Home > Subjects > Biology > Level 2 > 2.4 Ecological patterns > Subject content
- Subject: Biology
- AS: AS90460
- Level: 2
- Credits: 3
- Internal
Biology 2.4 Investigate an interrelationship or pattern in an ecological population or community
Subject content
At NCEA level 2, you are expected to know how to carry out a range of appropriate sampling and fieldwork techniques, and know when it is appropriate to use each technique. Your teacher will provide guidelines, but not specific instructions.
You will be required to keep and submit your recorded data from the field. This can be in the form of rough pencil notes. It should NOT be converted into computer-generated data.
Read the Biology Level 2 supplementary material (PDF 90KB) for this investigation. It is a recommended resource as it outlines in detail what you need to be able to do for achievement in this investigation. It includes descriptors of what is required to assist you in achieving merit and excellence grades as well.
Check out these guidelines to plan an investigation, collect and process data, and interpret the findings, Experimental Science Projects: An Intermediate Level Guide.
The community interrelationships or patterns you could investigate may include:
- succession
- zonation
- stratification
- distribution of different species
- competition
- predation
- parasitism
- mutualism.
Further information on any of these concepts can be found on the Biology 2.5 pages.
If you are investigating a community interrelationship or pattern, you are required to provide detail on only one species from the community in your description, explanation, or discussion.
The population interrelationships or patterns you could investigate may include:
- age structure
- density
- distribution of a species
- habitat preference
- adaptations
- intraspecific competition.
Check out an example of an internal assessment for this achievement standard: What’s Lurking Below? (Word 150KB).
