Effects of climate change and modellingEdexcel International A Level Biology: Flashcards

Exam questions on Effects of climate change and modelling

1. A climate scientist has fitted a straight line to the mean global surface temperature measured each year from 1980 to 2020 and has extended the line to the year 2100 to predict future warming. Other research groups use computer models that include processes such as the melting of sea ice and the release of methane from thawing soils, and that are run with different assumptions about future greenhouse gas emissions.
   Suggest two reasons why extending the straight line to 2100 may give an inaccurate prediction.2 marks
2. Over fifty years the mean spring temperature in a temperate region has risen by 1.5 °C. Naturalists have recorded that a butterfly species now emerges from its pupae 12 days earlier than in the 1970s, that a bird species now lays its eggs earlier in the year, and that a cold-adapted alpine plant is now found on mountain slopes about 150 m higher than before.
   Suggest how a warmer spring could cause the butterfly to emerge from its pupae earlier.2 marks
3. A researcher measured the rate of oxygen consumption of a species of beetle larva at three temperatures, using a respirometer. The mean rate was 18 µmol O₂ g⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 15 °C, 41 µmol O₂ g⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 25 °C and 38 µmol O₂ g⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 35 °C.
   Calculate the Q10 for the larvae between 15 °C and 25 °C.3 marks