Living Things
What does the M in MRS C GREN stand for?
Movement
Name ONE organelle found in a plant cell but NOT in an animal cell.
Cell wall / Chloroplast / Large vacuole
What is an ecosystem?
A community of interacting organisms AND the physical (non-living) environment around them
What is an adaptation?
A feature, behaviour or characteristic that helps an organism survive in its habitat
In the food chain Algae → Stonefly larvae → Whio → Falcon, what is the producer?
Algae
What is the difference between respiration and breathing?
Respiration is the release of energy from food inside cells — breathing is the physical act of inhaling and exhaling air
What is the function of the mitochondria?
Releases energy through respiration (the "powerhouse" of the cell)
What is the difference between a population and a community?
A population = all members of the SAME species in an area. A community = ALL different species living in the same area
Name ONE adaptation of a predator and explain why it helps them catch prey.
Forward-facing eyes = binocular vision to judge distance accurately; sharp claws/teeth to catch and kill prey
What do the arrows in a food chain represent?
The direction of energy flow (from what is eaten to what eats it)
A student says fire is living because it moves and grows. Name TWO criteria from MRS C GREN that fire does NOT meet.
Any two: no cells, cannot reproduce, no excretion, no nutrition/sensitivity
Name the five kingdoms all living things are classified into.
Monera (Bacteria), Protista, Fungi, Plants, Animals
Name two abiotic features you might find in the Whio's river habitat.
Any two: fast-flowing water, oxygen level, temperature, light, rocks, soil
Name ONE adaptation of prey and explain why it helps them survive.
Eyes on the sides of the head = wider field of vision to spot predators; camouflage to blend into habitat
What is a consumer? Name one from the Whio food chain and explain what makes it a consumer.
Any of: Stonefly larvae, Whio, Falcon — they cannot make their own food and must eat other organisms
What does excretion mean? Why is it NOT the same as going to the toilet?
Excretion is the removal of waste products made by chemical reactions in the body. Going to the toilet (egestion) removes undigested food that was never part of the body's reactions
What is a species? Give an example.
A group of similar organisms that can breed with each other and produce fertile offspring.
A Whio duck lives in fast-flowing, clean mountain rivers. Name its habitat type and explain TWO reasons why it can only survive there.
Alpine/forested river — needs high-oxygen water (to breathe) and abundant invertebrate life (food source)
The Whio has a flat beak and streamlined body. Give a reason for EACH of these adaptations.
Flat beak — grips slippery rocks/catches invertebrates in fast water. Streamlined body — reduces water resistance so it can swim against strong currents
Approximately what percentage of energy is passed from one organism to the next in a food chain? What happens to the rest?
About 10%. The other 90% is lost as heat, used for movement, respiration, or lost in waste products
A leather jacket — is it living, was living, or never lived? Justify your answer using MRS C GREN.
Living — it carries out all 8 life processes: movement, respiration, sensitivity, has cells, grows, can reproduce, excretes and takes in nutrition
Name all 8 classification groups from least specific to most specific.
Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species
Put these in order from smallest to largest: Ecosystem, Organism, Community, Population.
Organism → Population → Community → Ecosystem
Name and describe all THREE types of adaptation (structural, behavioural, physiological) and give one example of each.
Structural = physical body feature (e.g. hard shell). Behavioural = what it does (e.g. nocturnal). Physiological = internal process (e.g. antifreeze proteins in fish)
The Whio food chain has 4 trophic levels. If Algae contains 10,000 units of energy, how much energy would reach the Falcon? Show your working.
10,000 → Stonefly larvae receive 1,000 (10%) → Whio receives 100 (10%) → Falcon receives 10 units (10%). Only 0.1% of the original energy reaches the top predator — this is why food chains rarely have more than 4–5 levels.