Download reporting category 4

REPORTING CATEGORY 4: ORGANISMS & ENVIRONMENTS
1. What is the difference between a producer and a consumer?—Where is each in a
food web?
Producers are things such as plants (bottom of food web/chain); Consumers feed on producers and/or other
consumers (middle to top of food web/chain)
2. What is the difference between predators and prey?
Predators hunt prey for food
3. What is the difference between a parasite and a host?
Parasite lives in or on a host and harms it
4. What is the difference between biotic and abiotic factors?—Give an example of
each.
Biotic: Living things (plants/animals); Abiotic: Nonliving things (sun, water, soil, etc.)
(BOTH ARE IMPORTANT TO AN ECOSYSTEM)
5. Birds with thick beaks are better able to break open seeds vs. birds with skinny
beaks. Rabbits with white fur have a greater chance of survival than rabbits with
brown fur during the snowy, winter months. What are the thick beak and white
fur examples of in these scenarios?
Adaptations/variations
6. Why are variations important?
Because, without them, all members of a species would have similar traits and equal chance of survival…would
create too much competition, etc.
7. When does ecological succession occur most commonly?—What is an example of
a biotic factor we would most likely see first in this scenario?
After natural disaster of some kind; Usually grasses form first
8. Who was the first to hypothesize about “survival of the fittest”?
Charles Darwin
9. “Survival of the fittest” is more commonly referred to as
Natural selection
10. What is the main function of the circulatory system?
Transporting nutrients and oxygen throughout the body
11. What is another name of the circulatory system?
Cardiovascular system
12. What is the main function of the respiratory system?
Bringing in oxygen; getting rid of carbon dioxide (a waste product)
13. What is the main function of the skeletal system?
Support/protection for the body
14. What is the main function of the muscular system?
Movement
15. What is the main function of the digestive system?
To break down food and supply the body with nutrients
16. What is the main function of the excretory system?
To rid the body of wastes
.
17. What is the main function of the reproductive system?
To aid in reproduction
18. What is the main function of the integumentary system?
Protection for the body; removing waste such as sweat
19. What is the main function of the nervous system?
To send/receive messages from brain, spinal cord
20. What is the main function of the endocrine system?
Regulating hormones and the production of insulin by the pancreas
21. What is the role of the cell membrane?
To separate inside of cell from outside; Selectively permeable (meaning it lets certain substances in)
22. What is the role of the cell wall?—What is this structure unique to?
To provide support; Specific to PLANT CELLS
23. What is the role of the nucleus in a cell?
Directs cells activities
24. What is the role of cytoplasm?
Protects internal cell and organelles
25. What is the role of the mitochondrion?
“Powerhouse” of the cell; provides energy
26. What is the role of chloroplast?—What is this structure unique to?
Unique to PLANT CELLS; Convert solar energy to chemical energy for cell “nourishment”
27. What is the role of a vacuole in a cell?
Plays a role in intracellular digestion and removal of cellular wastes; gives cells rigidity; helps with homeostasis
28. According to the cell theory, all organisms are composed of cells and cells carry on
similar functions such as extracting energy from
to sustain life.
Food
29. What is the difference between sexual reproduction and asexual reproduction?
Asexual reproduction: One organism clones itself or otherwise splits (more common in plants than animals, in
addition to bacterial cells); Sexual reproduction: Two organisms combining genetic material
30. Inherited traits of individuals are governed in the genetic material found in the
genes specifically within
in the nucleus.
chromosomes
31. What is the key difference between a eukaryote and a prokaryote?
Prokaryotes: Primitive, simple organisms that lack membranous cell organelles (ex. = bacteria).
Eukaryotes: Advanced and complex organisms having membrane bound cell organelles (ex. = algae, fungi, and
all complex plants and animals).
32. What is the key difference between autotrophic and heterotrophic organisms?
Autotrophs: Make their own food, using energy from the sun; the producers in a food chain (ex. = All plants and
some forms of bacteria)
Heterotrophs: Obtain their energy from organic molecules made by autotrophs; dependent upon autotrophs
and/or other heterotrophs for food, as they cannot make their own; the consumers in a food chain