Describe and use suitable methods to assess the distribution and abundance of organisms in an area, limited to frame quadrats, line transects, belt transects and mark-releaserecapture using the Lincoln index (the formula for the Lincoln index will be provided, as shown in the Mathematical requirements)
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Explain the importance of random sampling in determining the biodiversity of an area
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Explain that biodiversity can be assessed at different levels, including: • the number and range of different ecosystems and habitats • the number of species and their relative abundance • the genetic variation within each species
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Define the terms ecosystem and niche
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Outline how viruses are classified, limited to the type of nucleic acid (RNA or DNA) and whether this is single stranded or double stranded
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Outline the characteristic features of the kingdoms Protoctista, Fungi, Plantae and Animalia
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Describe the classification of organisms in the Eukarya domain into the taxonomic hierarchy of kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus and species
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State that Archaea and Bacteria are prokaryotes and that there are differences between them, limited to differences in membrane lipids, ribosomal RNA and composition of cell walls
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Explain how speciation may occur as a result of genetic isolation by: • geographical separation (allopatric speciation) • ecological and behavioural separation (sympatric speciation)
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Discuss how DNA sequence data can show evolutionary relationships between species
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