Theory question 101
Habitats and Biomes(a) List three major zones in the marine habitat, stating one characteristic feature of each zone.
(b) (i) Give one example each of plants and animals in the marine habitat (ii) Explain how each of the plants and animals is adapted to the habitat
(c) State three behavioural adaptations of animals to seasonal changes in terrestrial habitat
(d) State three characters each of the plant community in the tropical rain forest and savannah
Show the model answer
(a) Any three: splash (supralittoral) zone – above high tide, wetted only by spray; intertidal (littoral) zone – covered at high tide and exposed at low tide; neritic zone – shallow water over the continental shelf, well lit, rich in plankton; oceanic (pelagic) zone – open deep sea; benthic/abyssal zone – sea floor, dark and cold
(b)(i) Plant e.g. seaweed (Sargassum/Fucus) or phytoplankton; animal e.g. bony fish, crab, periwinkle
(ii) Seaweed: holdfast to grip rocks; mucilage prevents drying at low tide; air bladders keep it afloat; flexible thallus resists waves
Fish: streamlined body; fins for swimming; gills; swim bladder for buoyancy; salt-excreting cells in gills for osmoregulation
(c) Any three: hibernation; aestivation; migration; burrowing; storing food; change of coat/moulting; swarming at onset of rains
(d) Rainforest: tall trees in 3 or more layers (stratified canopy); broad evergreen leaves; buttress roots; many climbers and epiphytes; little undergrowth
Savanna: grasses dominant with scattered trees; thick fire-resistant bark; deep roots; leaf shedding in dry season; underground stems
For each zone give one feature that sets it apart from the others.