Edexcel A-Level Biology alevelbiology.co.

uk

Topic 5: On the Wild Side

SPECIFICATION
5.1 Understand the terms ‘ecosystem’, ‘community’, ‘population’ and ‘habitat’.
5.2 Understand that the numbers and distribution of organisms in a habitat are
controlled by biotic and abiotic factors.
5.3 Understand how the concept of niche accounts for distribution and abundance
of organisms in a habitat.
5.4 Understand the stages of succession from colonisation to a climax community.
5.5 Understand the overall reaction of photosynthesis as requiring energy from light to split
apart the strong bonds in water molecules, storing the hydrogen in a fuel (glucose) by
combining it with carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere.
5.6 Understand how phosphorylation of ADP requires energy and that hydrolysis of ATP
provides an immediate supply of energy for biological processes.
5.7 Understand the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis, including how light energy is
trapped by exciting electrons in chlorophyll and the role of these electrons in generating ATP,
reducing NADP in photophosphorylation and producing oxygen through photolysis of water.
5.8 i) Understand the light-independent reactions as reduction of carbon dioxide using the
products of the light-dependent reactions (carbon fixation in the Calvin cycle, the role of GP,
GALP, RuBP and RUBISCO).
ii) Know that the products are simple sugars that are used by plants, animals and other
organisms in respiration and the synthesis of new biological molecules (polysaccharides,
amino acids, lipids and nucleic acids).
5.9 Understand the structure of chloroplasts in relation to their role in photosynthesis.
5.10 i) Be able to calculate net primary productivity.
ii) Understand the relationship between gross primary productivity, net primary productivity
and plant respiration.
5.11 Know how to calculate the efficiency of biomass and energy transfers between trophic
levels.
Edexcel A-Level Biology alevelbiology.co.uk

Topic 5: On the Wild Side

SPECIFICATION
5.12 Understand the different types of evidence for climate change and its causes (including
records of carbon dioxide levels, temperature records, pollen in peat bogs and
dendrochronology), recognising correlations and causal relationships.
5.13 Understand the causes of anthropogenic climate change, including the role of
greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) in the greenhouse effect.
5.14 i) Understand that data can be extrapolated to make predictions and that these are used
in models of future climate change.
ii) Understand that models for climate change have limitations.
5.15 Understand the effects of climate change (changing rainfall patterns and changes in
seasonal cycles) on plants and animals (distribution of species, development and life cycles).
5.16 Understand the effect of temperature on the rate of enzyme activity and its impact on
plants, animals and microorganisms.
5.17 Understand how evolution (a change in the allele frequency) can come about through
gene mutation and natural selection.
5.18 Understand the role of the scientific community (scientific journals, the peer review
process, scientific conferences) in validating new evidence, including proteomics and
genomics, that supports the accepted scientific theory of evolution.
5.19 Understand how isolation reduces gene flow between populations, leading to allopatric
or sympatric speciation.
5.20 Understand the way in which scientific conclusions about controversial issues, such as
what actions should be taken to reduce climate change or the degree to which humans are
affecting climate change, can sometimes depend on who is reaching the conclusions.
5.21 Understand how knowledge of the carbon cycle can be applied to methods to reduce
atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide.
5.22 Understand how reforestation and the use of sustainable resources, including biofuels,
are examples of the effective management of the conflict between human needs and
conservation.
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

Populations and ecosystem

Habitat
▸ Place where an organism lives
Population
▸Group of organisms of the same species, which live in the same place at the same time, and
can interbreed with each other.
Community
▸All the organisms, of all the different species, living in a habitat.
Ecosystem
▸Relatively self-contained, interacting community of organisms, and the environment in which
they live and with which they interact. Ecosystem may range in size from very small, e.g.
branch of a tree, to very large, e.g. a forest.

Heirarchy of Ecosystems
Image Source: OpenStax CNX

Niche
▸The niche of an organism is its role in the ecosystem. All species have a specific niche.
▸It is difficult to completely describe the niche of an organism because there are multiple
ways in which it interacts with other components of the ecosystem.
▸Both living and non-living components of the ecosystem govern the niche occupied by a
species.
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

Distribution of organisms in a habitat

Carrying Capacity
▸ The maximum size of a population of one species an ecosystem can sustain, taking all the
available resources into account.
▸ The carrying capacity depends on:
• Abiotic factors i.e. the available resources such as food, water and habitat.
• The amount of resources each individual consumes.
• Biotic factors like competition between organisms for the available resources. Increased
competition (both interspecific and intraspecific) reduces the carrying capacity.
a) Interspecific = Competition between members of different species for the same
resources. Better adapted species have a greater chance of survival.
b) Intraspecific = Competition amongst the members of the same species for the same
resources.
• Interactions, for instance predator-prey relationships, between two species.

Population Size
▸ The total number of organisms of a species in an ecosystem.
▸ It fluctuates according to the amount of resources available.
▸When food and other available resources are plenty, the population size tends to increase.
When the rise in population surpasses the available resources it starts to decline.
▸ Predator-prey population are also interlinked. When the prey population increases, there is
more food available for the predators, hence their population rises. This leads to an
accelerated decline in the prey population, thereby leading to a reduction in predator
population as well. The prey population increases as the predators decrease in number.

Adaptation
▸Features that species develop over time to better survive and thrive in an environment.
▸The niche plays a crucial role in the development of adaptive features.
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

Ecosystems are not stagnant. They continuously evolve and change.

Succession
▸The process of ecosystem change is called succession. It may be primary or secondary.
▸All the species living in the ecosystem induce changes, which may make living conditions
favorable for other species, in some cases, and adverse in others.
▸Primary succession occurs on land that is initially bare, with no soil or any other organic
material. This land may appear as a result of volcanic eruption or recession of sea level.
▸Secondary succession occurs on land that has soil cover but has become devoid of
vegetation. This may happen as a result of a natural disaster, forest fire or deforestation by
humans.

Primary Succession
▸Seeds and spores blown by winds land on the bare land.
▸ The first species to colonise the barren area are known as pioneer species. These are
specially adapted to bear the harsh conditions and grow where other forms of life cannot
survive.
▸The pioneer species alter the environment. When they die, microorganisms decompose the
dead organic matter forming basic soil.
▸The basic soil helps retain water, allowing a greater number of species to grow in the region.
▸As more and more species grow, and then decompose after dying, the soil becomes richer in
minerals. This allows for a number of diverse species to grow. Larger plants can now grow
in the deep and mineral-rich soil.
▸Newer species may make conditions less favourable for the pioneer species, which slowly
perish.
▸Diverse and large plants provide a habitat for lots of animal species.
▸Over time, the ecosystem becomes complex as the diversity of species increases.

Secondary Succession
▸Progresses in almost the same way. As the soil layer is already present, succession starts at
a later stage and the pioneer species are usually the larger plants.
▸At each stage, the ecosystem is constantly changing. New species keep colonising the
ecosystem. Better adapted species out-compete the plants and animals that are already
present.
▸The final stage is called climax community. This is when the ecosystem is already
supporting the most complex and well-adapted forms of life. This is a certain steady stage.
▸Different climates have different climax communities as abiotic factors are different.
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

Photosynthesis

1. Chlorophyll absorbs light, leading to photoionisation of chlorophyll.

▪ A chlorophyll molecule absorbs a photon of light.

▪ It moves from ground state to excited state.
▪ The chlorophyll pigments are arranged in light harvesting complexes
▪ Light harvesting complexes are Photosystem I (PS I) and Photosystem II (PS II).
▪ Each system has one primary pigment molecule called a reaction centre.
▪ A reaction centre starts the process.

2. Some of the energy from electrons released during photoionisation is conserved in the
production of ATP and reduced NADP.

▪ The added energy released during movement of chlorophyll to excited state lifts the
electrons to be used for reduction of NADP+.
▪ The excited state is unstable and a chlorophyll molecule regains its lost electron from the
splitting of a water molecule and comes back to ground state.
▪ During these processes, energy is utilised to convert ADP+ Pi to ATP.
▪ The above process is phosphorylation and since it takes place in presence of light, it is
called photophosphorylation.

Structures of PS II and PS I
Image Source: Wikipedia
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

The light-dependent reaction

3. (a) The production of ATP involves electron transfer associated with the transfer of
electrons down the electron transfer chain.

▪ As discussed earlier, PS I absorbs light at 700nm and PSII at 680nm. Therefore, the
reaction centres are referred to as P700 and P680, respectively.
▪ The photophosphorylation that take place to form ATP is of two types: Non-cyclic
photophosphorylation (involving P680 and P700) and cyclic photophosphorylation
involving only P700.
▪ Non-cyclic photophosphorylation: The electrons given out by P680 are moved to electron
carriers forming an electron transport chain and causing oxidation-reduction reactions.
▪ ATP is produced during this as discussed earlier and the electron passed to P700.
▪ Again, electrons pass through electron carriers and finally form NADP to NADPH.
▪ At this stage, excess hydrogen ions are made available by photolysis of water and PS II
regains lost electrons.
▪ The net result of non-cyclic photophosphorylation is oxygen, NADPH2 and ATP.
▪ Cyclic photophosphorylation: Electrons given up by P700 move through the electron
transport chain and finally back to P700.
▪ Formation of ATP is in the same way as that of non-cyclic photophosphorylation.

Non-Cyclic Photophosphorylation and Cyclic Photophosphorylation

Image Source: OpenStax CNX
Edexcel A-Level Biology Topic 5: On the Wild Side

The light-dependent reaction

3. (b) Chemi-osmotic theory

▸ Photolysis of water molecules takes place on the inner side of the membrane.
▸ Protons produced by splitting of water accumulate within lumen of thylakoid.
▸ When electrons pass through PS, protons pass through the membrane.
▸ This is because the primary acceptor of electrons is located towards the outer side of the
membrane.
▸ It transfers its electron to an H carrier instead of electron carrier.
▸ So, this molecule removes a proton from stroma during transporting electron.
▸ When this molecule passes its electron to the inner side of the membrane, the proton is
also released with it in the lumen of membrane.
▸ NADP reductase enzyme present on stroma side of membrane helps in reduction of
NADP+ to NADP+H+ in presence of protons.
▸ ATP synthase enzyme embedded in the membrane of chloroplast acts as the channel for
passage of protons.
▸ It also catalyses the formation of ATP.

ATP Synthesis Through Chemiosmosis.

Image Source: OpenStax CNX

4. Photolysis of water produces protons, electrons and oxygen.

▸ Water is split into H+, [O] and electrons.

▸ Oxygen is one of the by products of photosynthesis.
▸ Electrons lost from PS II regained from PS I.
▸ Water splitting complex is associated with PS II.
▸ 2H2O → 4H+ + O2 + 4e-