Biology

Organisms need materials from their enviroment for them to survive.

Plants need these things to survive :

• Light
• Carbon Dioxide
• Water
• Oxygen
• Nurients such as ions from the soil

Animals need food from other organisms, water and oxygen.

Special features of organisms are called adaptations.

Plants make their food through obtaining light in the leaves in the process of photosynthesis.

Most organisms live in temperatures below 40 degrees so their enzymes can work.

Animals may be plant eating herbivores or meat eating carnivores , thier jaws and teeth are adapted to their diet.

Extremeophiles are micro-organisms which are adapted to live in conditions where enzymes dont usually work because they denature,

Its important to understand the larger organisms have a smaller surface area ;

volume (SA : V) ratio . The SA : V of a cubewith sides 1cm long is 6 : 1.

Plants need to collect and conserve water to survive , they can loose water as vapour through holes in leaves called stomata.

Water can be conserved in plants in small waxy leaves and swollen stems.

In hot dry condidtions plants may have to use extensive root sytems to collect water form the ground.

Some plants have developed ways of defending themselves from potential predetors such as having thorns and spikes and poisonous saps.

Animals are always competing for water , food and shelter.

An animals territory will be large enough to find food and water.

Animals like plants may use ways of trying to camoflage or protect themselves from predetors like e.g. Poisionous catapillars. Also animals can adapt their features to suit certains things like a hare with muscular long legs to get away from a predetors.

Plants in rainforsts compete for light and space , aswell as large root systems so to be able to source water better than other plants.

Some plants do not compete as ;

• They spread their seeds so to germanate away from the parent plant.

Some animals and plants use unusual adaptations which make them successful competitors. Female fig wasps have specially shaped heads for getting into fig tress flowers and ovipoitors that allow them to place eggs deep inside the flower. Some male fig wasps spend their lives inside the flowers waiting for a female.

Animals and plants are affected by the environment , if the environment changes the certain animal and plant may not be able to live their anymore.

Non living factors include ; temperature, rainfall, light and oxygen levels.

Living factors include ; arrival of a new predator, disease or the introduction of a new plant which might provide new food for habitats.