Class :-9 EVS Module 1 on How Ecosystem Work.
A. Short Answer Questions :-
1. Name two detritivores.
Ans. Earthworm and crab .
2. What are decomposers?
Ans. Decomposers are certain bacteria and fungi which breakdown the complex organic
compound into simpler substances. Through the decomposer the elements enter the earth
Again ,which are in turn again taken up by the plant.
3. What are trophic level in a food chain ?
Ans. The Tropic level of an organism is a position it occupies in a food chain .The tropic level of
an organism is the level it holds in a food pyramid.
4. How is solar energy change to chemical energy ?
Ans. Energy enters the biological system as solar energy or photons .when green plants make
their own food by the process of photosynthesis they convert Solar energy into chemical energy
in organic molecules by cellular processes which is stored in the plants .
5. What is photosynthesis ?
Ans. Photosynthesis means synthesis by light .This s is the process where the green plants
synthesize organic matter (glucose) and oxygen using inorganic substances Carbon dioxide
and water and minerals in the presence of solar light .It is the process of conversion of CO2
gas and H2O in glucose and oxygen in presence of Sunlight and chlorophyll .
6. What is a food web ?
Ans. The food chains are interlinked with each other to form a complicated network .The net or
web like structure formed due to the interrelationship of food chains is called a food web.
7. How biotic components of ecosystem are dependent on abiotic components?
Ans. In an ecosystem the biotic and abiotic components are connected .sometime the
connection occur between living components as in a food chain, sometimes between non-living
component as in soil erosion and sometime between living and non living components as in
photosynthesis . In photosynthesis energy from the sun, water from the soil. chlorophyll from
the green plants and the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere work together to produce glucose
for the plant . This this is necessary for maintenance of life. Without their mutual interaction, an
Ecosystem cannot operate .
8. Define carnivorous organism.
Ans. The organisms who eat primary consumers or herbivores are known as carnivorous
organism. Examples of carnivorous are lion , tiger, hawk etc.
9. What do you understand by nitrogen fixation ?
Ans. Free Nitrogen in the atmosphere is mainly fixed by two ways-i) Atmospheric N2 fixation
and , ii) Biological nitrogen fixation.
i) Atmospheric nitrogen fixation- Due to lightening and thundering phytochemical and
electrochemical reaction occur, Nitrogen combine with oxygen to form various
compounds like NO,NO2, HNO3 etc. Oxides of Nitrogen dissolve in water to form nitrous
acid and nitric acid which combined with other salt to form nitrate.
ii) Biological nitrogen fixation -various aerobic and anaerobic microbes fix atmospheric
nitrogen to nitrites and nitrates . Symbiotic nitrogen fixation rhizobium live in root
nodules of leguminous plants ,can fix atmospheric nitrogen to form nitrites and nitrates.
A symbiotic bacteria Azotobacter and Clostridium directly fix Nitrogen as ammonia by
reduction process . When the die their proteins are broken down by decomposers and
converted into ammonia .Blue green algae can also fix atmospheric nitrogen.
10. What sort of organism fix nitrogen ? Give an example of nitrogen fixing bacteria.
Ans . Various (aerobes and anaerobes) fix atmospheric N2 to nitrites and nitrates .
Examples :- Anaerobes – Rhizobium, Frankia, Nostoc, Anabaena can fix atmospheric nitrogen.
Aerobes- Azotobacter,Bacillus, clostridium and Rhodospirillium.
11. What is nitrification and denitrification?
Ans . Nitrification is the process of conversion of ammonia into nitrates by the bacteria. For
examples- Nitrosomonas in soil and Nitrococcus in Marine system.
Denitrification- Nitrogen is returned to the atmosphere through denitrification. Denitrification
occurs when anaerobic bacteria breakdown nitrates and release nitrogen back into the
atmosphere.
12. What is ammonification?
Ans. Organic matter of plants and animals decompose to ammonia and amino acid by
microorganism in the soil. Decomposers return the nitrogen back to the soil from the remains of
Dead plants and animals and also from their excreta . This process is known as ammonification.
13. What is primary and secondary succession?
Ans. Primary succession is a kind of succession that takes place on an area where there was no
life or previous inhabitants. E.g. a bare rocks, newly emerged Island. Since there is no soil, it
takes several year for life to be present at this place.
Secondary succession - secondary succession is the succession that begins after an event clears
the community but leaves the soil intact. For example Wildfire , Ploughed field, cut forest etc.
because the soil is intact, when secondary succession begins, it progress much faster than
primary succession .
