of individuals of each species

how to ensure a representative sample?

random sampling + large sample

how do farming techniques reduce biodiversity?

growth of monocultures

weeds are prevented from growing on the land as they compete with the crops for resources

animals which compete with us by eating the crop e..g insect pests are similarly removed

removing hedgerows, field boundaries and draining marshy areas - remove sources of pests

what are some conservation techniques that increase species and habitat diversity

plant hedges as field boundaries instead of erect fences

maintain existing hedgerows

reduce use of pesticides

use organic rather than inorganic fertilisers

use crop rotation that includes a nitrogen-fixing crop, rather than fertilisers to improve soil fertility

why are there such few species and why is species diversity so low in the field where only one crop is grown?

low variety of habitats

fewer variety of plant species

what does it mean if SD is smaller?

data is more similar- less variation

the more reliable the data is

what do large samples ensure?

what do random samples ensure?

reliable results

no bias

what is genetic diversity?

number of different alleles in a population

Why would one area have a higher species diversity than another?

1. There would be more plant species;

2. Hence more habitats;

3. More niches;

4. More food sources;

5. The area is able to support more biomass;