A LEVEL BIOLOGY A (SNAB): PAST PAPER 1
& GRADING GUIDE THE NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT AND SPECIES SURVIVAL
ALL ASSESSMENT & LEVEL-BY-LEVEL
MARK SCHEME ACTUAL EXAM PAPER 2026
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS GRADED A+
◍ hypothalamus.
Answer: A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several
maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern
the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and
reward.
◍ taxonomic hierarchy.
Answer: Did King Phillip Come Over For Good Soup? Domain Kingdom
Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species.
◍ translation.
Answer: the process whereby genetic information coded in messenger RNA
directs the formation of a specific protein at a ribosome in the cytoplasm
◍ hormone.
Answer: Chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine
glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
◍ relay neurones.
Answer: Nerve cells that carry signals from sensory neurones to motor
neurones
,◍ Anatomical adaptions.
Answer: the structures we can see when we observe or dissect and organism.
◍ spores.
Answer: a minute, typically one-celled, reproductive unit capable of giving
rise to a new individual without sexual fusion, characteristic of lower plants,
fungi, and protozoans.
◍ competition.
Answer: A common demand by two or more organisms upon a limited
supply of a resource; for example, food, water, light, space, mates, nesting
sites. It may be intraspecific or interspecific.
◍ vasodilation.
Answer: A widening of the diameter of a blood vessel; increase the rate of
heat transfer.
◍ speciation.
Answer: A process typically caused by environmental pressures and the
genetic isolation from a main population resulting in a new genetically
distinct species.
◍ species.
Answer: A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile
offspring.
◍ phototropism.
Answer: Plant growth in response to light
◍ pyramid of biomass.
Answer: A pyramid that represents the total biomass of each trophic level
measured in units such as grams of biomass per square metre
◍ kidney transplant.
Answer: replacement of a diseased kidney with one that is supplied by a
compatible donor (usually a family member or a cadaver who has donated
the kidney prior to death)
, ◍ communities.
Answer: Assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined
area
◍ oestrogen.
Answer: Female sex hormone which stimulates the lining of the womb to
build up in preparation for a pregnancy.
◍ auxins.
Answer: Plant hormones that lead to phototropism by elongating the dark
side of the plant, and to gravitropism by inhibiting growth on the underside
of the roots. Stimulate growth in shoots, inhibit growth in roots.
◍ ADH.
Answer: Antidiuretic hormone; controls water levels in the blood, causes
more water to be reabsorbed by the kidneys
◍ decomposers.
Answer: Organisms that break down the dead remains of other organisms
◍ natural selection.
Answer: A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits
tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because
of those traits.
◍ polydactyly.
Answer: A genetic condition inherited through a dominant allele which
results in extra fingers and toes
◍ mitochondrial DNA.
Answer: A small amount of DNA that is located in the mitochondria of
cells. Inherited only through the mother.
◍ Species.
Answer: Group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable
of exchanging genes or interbreeding. The species is the principal natural
taxonomic unit, ranking below a genus and denoted by Latin binomial.
& GRADING GUIDE THE NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT AND SPECIES SURVIVAL
ALL ASSESSMENT & LEVEL-BY-LEVEL
MARK SCHEME ACTUAL EXAM PAPER 2026
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS GRADED A+
◍ hypothalamus.
Answer: A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several
maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern
the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and
reward.
◍ taxonomic hierarchy.
Answer: Did King Phillip Come Over For Good Soup? Domain Kingdom
Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species.
◍ translation.
Answer: the process whereby genetic information coded in messenger RNA
directs the formation of a specific protein at a ribosome in the cytoplasm
◍ hormone.
Answer: Chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine
glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
◍ relay neurones.
Answer: Nerve cells that carry signals from sensory neurones to motor
neurones
,◍ Anatomical adaptions.
Answer: the structures we can see when we observe or dissect and organism.
◍ spores.
Answer: a minute, typically one-celled, reproductive unit capable of giving
rise to a new individual without sexual fusion, characteristic of lower plants,
fungi, and protozoans.
◍ competition.
Answer: A common demand by two or more organisms upon a limited
supply of a resource; for example, food, water, light, space, mates, nesting
sites. It may be intraspecific or interspecific.
◍ vasodilation.
Answer: A widening of the diameter of a blood vessel; increase the rate of
heat transfer.
◍ speciation.
Answer: A process typically caused by environmental pressures and the
genetic isolation from a main population resulting in a new genetically
distinct species.
◍ species.
Answer: A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile
offspring.
◍ phototropism.
Answer: Plant growth in response to light
◍ pyramid of biomass.
Answer: A pyramid that represents the total biomass of each trophic level
measured in units such as grams of biomass per square metre
◍ kidney transplant.
Answer: replacement of a diseased kidney with one that is supplied by a
compatible donor (usually a family member or a cadaver who has donated
the kidney prior to death)
, ◍ communities.
Answer: Assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined
area
◍ oestrogen.
Answer: Female sex hormone which stimulates the lining of the womb to
build up in preparation for a pregnancy.
◍ auxins.
Answer: Plant hormones that lead to phototropism by elongating the dark
side of the plant, and to gravitropism by inhibiting growth on the underside
of the roots. Stimulate growth in shoots, inhibit growth in roots.
◍ ADH.
Answer: Antidiuretic hormone; controls water levels in the blood, causes
more water to be reabsorbed by the kidneys
◍ decomposers.
Answer: Organisms that break down the dead remains of other organisms
◍ natural selection.
Answer: A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits
tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because
of those traits.
◍ polydactyly.
Answer: A genetic condition inherited through a dominant allele which
results in extra fingers and toes
◍ mitochondrial DNA.
Answer: A small amount of DNA that is located in the mitochondria of
cells. Inherited only through the mother.
◍ Species.
Answer: Group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable
of exchanging genes or interbreeding. The species is the principal natural
taxonomic unit, ranking below a genus and denoted by Latin binomial.
