Leaving Cert Biology Definitions

Front 1

biosphere

Back 1

The area of Earth where life is found

Front 2

niche

Back 2

the functional role an organism plays in the community

Front 3

biotic factor

Back 3

a living factor

Front 4

trophic level

Back 4

the position of an organism in a food chain

Front 5

competition

Back 5

an active struggle between organisms for a resource in short supply

Front 6

symbiosis

Back 6

when 2 organisms live in close association with one another and at least one of them benefits

Front 7

turgor

Back 7

the pressure a plant cell vacuole exerts against the cell wall when it swells

Front 8

'm' in mRNA

Back 8

messenger

Front 9

tissue

Back 9

a group of similar cells which work together to carry out the same function

Front 10

tissue culture

Back 10

growth of cells in a sterile nutrient medium outside of an organism

Front 11

conservation

Back 11

the wise management of our current resources in order to maintain a range of habitats and prevent death and extinction of organisms

Front 12

pollution

Back 12

addition of harmful materials to the environment

Front 13

monocotyledonous plant

Back 13

one seed/embryonic leaf

Front 14

variation

Back 14

when individuals in a group of successfully interbreeding organisms show different characteristics from one another

Front 15

endotherm

Back 15

a warm-blooded animal, can maintain a constant internal environment unaffected by its external environment

Front 16

digestion

Back 16

the breakdown of food so that it's small enough to pass into body cells

Front 17

triglyceride

Back 17

lipid made-up of one glycerol molecule and 3 fatty acid molecules

Front 18

ecosystem

Back 18

group of organisms which interact with their environment as one

Front 19

habitat

Back 19

place which an organism lives

Front 20

food web

Back 20

inter-connected food chains

Front 21

fauna

Back 21

animal