1

KS3 Biology — Answers

Section 1 — Cells and Respiration Q6 a) It holds the cell together and controls what goes in
Pages 1-2 — The Microscope and out of the cell.
Q1 A — Eyepiece lens b) i) E.g. a cell wall is a rigid outer coating but a cell
B — Body tube membrane is just a thin skin. / The cell wall only
C — Rough focusing knob provides support for the cell but the cell membrane
D — Fine focusing knob also controls what goes in and out of the cell.
E — High and low power objective lenses ii) cellulose
F — Stage Q7 a) Having only one cell.
Q2 a) The rough focusing knob and the fine b) i) E.g. has a flagellum / contains chloroplasts
focusing knob. ii) E.g. Euglena live in water, so having a tail‑like
b) i) The stage. structure helps them to swim. / Having chloroplasts
ii) The slide is clipped to the stage / means that Euglena can make their own food.
held in place by clips.
c) To magnify the object. Page 6 — Cell Organisation
Q3 a) The mirror. Q1 a) cell, tissue, organ, organism
b) The lowest powered objective lens. b) yes
c) i) The rough focusing knob. Q2 a) Because there is a lot of carbon dioxide inside the
ii) She should move it down to just above the slide. cell but not much outside the cell.
d) i) The fine focusing knob. b) The cell membrane.
ii) Away from the slide. c) The oxygen molecules will move into the cell
iii) To make sure the lens and slide don’t because there is lots of oxygen outside the cell
crash together. but not much inside the cell.
e) She could switch to using a higher powered
objective lens. Pages 7-11 — Respiration
Q1 Inside the cells in your body glucose is used to
Pages 3-5 — Cells produce energy. This process is called respiration.
Q1 a) nucleus All living things need energy for processes such as
b) cell membrane movement, growth and reproduction.
c) cell wall Q2 a) The process of releasing energy from glucose.
d) mitochondria b) Respiration takes place in all types of living
e) vacuole organism.
f) cytoplasm c) Aerobic and anaerobic.
g) chloroplast Q3 a) Aerobic and anaerobic should both be ticked.
b) Aerobic should be ticked.
Both cells have Only plant cells have
c) Aerobic and anaerobic should both be ticked.
1) cell membrane 1) cell wall d) Aerobic should be ticked.
2) nucleus 2) chloroplasts Q4 a) Glucose and oxygen.
3) cytoplasm 3) vacuole b) Carbon dioxide and water.
c) Energy is released, which is used for e.g. building
4) mitochondria
proteins, muscle contraction and keeping warm.
Q2 The nucleus. d) B + C → A + D + E
Q3 The mitochondria. e) In the mitochondria.
Q4 Chloroplast — contains chlorophyll Q5 glucose → lactic acid + energy
for photosynthesis. glucose → carbon dioxide + ethanol + energy
Vacuole — large space filled with sap. Q6 a) She can use the sugar to produce more energy
Mitochondria — where most of the reactions for through respiration.
aerobic respiration take place. b) Anaerobic respiration is respiration
Cytoplasm — jelly-like stuff where most of the without oxygen.
reactions happen. c) She is starting to respire anaerobically because she
Nucleus — controls what the cell does. can’t get enough oxygen to her muscle cells.
Cell membrane — thin skin around the cell. d) Anaerobic respiration produces lactic acid which
Cell wall — outer coating which gives support to is starting to build up in Tia’s muscles.
the cell. Q7 a) The yeast need sugar to respire.
Q5 a) Because they are too small to see with just b) The yeast must respire anaerobically to make
your eyes. ethanol, so they must be kept away from the
b) To make the parts of the cells easier to see. oxygen in the air.
c) c) fermentation
Cytoplasm Nucleus Cell wall Vacuole
Cheek cell ✓ ✓
Leaf mesophyll
cell ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

© CGP 2023
 2

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q8 a) The soda lime is used to absorb any carbon b) E.g. starvation can cause children to grow more
dioxide that is already in the air. This means that slowly than they should / can make you more
any carbon dioxide in tube B must have been likely to get infections and diseases / can lead to
produced by the cricket respiring. irregular periods in females.
b) i) The limewater in tube A will stay colourless. Q6 a) Carbohydrates and lipids/fats.
ii) The limewater in tube B will turn cloudy. b) i) E.g. every cell needs energy. The bigger you are,
c) There will be less oxygen present in tube B than in the more cells you have, and so the more energy
tube A. you need. / You need energy to move, and it takes
d) They could set up a second set of apparatus and more energy to move a bigger mass.
leave it for the same amount of time, but not put a ii) How active you are.
cricket in the jar. c) A professional athlete, because he/she is
Q9 a) E.g. only aerobic respiration requires oxygen likely to be more active and so have the
to react with the glucose. Aerobic respiration largest energy demands.
produces carbon dioxide and water, whereas Q7 Daily BER (kJ/day) = 5.4 × 24 × body mass (kg)
anaerobic respiration produces lactic acid. They Mihir’s BER =  5.4 × 24 × 65
release different amounts of energy. = 8424 kJ/day
b) i) Aerobic respiration. Q8 a) Daily BER (kJ/day) = 5.4 × 24 × body mass (kg)
ii) Because it is more efficient. Sheena’s BER = 5.4 × 24 × 60
Q10 a) aerobic respiration = 7776 kJ/day
b) ethanol b) Sheena’s BER is 7776 kJ/day
c) energy For her 1 hour run she needs 3000 kJ.
d) carbon dioxide For her swim she needs 0.5 × 1500 = 750 kJ.
e) water So in total on Thursday she needs:
f) oxygen 7776 + 3000 + 750 = 11 526 kJ
g) glucose
h) anaerobic respiration Pages 16-20 — Digestion
i) lactic acid Q1 The process of digestion is the breakdown of
j) fermentation food into soluble substances, and the passage
of these substances into the blood. The food
Section 2 — Humans as Organisms molecules are too large to pass through the gut
Pages 12-15 — Nutrition wall, so they are broken down first by special
Q1 What we eat — intake of nourishing substances. chemicals called enzymes.
Q2 a) i) Used as fuel for the body. Q2 a) i) Chewing/churning the food to break it into
ii) Used as a store of energy (which you use if your small pieces.
body runs out of carbohydrates). ii) Using enzymes to break up big food molecules
iii) Needed for growth and to repair damaged areas. into smaller ones.
iv) Needed (in small amounts) to keep many vital b) The teeth chew up the food and mix it with saliva.
processes happening in the body. Saliva contains an enzyme (called amylase) that
b) mineral breaks down carbohydrates.
c) All chemical reactions in the body take place in Q3 a) To kill harmful bacteria. To give a low pH for the
water (and 75% of the body is made up of water). stomach enzymes to work.
d) A disease directly resulting from a lack of essential b) To move the stomach wall and churn up the food.
nutrients. Q4 a) Liver. Makes bile to emulsify (break up) fats
e) If you don’t eat enough fruit and vegetables you and give the right pH for the enzymes in the
may not get enough vitamins (e.g. vitamin C) small intestine.
in your diet and may show signs of vitamin b) Pancreas. Makes enzymes (proteases,
deficiencies (e.g. scurvy). Also, you may not get carbohydrases and lipases).
enough fibre in your diet. You need fibre to help c) Small intestine. Where food is absorbed through
food move through your digestive system. the gut wall into the blood. Also makes more
Q3 a) E.g. he needs to take food that is high in enzymes to further digest food.
carbohydrates, which sausages are not. d) Large intestine. Water is absorbed from here.
b) cereal bars e) Rectum. Undigested food/faeces leaves the body
Q4 a) carbohydrates from here (via the anus).
b) Hibran flakes Q5 Enzymes are biological catalysts. The body uses
c) Fibre helps food move through your enzymes to break up big molecules into small
digestive system. ones. These smaller molecules can pass through
d) No. Different types of nutrients are needed in the gut wall into the blood. From here they
different amounts. travel around the body, then pass into the cells
Q5 a) i) If you take in more energy from your diet than you to be used.
use up, your body stores the extra energy as fat. Q6 a) Pancreas and small intestine should be circled.
So you put on weight. b) carbohydrase, protease, lipase
ii) E.g. high blood pressure / heart disease. c) The stomach

© CGP 2023
 3

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q7 a) No, because there was no starch in the water d)
Moments are calculated using the formula:
outside the tubing after 25 minutes. Moment = force × perpendicular distance.
b) The molecules of glucose are small enough to pass e) Moments are measured in Nm.
through the tubing. Q3 Multiply the force by the perpendicular distance
c) Both the dialysis tubing and the small intestine from the pivot.
wall allow small (soluble) molecules to pass Q4 a) Moment = force × perpendicular distance
through them but not large (insoluble) molecules. = 5 × 0.24
d) blood = 1.2 Nm
e) (partly digested) food b) E.g. to counteract the moment of Roland’s weight /
Q8 a) small intestine to keep the arm still.
b) i) villi c) Force = moment ÷ perpendicular distance
ii) They have a thin outer layer of cells. They have a = 1.2 ÷ 0.04
good blood supply. They provide a large surface = 30 N
area for absorption.
c) The molecules are carried from the gut to the body Pages 25-26 — Gas Exchange
cells. They then diffuse out into cells to be used. Q1 Lung — f
Q9 Any two of, e.g. they produce enzymes that help Trachea (wind pipe) — a
to digest food. / They make useful vitamins (like Bronchus — c
vitamin K). / They produce useful hormones. / Bronchiole — e
They reduce the possibility of harmful bacteria Alveoli — g
growing in your intestines and making you ill. Diaphragm — h
Rib — b
Pages 21-22 — The Skeleton and Muscles Intercostal muscle — d
Q1 The bones in your skeleton protect many Q2 We need to take in oxygen from the air to stay
important organs in your body. Bones also alive. We also need to get rid of carbon dioxide
allow movement to occur at joints and they from our bodies. This overall process is called gas
also support the entire body. exchange. The gas we take in enters our blood and
Q2 a) B → D → C → A is used with sugar in the cells to release energy.
b) backbone — spinal cord Q3 a) i) oxygen
skull — brain ii) Arrow drawn and labelled as shown below.
ribs — heart and lungs
c) a joint LUNG
Q3 a) The outer layer of bone tissue is very strong
and hard.
b) The inner layer of bone tissue is spongy but strong. oxygen
c) Bone marrow produces blood cells.
Q4 a) i) B BODY
ii) C
iii) A iii) Oxygen passes out of the bloodstream into the
iv) D body cells where it is used in respiration.
b) Tendons attach muscles to bones. b) i) carbon dioxide
c) Muscles are attached to bones. When a muscle ii) Arrow drawn and labelled as shown below.
contracts, it applies a force to the bone it’s
attached to, which makes the bone move.
LUNG

Pages 23-24 — How Muscles Work carbon

Q1 a) Antagonistic muscles are pairs of muscles that dioxide
work against each other.
b) i) triceps BODY
ii) relaxed
iii) Muscle A/the triceps muscle will contract/shorten, iii) It is a waste product of respiration.
pulling the arm straight. As this happens the c) diffusion
biceps muscle will relax/lengthen. d) 1. They’re moist.
Q2 a) A pivot is the point around which a 2. They have a good blood supply.
rotation happens. 3. The alveoli give the lungs a big inside
b) Your arm works as a lever with the elbow as a surface area.
pivot. This means that when a force acts on your
arm, a moment is created.
c) Moments are a measure of the turning effect of
a force.

© CGP 2023
 4

KS3 Biology — Answers

Pages 27-28 — Breathing Pages 31-33 — Human Reproductive Systems
Q1 a) lungs Q1 a) A — urethra
b) trachea (windpipe) B — scrotal sac/scrotum
c) bronchi (bronchus) C — testis
d) intercostal muscles and diaphragm muscle D — erectile tissue
e) diaphragm E — foreskin
f) chest cavity F — sperm duct
g) i) They fill with air. G — ovary
ii) inhalation / breathing in H — uterus/womb
Q2 1. R  ib muscles contract — Rib cage moves I — vagina
upwards and outwards J — cervix
2. D  iaphragm contracts — Diaphragm moves K — fallopian tube/oviduct
down and becomes flatter b) sperm
3. M  ore space is formed in the chest — Air enters c) To produce sperm.
to fill the extra room d) semen
4. R  ib muscles relax — Rib cage moves e) egg
downwards and inwards f) To carry the egg from the ovary to the uterus.
5. D  iaphragm relaxes — Diaphragm moves g) It dies (and passes out of the vagina).
upwards Q2 An egg cell is released from an ovary once a
6. L ess space is left in the chest — Air is forced out month. Each time an egg cell is released the
from the chest space uterus gets ready to grow a baby. A thick lining
Q3 a) The amount of air you can breathe into your lungs full of blood vessels slowly develops. If the egg
in a single breath. is fertilised it passes into the uterus and becomes
b) Student B attached to it. If the egg is not fertilised the
c) 1.4 metres tall, because shorter people tend to breakdown of the uterus lining occurs. This is
have a smaller lung volume than taller people. called menstruation. The whole sequence of
making a new uterus lining and an egg is called
Pages 29-30 — Exercise, Asthma and Smoking the menstrual cycle.
Q1 a) i) The rate of breathing and depth of Q3 Ovary — The female organ which produces
breathing increase. the egg
ii) When you exercise, your muscles need more Uterus — The female organ which nurtures the
oxygen. Breathing deeper and faster allows you fertilised egg
to get more oxygen into your blood. Menstruation — The breakdown of the
b) It means that your chest cavity can open up more uterus lining
when you breathe, so you can get more air into Egg — The female sex cell
your lungs. Menstrual cycle — The 4 week cycle of the female
c) Regular exercise can cause an increase in the sex organs
number and size of the small blood vessels in Q4 a) 1. D
your lungs and in the number of alveoli. 2. B
Q2 a) They will contract. 3. C
b) E.g. the lining will become inflamed and fluid will 4. D
build up, making it hard for him to breathe. 5. A
c) E.g. difficulty breathing, wheezing, tight chest. b) (To give a good blood supply) in case it receives a
d) It contains drugs that open up the airways. fertilised egg.
Q3 true, false, true, true, false, true, false c) 10 days
Q4 a) E.g. carbon monoxide, nicotine, particulates. d) day 14
b) Tar covers the cilia on the lining of the airways.
The damaged cilia can’t get rid of mucus properly. Pages 34-36 — Having a Baby
The mucus sticks to the airways, which makes you Q1 a)
cough more.
Sperm tube
c) i) E.g. bronchitis and emphysema. Testis
ii) E.g. bronchitis inflames the lining of the bronchi. Ovary
Emphysema destroys the alveoli (air sacs) in Penis
the lungs. Ovum (egg)
Vagina

b) sexual intercourse/copulation

© CGP 2023
 5

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q2 a) The nucleus of the egg must join with the nucleus Q4 a) 4
of the sperm. b) 1
b) In the fallopian tube. c) 2
c) A zygote. d) 3
d) E.g. the egg divides from 1 cell into 32 cells. Q5 a) depressant
e) The wall of the uterus / uterus lining. b) brain and liver
f) About one week after fertilisation. c) It slows down responses so accidents can’t be
Q3 Umbilical cord avoided in time and it impairs judgement which
can lead to accidents.
Mother’s blood Q6 Anything that makes you want more of it.
Foetus Q7 a) E.g. paints, aerosols and glue.
Placenta b) i) Gives hallucinations
Affects your behaviour
Amniotic fluid
ii) Can damage the lungs
Q4 a) gestation/pregnancy
Can damage the brain
b) The embryo has a brain, heart, eyes and legs —
Q8
1 month. TYPE OF ESASTICK
It kicks and its finger nails can be felt — 5 months. DRUG

E
GLU
The foetus is viable — 7 months.
The baby is fully developed — 9 months.
c) At 9 weeks.
d) At 9 weeks. ORGAN
e) The foetus would have a fair chance of surviving if DAMAGED
it were born.
Q5 a) The placenta lets the blood of the foetus and
mother get very close to allow exchange of food,
oxygen and waste products. Section 3 — Plants and Ecosystems
b) i) Any two of, e.g. smoking, drinking alcohol, Pages 40-44 — Plant Nutrition
taking drugs. Q1 a) carbon dioxide + water → glucose + oxygen
ii) They get into the mother’s blood, then they cross b) i) carbon dioxide and water
the placenta and can affect the foetus. ii) glucose and oxygen
iii) It may not develop properly and could have health c) carbohydrate
problems after it’s born. Q2 1. (sun)light
Q6 a i r g o v a g i n a a u t t x e g 2. chlorophyll
i n d e x b c d e f o g h t i j g k 3. water
f t l m p n o p q r s v t u e v g w
e e x y m r x a b c d e i f g r m h 4. carbon dioxide
r r i j e k o l m n o p q d r s u t Q3 a) carbon dioxide
t c u g n v w d x y z a b c u d e s b) oxygen
i o f e s g h p u i j k l m n c o p
l u q s t e r r s c t u v s w x t y Q4 1 2
c a r b o n
i r z t r m a e b c t d e f p g h i h x
s s j a u b k g p e n i s l m e n o l y
a e p t a r q n r s t u o v w x r y 3 5
t z a i t y b a c d e f g n h i j m s o i 4l g l u c o s e
i k l o i o m n o p q r s t u v w x r i e
o y z n o a b c c d p l a c e n t a 6
o g n m
n e f g n h i y j k l m n o p q r s p 7
h i d
8
p h o t o s y n t h e s i s
Pages 37-39 — Health and Drugs y e o
Q1 a) The absence of disease. l r x
b) Eating a balanced diet. 9 10
l e a f
11
w a t e r i
c) Doing enough exercise. i l d
d) Not abusing drugs. 12
d a r k s
13
g r e e n
Q2 a) Growth — getting to adult size
Nutrition — getting food to stay alive
Respiration — turning food into energy Q5 a) The soil.
Excretion — getting rid of waste b) The roots.
Movement — moving parts of the body Q6 a) Both plants were watered regularly.
Sensitivity — responding and reacting b) E.g. you could repeat the experiment several times
Reproduction — producing offspring with other plants.
b) excretion/nutrition c) i) E.g. the plant will die / shrivel up / lose leaves.
c) movement and sensitivity ii) They need light and water to survive.
Q3 a) Any substance that affects the way the body works.
b) They’re used for enjoyment, rather than as
medicine.

© CGP 2023
 6

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q7 a) i) potassium Q4 insect-pollinated — buttercup, daisy, sunflower
ii) Leaves become yellow with dead spots. wind-pollinated — grass, stinging nettle,
b) Phosphate. The roots didn’t grow properly in willow tree
beaker C, which is missing phosphate. Q5 The extra words to find are: stamen, carpel
c) Yellowing of leaves and weakening of the stem. W P A O V U L E R A
d) E.g. the plants would eventually die / would be C Z N T E B Z E M O
unhealthy / would be yellow and weak. A E T N I H E G V G
Q8 a) Gives the leaf a big surface area for R Y H E U U I I D S
absorbing light. P R E M Z T K E X P

b) Means that as much light as possible reaches E A R A S Q X A S O

L V F L D F N T S L
the chloroplasts.
N O K I C O Y O L L
c) The veins deliver water to the leaf cells and take H P A F Q L D N P E
away glucose. S T A M E N Y Y B N
d) Allows carbon dioxide to diffuse in and oxygen to
diffuse out easily. Q6 a) The travel of pollen from a stamen to a stigma.
Q9 Photosynthesis requires carbon dioxide. b) i) B
Q10 a) Plant A — e.g. would be normal and healthy. ii) E.g. it has feathery stigmas (and long anthers) that
Plant B — e.g. would be unhealthy/dead. hang outside the flower. It has dull/green petals.
b) Plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen c) i) A
through the stomata, which are found on the ii) E.g. it has large, brightly coloured petals. It has a
underside of the leaf. If these are covered in stigma (and anthers) that are inside the flower.
Vaseline®, the plant can’t photosynthesise, so it d) Lighter pollen is more easily carried by the wind.
will start to die.
Q11 a) oxygen e)
b) Plants produce oxygen during photosynthesis, so
the bubbles will be oxygen gas.

Pages 45-48 — Plant Reproduction

Q1 The male sex cell is produced by the pollen, and
the female sex cell is contained in the ovule. f) Insect pollinated plants have sticky stigmas to take
Q2 a) i), b) i) and c) i) the pollen off the insect. Wind pollinated plants
anther filament stigma have feathery stigmas to catch pollen as it’s carried
past in the wind.
petals Q7 a) Wind pollinated, because insect pollinated plants
are scented to attract insects.
b) They will be small and dull.
c) i) Glands that produce nectar/a sugary liquid for
style insects to feed on.
ii) no
sepals Q8 a) i) one
ovary ii) two
ii) The filament supports the anther. b) These statements should be circled:
iii) The anther contains the pollen grains, which Some plants only have male flowers, and others
produce the male sex cells. only have female flowers.
b) ii) The carpel. The stamens and carpels of the flowers mature at
iii) The ovules / female sex cells. different times.
c) ii) The main difference is colour, as petals are usually
brightly coloured but sepals are green. Pages 49-50 — Fertilisation and Seed Formation
iii) They protect the budding flower. Q1 a) style
iv) They attract insects. b) fertilisation
Q3 The female sex cell in plants is contained inside — c) ovary
the ovule. d) i) a food store
The female sex organ in plants is called — ii) When the seed germinates/starts to grow.
the carpel. e) They are spread out/carried away from the
The female sex organ is made up from — parent plant.
the stigma, style and ovary. Q2 release of pollen → pollination → growth of pollen
The male sex cell in plants is produced by — tube → fertilisation → seed production → dispersal
the pollen. → germination → growth of seedling
The male sex organ in plants is called —
the stamen.
The male sex organ is made up from —
the filament and anther.

© CGP 2023
 7

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q3 a) Dandelion: has parachutes on its seeds to help Pages 53-54 — Dependence on Other Organisms
them catch the wind. Q1 a) the Sun
Sycamore: has wings to help it fly away from the b) Plants use the Sun’s energy to make food
parent tree. during photosynthesis.
b) The animal will disperse the seeds in its droppings. c) E.g. only plants can use photosynthesis to capture
c) Tomato: bright red skin attracts an animal, who and store the Sun’s energy. Other living things
eats it and spreads the seeds via droppings. need plants to do this so they can then eat them
Burdock: hooks catch on animal’s fur/coat, so it and get the energy they need to live.
gets carried away. Q2 a) bacterium, bird, dandelion, dog, fish, frog,
d) E.g. apple (accept any sensible fruit). It is attractive seaweed, snake
because of its colour/smell/taste. b) oxygen
c) carbon dioxide
Pages 51-52 — Investigating Seed Dispersal d) oxygen
Mechanisms e) Photosynthesis helps make sure there’s always
Q1 a) E.g. the person dropping the fruit, the height the plenty of oxygen around for respiration.
fruits are dropped from and the place where the Q3 a) An ecosystem is all the living organisms in one
experiment takes place. area, plus their environment.
b) The type of fruit. b) They need each other to survive.
c) E.g. a tape measure / ruler. Q4 a) Many plants depend on insects to pollinate them.
d) To increase the reliability of the experiment. / Without the insects the plants would struggle
If she did it just once she could get an to reproduce.
anomalous result. b) E.g. we need insects to pollinate crop plants, so
e) i) Sycamore = (20 + 25 + 21) ÷ 3 = 22 cm they can produce fruit. If insect numbers fall,
ii) Elm = (18 + 14 + 16) ÷ 3 = 16 cm fewer plants may be pollinated, so less fruit may
f) E.g. sycamore fruits disperse further than elm fruits. be produced.
Q2 a) 0 cm: (6 + 10 + 5) ÷ 3 = 7 cm c) E.g. we may have less food available. This could
1 cm: (9 + 7 + 11) ÷ 3 = 9 cm lead to increased food prices, food shortages, or
2 cm: (15 + 17 + 19) ÷ 3 = 17 cm even famine.
3 cm: (26 + 24 + 25) ÷ 3 = 25 cm
4 cm: (30 + 33 + 27) ÷ 3 = 30 cm Pages 55-58 — Food Chains and Food Webs
b) Graph to show how fruit wing length affects dispersal Q1 carnivores — animals that eat other animals
omnivores — a nimals that eat both plants
and animals
herbivores — animals that eat plants
Average Distance Dispersed (cm)

30 consumers — organisms that rely on other

organisms for their food
producers — organisms that can make their
20 own food
Q2 a) They show what is eaten by/is food for what. /
how energy flows through the food chain.
b) i) herbivore: limpet
10
carnivore: lobster
producer: algae
ii) The algae are the start of the food chain so they
0 1 2 3 4 must be the producer. The limpet eats algae so
Length of Wing (cm) must be a herbivore. The lobster eats limpets, so
c) 30 cm – 7 cm = 23 cm must be a carnivore.
d) The longer the wings on a sycamore fruit, the Q3 a) plant/producer
further the fruit will disperse. b) They can produce their own food by
photosynthesis.
Q4 The words to find are: carnivore, consumer,
food chain, omnivore, producer, herbivore
E P C O N S U M E R
R R F O I D C H A O
O E O O A E R B M I
V C O M H I V N C A
I U D A C H I N G R
B D C E D V O R E S
R O H S O K I Z X L
E R A R O A R N I V
H P E R F V I B R A
X E R O V I N R A C

© CGP 2023
 8

KS3 Biology — Answers

Q5 a) An animal that eats producers — grasshopper. Pages 61-63 — Variation
b) An animal that eats primary consumers — snake. Q1 a) Natasha looks different from the seal because they
c) An animal that eats secondary consumers — are different species.
hawk. b) They have different genes.
d) An animal that is not eaten by anything else — c) Variation can happen within a species. That
hawk. means that plants and animals that have basically
Q6 a) i) Blue tit, hawk, owl and fox should be circled. the same genes will still show differences between
ii) blue tit them. For example, human beings have different
b) blackberry — aphid — blue tit — hawk skin colours. These differences are known as
blackberry — caterpillar — blue tit — hawk characteristic features.
blackberry — mouse — hawk d) Inherited — These features come
c) blackberry — mouse — owl from your parents via genes.
d) The number of voles might increase because they Environmental — These features are caused
have more food. by your surroundings.
e) i) There would be more blue tits because less would e) Natasha’s eye colour — Inherited
be eaten. Natasha’s tattoo — Environmental
ii) There would be fewer aphids because there would Rodney’s haircut — Environmental
be more blue tits eating them. Q2 a)
Eye Colour Tally Number of children
Q7 false, false, true, false, true, false, true
Q8 a) Weasels, foxes and hawks. Brown |||| |||| 9
b) The organisms at the top of the food chain/top Blue |||| |||| || 12
carnivores are worst affected because the poisons Green |||| 5
build up as they are passed along the food chain.
Hazel |||| | 6
c) hawk
b) Bar chart showing the number of children in class with
Section 4 — Inheritance, Variation and 12
brown, blue, green and hazel eyes

Survival 11
Pages 59-60 — DNA and Inheritance 10
Q1 a) A — Nucleus 9
Number of children

B — Chromosome 8

C — Cell 7
6
D — Gene
5
E — DNA 4
b) 3
2
1
C A B D E 0
brown blue green hazel
Q2 a) B should be crossed. Eye colour
b) Genes normally work in pairs.
c) Total number of children = 9 + 12 + 5 + 6 = 32
Q3 a) They fuse together.
Percentage with blue eyes = (12 ÷ 32) × 100
b) i) 46
= 37.5%
ii) 23
d) Discontinuous variation, because eye colour
iii) 23
can only take certain values/falls into distinct
iv) 23
categories, not a continuous range.
v) 1, 1
Q3 a)
c) E.g. during reproduction, the fertilised egg gets one Height (cm) Frequency
copy of each gene from the mother and one from 134 < h ≤ 139 1
the father. Genes control characteristics so this
139 < h ≤ 144 3
means the offspring will have a mixture of their
parents’ characteristics. 144 < h ≤ 149 6
d) heredity 149 < h ≤ 154 8
Q4 a) E.g. X-ray data 154 < h ≤ 159 7
b) A spiral made of two chains wound together.
159 < h ≤ 164 4
164 < h ≤ 169 1

© CGP 2023
 9

KS3 Biology — Answers

b) Bar chart showing the heights of girls in two year 7 classes Pages 67-68 — Extinction and Preserving Species
9 Q1 a) Gorillas survive in rainforests because they
8
are well adapted to compete for food in that
7
environment. When the trees in the rainforest are
cut down to make room for fields, there is less
Number of Girls

6
food for the gorillas to eat. Those gorillas that are
5
less able to compete successfully for food will
4
struggle to survive and reproduce.
3
b) i) Extinct — None of that species are left.
2 ii) Endangered — At risk of becoming extinct.
1 Q2 a) Accept any two things humans use that we obtain
0
134 139 144 149 154 159 164 169
from plants or animals.
Height (cm) For example: clothing/fabric/wool, medicine (or
c) i) Taller than 159 cm an example of a named medicine), fuel/wood,
ii) No taller than 149 cm building materials/wood.
d) Any three from e.g. weight, skin colour, b) You must give two examples that match your
intelligence, leaf area. answers from part a). For example:
Item 1 (wool): Organism — sheep.
Pages 64-66 — Natural Selection and Survival Effect on humans — if sheep became extinct,
Q1 a) i) B. It has bigger claws than A, and twice as many we would need to find other materials to make
claws as C. So lobster B will be better than A and warm clothes from.
C at catching food and defending itself. Item 2 (wood): Organism — pine tree.
ii) Lobster C Effect on humans — if pine trees became extinct,
b) In a population of lobsters the individuals which we would have to use more man-made building
are most like lobster B would be more likely to materials/cut down more of other types of tree.
survive. This means that they are more likely to Q3 a) genes
reproduce and pass their genes on to their young. b) biodiversity
Gradually the whole population would become Q4 a) sperm, eggs
more and more like lobster B. b) They must be frozen.
c) Natural selection c) E.g. use the stored egg and sperm cells to create
Q2 a) E.g. slow rabbits are easier to catch by foxes and so new animal embryos.
not many of them get the chance to reproduce and d) Stop species becoming extinct in the first place,
pass on their genes. by e.g. preventing the destruction of habitats.
b) E.g. fast rabbits are more likely to escape the Q5 E.g. the organisms could be sources of useful
foxes and so have more chance of reproducing products which humans cannot make use of if the
successfully and passing on their genes. species becomes extinct. / Because the rainforest
c) E.g. the fast rabbits are more likely to breed and is a complex ecosystem, the loss of some species
pass on their genes to their offspring, which inherit could have knock-on effects for other species,
the genes for running fast. including humans.
d) E.g. the rabbit from the field with foxes is more
likely to win. In the field with foxes fast rabbits
are more likely to survive and pass on their genes,
while slow rabbits are more likely to be eaten
before they can reproduce. So being fast becomes
more common. In the field without foxes, slow
rabbits are as likely to survive as fast rabbits and
don’t die out. So rabbits from the field without
foxes are more likely to be slow.
Q3 a) These should be circled: Other species that
eat seals, other polar bears.
b) i) genes
ii) E.g. the ice was thicker, so polar bears with
weak limbs couldn’t break the ice to get seals
underneath, so they had nothing to eat and died.
Q4 D, E, A, C, B

© CGP 2023